Why I Love Charleston

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It’s four in the afternoon on a Monday in February and I decide to go on a run.  Last week classes were cancelled because of ice, but today it’s sunny and in the 70’s.  While some complain about Mother Nature’s serious case of indecisiveness in South Carolina, I thank her for letting me be able to wear leggings and boots one week and shorts and flip-flops the next week.

I slip on my tennis shoes, walk out my door, and am greeted by the incredible weather and shining sun.  I go around the corner, passing three other runners, who smile at me instead of acting like I’m invisible.  Their smiles encourage me to keep running; we’re all in this together.

I’ve made it down to Calhoun Street, running past my college.  The breeze blows through the palm trees, and all of my fellow classmates are tanning and playing football at Marion Square.  I stop running, waiting for the walk symbol to flash, when an older couple asks me for directions.  I point them in the right direction, just in time to go.

Almost to the Battery, I run down Market Street.  Passing all of the tourists and locals in the strip that used to be the old slave market.  Stopping again at another light I see people buying palmetto flowers and sweet grass baskets which were all handmade.

I see the beautiful historical homes to my right and water to my left.  I’ve arrived at the Battery; even more runners in this area.  I notice a bridal party getting their pictures taken in between the trees in White Point Gardens.

On my route back I pass the cobblestone roads and people on their bikes and longboards cruising past the cars.  I thank my parents for choosing to raise me in this beautiful city; I couldn’t imagine calling any other city my home.

Only in Charleston can you have all four seasons in one month, bikers and cars sharing the road, historical homes and new designer stores, and cobblestone roads and a cable-standing bridge. The locals love the tourists and the tourists love the locals.  Everyone can enjoy all the benefits of a small city with a big city feel.