If you like history, rich food, amazing hospitality and the beauty of the ocean and don't want to travel outside the United States, I would definitey recommend Charleston, South Carolina.

It has been four years since I've been there but I am eagerly anticipating when I'll be able to return. It has to be the most charming city I've ever been to and is filled with so much to do that we didn't have enough time to accomplish everything on our list.

We flew into town and I must say that the airport in Charleston is a completely hassle-free experience and very low key. Anxious to get to the city, we rented a car and within minutes we were in the heart of downtown. The information center was easy to find and filled with myriad of information and pamphlets. Across the street is the Charleston museum which is loaded with Civil War and slave history, some which I knew and other information which was entirely new to me. The museum was relatively inexpensive and worth the visit.

We drove about twenty minutes to our hotel, the Wild Dunes Resort, located on the Isle of Palms in a gated community. The hotel is a bit pricey but we indulged ourselves. The ocean was gorgeous, the sand clean and soft, and the homes built along the ocean are a beautiful sight in and of themselves. It has a nationally ranked and rated golf course, several pools, a gazebo which offers shag dance lessons, along with music by a deejay during the week, tennis courts, a wonderful hotel, beach-front villas, cottages, and apartment-style lodging as well. There is a delightful restaurant in the hotel, one which has first-rate food on the golf course, and the gazebo area also has an assortment of kid-friendly food at kid-friendly prices too (chicken fingers, hot dogs, hamburgers, etc.). The only down side was that besides these places there was only one other nearby restaurant which was a sub and pizza place across the street from the hotel. However, once you make a trip into Charleston, there is a plethora of restaurants to choose from in the downtown area. There is fine dining which runs on the high end, money and food wise, but there are also many other places to choose from, which offer chicken and ribs or bars serving the traditional burgers and fries. No matter which way you go, the food is absolutely memorable. We went in June and many of the restaurants offer outside dining. King Street and Queeen Street are both streets where many restaurants

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