Parris Island Pt. 2 and Beaufort, South Carolina

Next we headed down Parris Island's History and Nature Trails and found a few items of interest.

These are the remains of a Brewster Buccaneer Scout Bomber which crashed in 1943 near Page Field. Both crewmen survived the crash.

Marlon gives up...he can't read Spanish.

Little does he notice that the bottom half of the sign is in English and says it is a tribute to the Spaniards who made their mark here between 1566 and 1587.

We found this rattlesnake along the trail and decided to take it home as a pet.

In the mud on Parris Island you'll see and hear thousands of creepy little fiddler crabs. They eat delicious decaying plant and animal matter sifted from sand and mud.

The lighthouse keeper used to live here.

We came across this bird and decided to take it home as a pet.

Recruits were training on the rifle range...

but still not training on the obstacle course. This obstacle course is called Leatherneck Square.

This is a tribute to all past and present, nice and mean, Marine Corps drill instructors.

This familiar monument commemorates the 1945 flag raising at Iwo Jima.

This version, constructed of coated plaster, was used to raise money for the much larger bronze version erected in Arlington Cemetery in Washington, D.C.

A brief video of Parris Island...

Next we took a short drive to nearby Beaufort, South Carolina (that's "byew-furt", not to be confused with Beaufort "bo-furt", North Carolina).

There we found this church, the First African Baptist, which originated in 1863.

We found the house used as the setting for the 1983 baby boomer movie "The Big Chill" starring Jeff Goldblum, William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Mary Kay Place, Meg Tilly and JoBeth Williams.

The same house was also used in the 1979 film "The Great Santini".

Finally, we located this house which was used in the filming of the 1991 Barbra Streisand-Nick Nolte feature "The Prince of Tides".

For more pictures of items in this entry, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/may/parris-island-and-b/ pictures 46-96.

To be continued...

Parris Island, South Carolina Pt. 1

Today we headed over to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island where they proudly proclaim, "We Make Marines".
At least one million Marine Corps recruits have been trained on Parris Island since training began here in 1915, when recruits arrived by boat.

The Parris Island Museum is an excellent source of historical information on the island and the Marines.

The oldest marine to be trained on Parris Island was 50 year old, future Illinois Senator Paul H. Douglas.

On display at the museum, you will find uniforms from all eras of the 233 year history of the Marines.

Parris Island is THE place female recruits from all over the US receive their initial training. Generally, only male recruits living east of the Mississippi train here with those living west of the Mississippi training in San Diego.

Prior to training recruits, Parris Island served as a training center for corps officers. Here's a picture of the first graduating class of officers in 1909.

Uniforms from the World War II through the Gulf War...

New recruits assemble on the ground floor of the Parris Island Museum for a museum orientation.

Brand new exhibits at the museum feature the Global War on Terrorism.

Did you know the Marines have, on occasion, been called upon by the President of the United States to protect the U.S. Mail?

New recruits perform drills many hours of the day.

One of the training obstacle courses...

Rifle formations...

"Iron Mike" is a memorial to Parris Island Marines who gave their lives in World War I.

"Molly Marine" is dedicated to the service of all Women Marines.

Check out the video below for some Parris Island footage...

For more pictures, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/may/parris-island-and-b/ pictures 1-45.

To be continued...

Fort Pulaski & Cindigenous-Local Short Films of Savannah

After the trolley tour, we headed over to Fort Pulaski National Monument. Fort Pulaski was constructed of about 25 million bricks all transported by golf carts like the one seen below!

Standing on top of the fort walls which survived the Battle of Fort Pulaski in 1862. The Fort even features spiral staircases!

The Tybee Island Lighthouse can be seen in the distance.

An enemy ship is spotted close by.

The POW quarters feature these bunk beds which accommodate a total of 8 POW's each...4 on top and 4 on bottom.

The purpose of this blindage was to create a bomb or splinter proof shield to enclose the rear of encasements.

This large area inside Fort Pulaski is widely believed to be the location of the invention of the game of baseball. The game was initially called rounders. Of course, the cannon would not be on the playing field...

Leaving Fort Pulaski, you cross the moat. The moat ranges from 30 to 48 feet wide and is generally 8 feet deep.

One of Fort Pulaski's hiking trails leads you to the water's edge.

Fort Pulaski is featured in our Savannah highlight video below.
After leaving the Fort, we headed to Telfair Square's Jepson Center for the Arts for a screening of short films, an event called Cindigenous.

Before the screening, Doug tried on some native dress.

The films screened were either filmed locally, produced locally, or somehow have ties to Savannah.

The films included "The Street Cleaner", which told the story of disappearing women of Savannah; the stop-motion animated short "The Madness of Being"; and a film entitled "And Then She Was Gone" featuring Savannah resident Diana Scarwid.

After the short films, it was time for Marlon to take a short rest on a long bench.

The squares of Savannah provide many opportunities for breathtaking nighttime pictures.

A view up the steps down to River Street.

For more pictures of these parts of our Savannah tour, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/may/savannah-ga-day-2/ pictures 100-174.

To be continued...