Georgia Becksteads: Girls Weekend!

Alyssa made the Georgia All-State Chorus again this year!

That meant a trip to Savannah for the me and the girls!
Alyssa had rehearsals from Thursday afternoon to Saturday morning and then the performance Saturday afternoon. It is busy few days for her singing, and a busy few days for Natalie and I running around Savannah. We grabbed Alyssa every chance we got (meal breaks) and showed her the fun stuff.
We got there with enough time to look around the visitor's center and have lunch at the "Whistle Stop Cafe" next to the Railroad Museum. It was in an old train car which was really fun.

Then we walked Alyssa over to the start of her rehearsals. We love the moss in the trees.

Knowing what she was getting into for the next few days, Alyssa needed to "bask" for the few minutes before the first rehearsal started.

Last year it was really cold. This year the weather was beautiful! We had a bit of rain Friday, but loved every minute of the wonderful spring weather.
Once Alyssa was settled, Natalie and I were off to the river walk.
They have really steep and narrow (not very much space to put your foot) stairs that lead down to the river. Natalie doesn't mind going up them, but didn't like going down them at all.

We didn't drive over the bridge this year, but Natalie thinks it is really cool and wanted a picture with it.

Natalie loves the little boat sandbox, so we got a picture of that too.

We did lots of window shopping and trying things on.

Natalie loves hats.

When Alyssa had a break for dinner, we got a quick bit to eat, and headed back to the shops.
T-shirts are a staple in any touristy area, and Savannah is no exception. We found this one that reminded us of one of the girls' cousins.

Alyssa had evening rehearsals as well and didn't finish until after 9pm. The cool moss in the trees gets a little spooky at night.

We walked everywhere - seriously, we didn't drive the car for two full days, except to go to the beach. We love all the squares around Savannah. Each named for someone and usually with statues and monuments.

The Girl Scouts started in Savannah, with founder - Juliette Gordon Low. Her house is in Savannah and this emblem in one of the squares nearby.

It's hard to pick a favorite square, they are all so beautiful - especially in the spring, but we had to admit that Pulaski Square was one of the more beautiful ones. It was near were Alyssa was signing but we normally don't go down that way, we're glad we did and that we found it.

A must stop is The Lady and Sons (Paula Deen's restaurant) - the Paula Deen store is right next to it and fun to look through as well. We cruised over for lunch on Friday.

Delicious hoecakes and cheese biscuits are what you start out with.

We had fabulous fried green tomatoes and the girls split a chicken pot pie - so good!

We definitely had to walk around after that to work off our lunch!
Alyssa's longest break is Friday for dinner. We picked something up before getting her, to eat on the way, and went right down to the beach. Last year we missed seeing the lighthouse (they don't sell tickets after 4:30pm! and Alyssa doesn't get out of practice until 4pm), this year, she got out a bit early and we barely made it - we were the last people they sold tickets too.

After climbing over 200 steps we finally made it to the top.

The view was well worth it.
The lighthouse keepers had to make that climb nine times a day with buckets of kerosene that, when full, were over 40 pounds - quite a workout.
Going down was much easier.

It was fun going around to all the buildings around the lighthouse and seeing how the lighthouse keepers lived and worked.

We love museums and history!
After the lighthouse we went to the beach and had a good hour to play in the sand and the surf. Just a bit of the surf for me, the water was still really cold.

The water didn't feel so cold to the girls,

after they were in it for a while and got use to it.

I had the girls jump across to these rocks for a picture.

Alyssa was a little hesitant going back - trying to wait for the water to recede to most.

It was a beautiful evening at the beach. We wished we didn't have to get Alyssa back so soon and could have stayed longer.

Not only on the river walk are there great shops, but all throughout the historic district of Savannah.
We love the honey store. Alyssa didn't make it there last year, so we were sure to take her this time. Here they are in the hive hanging out on bean bags and checking out the information about bees.

I grew up with beehives and spinning out our own honey. I love all the smells and tastes of that store. It definitely brings back memories.
We went to the history museum in town.

It was really cool and had so many different exhibits

talking about all different time periods and aspects of the area.

It was finally time for the All-State Chorus performance.

This year Alyssa was in the Treble Chorus (all girls - and one boy).

The practicing paid off - they sounded wonderful.
They did six different selections, each in a different language.

Each was too long to post the whole song - so you just get a clip of two.
You can see from the picture above that Alyssa is in the second row down from the top and the second in, behind the girl with buttons on her sweater. One day I'll sit in just the right spot so you can actually see her completely when she sings. During the first song they swayed a bit near the end and you can see her peek out.
This first is Mangwani Mpulele by Theodore Bikel, a traditional South African song.

This second clip is from the song J'Entends Le Moulin by Donald Patriquin. Sung in French.

After the performance, one last trip to the river walk to pick up treats for the drive home.