00:00 Hello, and welcome to the third episode of our Savannah podcast series.
00:12 I'm Mike from the travel blog for 91days.com, where my partner Juergen and I travel the
00:17 world for 91 days at a time.
00:20 In today's episode, we'll be taking you to explore Savannah's Beach, also known as Tybee
00:25 Island.
00:26 And have you ever heard of roller derby?
00:28 Well, we're off to watch Savannah's Derby Devils take on the Cape Fear Roller Girls.
00:34 And what visit to Savannah is complete without eating at Paula Deen's famous restaurant,
00:38 The Lady and Sons?
00:40 For now, put on your headphones and sit back for the third episode of For 91 Days in Savannah.
00:53 Tybee Island, Savannah's Beach.
00:56 Just a short half-hour drive from Savannah, Tybee Island is the region's top recreational
01:01 destination, with a beach, surf and kayak shops, nature trails, cool restaurants, dolphin
01:07 tours, and just about anything else you might need for a day trip from the city.
01:13 Tybee was our first excursion outside of Savannah.
01:16 Not only is the drive easy, a straight shot east along Victory Road, but it's gorgeous.
01:21 The route crosses over White Marsh Island and follows the course of the Savannah River
01:25 past Fort Pulaski until reaching Tybee.
01:28 Pretty simple, though you might need to plan in time for photo breaks as you explore Georgia's
01:33 picturesque coastal zone.
01:36 Our initial visit to Tybee Island was a quick one.
01:39 We had brought our dog, without realizing that pets are prohibited on the beach since
01:42 turtles come here for nesting.
01:45 So we cracked the windows, left Chucky in the car, and took a short walk down to the
01:49 water and back.
01:50 We didn't have quarters, but figured it was probably fine to skip paying the meter.
01:55 Well, we thought wrong.
01:56 On our return, there was already a cop at our car, writing a ticket, and probably unhappy
02:01 about an unattended caught dog in the car.
02:04 We waited in the shadows for him to depart, then made our own departure from Tybee.
02:08 We'd learn later that the island's parking enforcement is notorious.
02:12 Don't leave your car parked illegally, even for a moment.
02:17 Tybee Island was originally inhabited by the Yuchi Indians, in whose language "Tybee"
02:21 means "salt."
02:23 For a brief period at the end of the 50s, it was renamed Savannah Beach, and although
02:27 the original name has been restored, that's basically what it is.
02:31 The majority of visitors are here on day trips from the city.
02:35 Only about 3,000 people live on Tybee full-time, and I would guess that just about all of them
02:39 are in the tourism business.
02:42 If you'd like to learn more about Tybee Island, head towards its most prominent landmark.
02:45 The Tybee Island Lighthouse can be visited, and includes a small museum dedicated to the
02:49 history of the island.
02:59 Paula Deen's The Lady and Sons
03:01 While we were living in Spain, eating incredible organic dishes fresh off the fields, the Paula
03:06 Deen phenomenon was sweeping America.
03:09 By the time we moved to Savannah, she had become a bona fide celebrity, especially in
03:13 this city.
03:14 No matter where you turn, there she is, her smiling visage peering out of every storefront
03:19 window, dominating the cover of every magazine, sneaking into every conversation.
03:23 "You look skinny," she seems to be saying.
03:26 "Come here and let Mrs. Deen rectify that."
03:31 Everyone we've met in Savannah has had two pieces of advice for us.
03:34 Number one, at all costs, avoid eating at Paula Deen's restaurant, Our Lady and Sons.
03:40 And number two, since eating there is unavoidable, stock up on cholesterol medication.
03:46 I didn't understand how eating at a restaurant could be unavoidable, but that was before
03:50 I talked to my friends and family, all of whom seem to know Savannah primarily as Paula
03:55 Deen City.
03:56 There's my mom.
03:58 "Of course I'll come to visit, sweetie, as long as you promise that we eat at The Lady
04:02 and Sons."
04:04 Or my aunt.
04:05 "Michael, tell me all about Paula's restaurant.
04:08 I'm on pins and needles."
04:09 "Excuse me, what?
04:11 You haven't eaten there yet?
04:13 What's wrong with you, child?
04:15 Are you into the drugs?"
04:16 "No, there is no excuse."
04:20 And so we went to The Lady and Sons.
04:22 It was everything everyone said it would be, both good and bad.
04:25 I have never eaten greasier food.
04:28 Even my beer was greasy.
04:29 Even my napkin.
04:30 It freaked me out.
04:32 But The Lady and Sons seemed to be a sort of deep-fried mecca for most of our fellow
04:36 diners.
04:37 People were moaning with pleasure as they bit into their deep-fried whatever.
04:41 We were transfixed by a woman at the neighboring table who, with every bite of her biscuit,
04:45 was sent into a spasm of gratified rapture.
04:47 So delicious.
04:48 She was literally shaking with delight.
04:51 Although now that I'm reflecting on it, that might have been a heart attack.
04:56 If you're not a Paula Deen fan, I'd say you can comfortably skip The Lady and Sons and
05:00 not feel the slightest bit guilty.
05:01 Savannah has plenty of other restaurants that are more worth your money.
05:05 And if you are a fan of the flamboyant Mrs. Deen, well, I shouldn't waste any more breath.
05:09 You're going regardless of what I say, and you're going to love it.
05:20 Savannah Derby Devils.
05:21 Insanity on Skates.
05:24 One night, we decided to check out a roller derby match between Savannah's own Derby Devils
05:28 and the Cape Fear Roller Girls.
05:31 I had only been familiar with roller derby from the 1980s program Roller Games, Saturday
05:36 afternoons right after American Gladiator.
05:38 And Juergen had never seen it at all.
05:41 The sport practiced by the Derby Devils has absolutely nothing to do with the pro-wrestling-like
05:45 circus I so fondly remembered.
05:48 These chicks play for real, and I was shocked by the brutality of it.
05:51 A couple of these hits could have made a pro footballer cry for mommy.
05:56 Watching the girls bob and weave their way to the front of the pack, barely dodging a
05:59 hip check here, or not dodging that shoulder check there, made for a heart-pounding spectator
06:04 experience.
06:07 It was the last match of the season, and the Super Goose Arena was packed.
06:10 Savannah really gets behind their Derby Devils.
06:13 Fans tailgated for two hours before the match, and much of the audience came equipped with
06:16 signs to cheer on their favorite players, each of whom is known by an awesome stage
06:20 name like "Fear Abby" or "The Sexecutioner Junior."
06:25 Unfortunately for the home crowd, the Roller Girls of Cape Fear were the larger, more terrifying,
06:30 and ultimately superior team.
06:33 But the final score was secondary to the fun which everyone was having.
06:37 And any misgivings I might have had about the authenticity of roller derby have vanished.
06:41 It was way better than I had expected.
06:51 In the Water with North Island Kayak
06:54 There are a lot of activities you can do on Tybee Island, but one of the most popular
06:58 is kayaking.
07:00 We decided to take my brother, who happened to be visiting, as a surprise present for
07:04 his birthday.
07:07 We arrived early at North Island Surf and Kayak on the interior border of Tybee Island.
07:11 The shop's owner was out of town, but his parents had come down from Augusta to manage
07:15 the place.
07:16 They were a friendly couple, possessed of that southern tendency to warm up immediately
07:20 to complete strangers.
07:22 We enjoyed some long conversations with them both before and after kayaking, and as we
07:26 were leaving at the end of the day, we all got hugged.
07:30 We spent the whole day out on the water, paddling up the Lazaretto Creek which flows inland,
07:34 and then into the ocean.
07:36 It was a wonderful experience, the highlight of which came when a dolphin surfaced just
07:40 ten feet from my kayak.
07:42 Being outdoors on a perfect, warm fall morning, exercising muscles that haven't been used
07:46 in years, and seeing a dolphin as well?
07:49 It couldn't have been better.
07:51 The kayaks can be leased for the whole day, and they're of good quality.
07:55 The water around here is also generally calm.
07:58 Despite being total newbies to the sport, none of us were ever in danger of capsizing.
08:03 And the shop is perfectly situated on the banks of the river, giving you the choice
08:07 to go upstream, paddle over to Fort Pulaski, or just to cruise along the coast of Tybee.
08:14 North Island also offers day-long guided tours, so if you're in the mood for some exercise
08:19 in a beautiful area, check them out.
08:20 [music]
08:29 No liquor, no slaves, no lawyers, no Catholics.
08:35 When he founded Savannah, the capital of his newly-charted colony of Georgia, James Oglethorpe
08:40 had some utopian ideas.
08:42 His planned city would be built around four squares and four simple prohibitions.
08:47 No rum, no slavery, no lawyers, no papists.
08:54 Oglethorpe's vision for an idyllic society didn't last long.
08:57 Like any American kid up until the age of 21 could tell you, banning liquor just makes
09:02 you want it more.
09:03 That was a doomed policy from the get-go, especially in the hard days of the city's
09:07 inception.
09:09 The ban on slavery was noble, but sadly ahead of its time.
09:13 Slavery was legal in South Carolina, and nearby Charleston was flourishing.
09:18 Jealous of their neighbors' wealth, it didn't take long for unscrupulous Savannians to revolt
09:22 against their leader's decree.
09:24 Soon enough, affable society folk were lounging on the front porches of their plantation houses,
09:29 sipping Chatham artillery punch while getting rich off the labor of others.
09:34 The ban on Catholics?
09:36 That's more curious, considering Savannah's tolerance towards other religions.
09:40 But Georgia was originally founded as a buffer zone between the Carolinas and Spanish Florida.
09:47 It wasn't the Catholic belief in transubstantiation that earned Oglethorpe's distrust, but because
09:53 they might be Spanish spies.
09:55 This was another law that would soon be relaxed after the colony's founding.
10:00 And the decree against lawyers?
10:01 Please, that one never had a chance.
10:03 An aspiring lawyer probably just sued until the city realized they'd need a lawyer of
10:07 their own to defend their anti-lawyer law.
10:17 We hope you're enjoying our stories from Savannah.
10:19 If so, please subscribe to our podcast so you don't miss any episodes.
10:23 And of course, you can read all about this amazing city and admire photos on our blog,
10:28 savannah.for91days.com.
10:31 [music]
