Just do it #15: Turn 30 in style!

So... I turned 30 this past Friday. And you know how I was kinda worried about this birthday? It ended up being fabulous! I spent the weekend...

* seeing a new city

* hanging out with senior citizens

* eating in a haunted house

* feeding alligators

* partying at a piano bar

* and puking

Woo hoo to my thirties!

But I'm getting ahead of myself. :)

Anyway, Dan and I made the trek down to Savannah late Thursday because I had dentist and doctor appointments during the day. After an 8+ hour car ride and finally crashing in a Super 8, we were tired and cranky. I was feeling a little low about turning 30 the next day for a few reasons too long to go into now (though looking at myself in the flourescently lit mirror and feeling ugly and finding one strand of hair that had turned all wiry and gray probably didn't help.)

But then, the next day we awoke to perfect weather, drove to the beautiful B & B, and had the most fantastic day ever! We pulled up to this house:

I can't say enough about the Catherine Ward House. It had a stunning interior straight out of Southern Living magazine:

We dropped our stuff off in the top room of the guest house, which was the most chic, comfortable room we've ever stayed in. I mean, we're used to Super 8, people. A double shower? Robes? Working fireplace? Flatscreen behind two way mirror? I think we're officially spoiled for a lifetime.

Our room had a private balcony with a view of the courtyard: I just had to snap pictures of all the pretty touches, so forgive the constant flower pictures in this post.

Loved the little koi pool they had...

The B & B was located about a block and a half from Forsyth park, where I completely fell in love with Savannah:

How can you not love a city that is a postcard snapshot at every turn?

We grabbed lunch and walked through all the squares. And no, there is no end to Dan's penchant for cheesy photo ops...

The below picture is in front of the Mercer House, where the murder took place in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. We listened to the book on tape on the way down to make the time go by faster, and it wasn't until we listened to the author's interview at the end that we realized it was a true story.

Don't worry, the over-the-top southern drawl on the book on tape caused Dan to use a car-razy Savannah accent the entire time we were here, a la Michael Scott during the episode of The Office where he hosts a murder mystery party in "Savannah". The joke wore thin after his hundredth, "I do declare..."

Anyway, after walking around for a while, we went on the Savannah Home Tour, an annual spring event. When we stood in line to check out the first house, Dan nudged me and whispered, "Look around! We're the youngest ones here!" Let's just the majority of people interested in architecture and home design would have received a senior citizen discount. But I didn't care. I relax after school by checking out every design blog out there, so touring extraordinary houses is my idea of a good time.

Unfortunately, there was a strict no camera policy, even on the exteriors, but trust me, the homes were gorgeous. My favorites were the ones that were classic brick and wrought iron details on the outside, but when you enter they were Domino modern. There was one kooky mansion that had bright lime green walls and a coffee table made out of books and the craziest artichoke light fixture I've ever seen.

After the home tour, Dan and I went to Leopold's classic parlor for banana fosters ice cream as this trip was one big eat-a-thon and toured around some more.

Later that night, Dan and I ate at the Old Pink House, a Savannah restaurant known for three things: being on the Food Network show The Best Thing I Ever Ate, the pepto bismal pink exterior, and having a 212 year old ghost who, according to legend, is still seen by the occasional cook. I'll go into the meal on my next post, but let me just say it was absolutely amazing. And fattening. Pure Savannah decadence.

And we finished my birthday by going to a piano bar where we sang along as the dueling pianists banged out "Sweet Home Alabama" and Sir Mixalot's "Baby got back". Classy.

I'm usually not much of a drinker, but Dan coaxed me (peer pressured me?) to try a few of the "Savannah shooters", which got me hammered. We walked the mile back to our B & B still singing and drinking from our "travelers", with us commenting how awesome it was to be in a city where you can actually finish your drink on the walk home.

Yeah... two hours later I regretted having that traveler. It was the straw that broke the camel's back, people. I got so sick. I was curled up in the fetal position. I wanted to die.

But then I was like, "WOO HOO! I THREW UP ON MY THIRTIETH! I'M STILL YOUNG AND IMMATURE!!"

Best. birthday. ever.