Abbeville Christmas

This is Jack and Bud. We met them in Abbeville SC last weekend. Each year the first Saturday of December is set aside for Abbeville's Christmas celebration. Abbeville was an important part of the Civil war. According to some locals, it was the Confederacy was born here, and died here.
The old part of town gets all dressed up and many of the locals come in period costumes. (Some businesses offer discounts to people who dress appropriately to encourage it.) Jack and Bud were kind enough (for a small fee) to give us a ride. The carriage is quite comfortable but a little chilly. The horses were friendly and so was the driver.
The lanterns were for sale in one of several local antique shops we visited. The flower is a Camilla. They look a bit like roses, but have no scent. This particular bush is the size of a tree. It was quite

cold and most of the flowers had faded but I could not resist this one.
The Burt-Stark Mansion is a beautiful old Southern house where Jefferson Davis stayed at the end of the war. It is open for tours and on this Saturday, it was free after 3:00.
Reenacters were camped on the grounds, they even had a very convincing Jefferson Davis. At one point they staged a running battle up to the steps, complete with cannon fire. We joked about the fact that it might be safer not to talk, (I don't have a Southern accent). Accent or not everyone we met was friendly.

There are quite a few lovely old houses in Abbeville and a beautiful church. Usually they open some of the private residents for tours to raise money for charity during the Christmas

festivities. This weekend they didn't. I hope they

do next year.
The Christmas village was on display in the Chamber of Commerce office. The starry sky affect was achieved simply by hanging twinkle lights behind blue cloth with a few tiny holes in it. The effect in person is quite magical.

The last two photos are of my place. I still think it is one of the prettiest places around. The second is moonrise as seen from my side porch. The first is sunset over my summer kitchen a few nights ago. Hope you enjoy.

Kat