Spouse Schedule

Monday, July 16
Spouses’ Tours

The South Carolina agents have planned a variety of tour experiences for you and your spouse’s enjoyment.  From history and heritage to nature and art, our guest will have fun touring the Palmetto State. All tours are within 20 miles of the Convention Center; professional tour guides and/or escorts are provided by Charleston Convention and Group Services. Water, snacks and lunch* will be provided on each tour (except for #4, which will have water/snacks and lunch on your own). All tours will depart between 8:00 and 8:30 a.m. and return between 3:45 and 4:30 p.m. Departure times are subject to change. 

(H)= Handicapped/wheelchair accessible/baby stroller friendly

E = Easy (minimal walking, seating available)

M = Moderate (some walking and/or standing, relatively level).  Wear comfortable shoes!

$ = Gift shop/shopping available

Spouses’ Tour 1 – Boone Hall Plantation & Charleston’s Lowcountry Cuisine: M  $
The world-famous Avenue of Oaks leads to America’s most photographed Plantation house and gardens.  Enjoy a tractor tour of the working farm and its variety of wildlife. A tour of the colonial revival plantation house is followed by the Gullah Show, depicting African-American life on the plantation through stories and song. Lowcountry delicacies can be sampled at the tasting at Boone Hall Farms, featuring plantation-grown fruits and vegetables. A delicious lunch buffet at Gullah Cuisine is included. www.boonehallplantation.com

Spouses’ Tour 2 – Magnolia Gardens & Drayton Hall (The Drayton Family Legacy): M  $
Our visit to two of the finest plantations in the lowcountry begins at the early 19th century Magnolia Gardens.  Board the Nature Train for a  tour of the Audubon Swamp Garden with its large collection of azaleas and camellias, sixty unique acres of blackwater cypress and tupelo swamp, the home of local and exotic species of plant and animals, including alligators and abundant birds.  Tour includes restored slave cabins and interpretation of African-American life on the plantation.  www.magnoliaplantation.com Continue on to pre-Revolutionary Drayton Hall, the finest Georgian Palladian Plantation house in the south.  The house’s amazing architecture and craftsmanship tell the story of the Drayton Family and its community over two centuries.  http://www.draytonhall.org/ Box lunch in the conservatory at Magnolia Gardens is included.

Spouses’ Tour 3 – Grand Houses and Old City Market: M  $
View the lovely antebellum homes along the Battery, eighteenth century Rainbow Row and the magnificent public buildings in Charleston’s beautiful old historic district.  Tour two of Charleston’s finest grand houses, both with an outstanding collection of Charleston-made furniture.  First, the Heyward-Washington House, build in 1772 and its original kitchen house furnished as it would have been in the late 1700s.  www.charlestonmuseum.org/heyward-washington-house Next, tour the Nathaniel Russell House, a grand Federal townhouse set amid spacious formal gardens, featuring a  spiraling cantilevered staircase.  www.historiccharleston.org/experience/nrh/ Numerous architecturally significant homes and exquisite gardens will be pointed out by your expert guide along the way.  After the tour, lunch will be provided at A.W. Shucks or Gilligans, then spend some time browsing in the Old City Market.  This 200-year old brick market building features local artisans with sweetgrass baskets, chinaberry jewelry, souvenirs and more.

Spouses’ Tour 4 –  A Day at the Beach:  Isle of Palms:  $  E  (H)
County park features 600 feet of ocean frontage, dunes, boardwalk, showers, restrooms, lifeguards, playground, sand volleyball court, chair & umbrella rentals, retail area and vending.  Beachcombers love the variety of seashells found here, from sand dollars to whelks, to olives and angel wings.  Osprey nests can be spied, pelicans soar and dive for their dinner, dolphins frolic, and giant loggerhead sea turtles come ashore to lay their eggs.  You can also cast your own line and fish from the beach.  Lunch on your own – lots of restaurants nearby.  BYO Sunscreen! http://www.ccprc.com/index.aspx?nid=60

Spouses’ Tour 5 - Fine Arts & Artists of Charleston Walking Tour: M  $  (H) 
Over twenty-five commercial and institutional art galleries are within walking distance of each other in downtown Charleston. The walking tour is all within a four block radius, with short walks between air-conditioned stops.  First, we visit Charlesto3 City Hall Council Chambers which houses one of the finest collections of portrait art in the country.  http://www.charleston-sc.gov/dept/content.aspx?nid=471 Next, we visit the Birds I View Gallery to view the work of Ann Worsham Richardson, official painter of the S.C. state butterfly, bird and flower. http://www.anneworshamrichardson.com/ Opened in 1905, the Gibbes Museum of Art houses a collection of over 10,000 paintings, prints and drawings, principally American with a Charleston or Southern connection from the 18th century to the present.  www.gibbesmuseum.org After the tour, lunch will be provided at A.W. Shucks or Gilligans, then spend some time browsing in the Old City Market. This 200-year old brick market building features local artisans with sweetgrass baskets, chinaberry jewelry, souvenirs and more.

Wednesday, July 18
Spouses’  Luncheon

 “Taste the Lowcountry” Our featured speaker will be a local Charleston chef and cookbook author participating in the Fresh on the Menu program administered by the South Carolina Department of Agriculture. Participating chefs agree to prepare menus that include at least 25% Certified South Carolina Grown foods and products in season and feature the Fresh on the Menu brand. These chefs recognize the value in supporting local for not only their bottom lines, but also for the difference South Carolina local products and produce make on the taste of food.

Spouses’ Workshops

Spouses’ Workshop 1M – Sweetgrass Baskets: Learn how to make a coiled sweetgrass basket, a historically significant example of African cultural heritage typical of the Mount Pleasant area just north of Charleston.  The hand-crafted baskets, made of palm fronds, native sweetgrass and pine needles, require a great deal of patience and creativity and are the official state handcraft of South Carolina.

Spouses’ Workshop 2M – Knitting: Knitting experts will join us for a beginning lesson: how to cast on, knit, purl, and cast off.  Needles and yarn will be supplied, or bring your own favorites for a fun workshop that will have you in stitches!

Spouses’ Workshop 3M - Ghosts and Legends of Charleston: Local historian and acclaimed tour guide will share tales of the Holy City’s spectral past, including Sue Howard’s Ghost, The Whistling Doctor, Gullah Superstitions, Hidden Cemetaries and the Bloody Alley. .This is your chance to find out first-hand why “Charles Towne” is a city wrapped in wonder and superstition.

Spouses’ Workshop 4M – Learn to Shag: The Official State Dance of South Carolina is based on a swing dance called “The Big Apple.”  The Carolina Shag is danced to “beach music” tunes with 4/4 “blues shuffle” structure and moderate/fast tempo, such as the Embers (“I Love Beach Music”), General Johnson (“Carolina Girls”) and the Original Drifters (“Under the Boardwalk”).  Put on your loafers and slide across the hardwood floor with the expert shaggers!

Spouses’ Workshop 5M – Local and Lo-Cal :  Healthy Low Country Cooking: Fresh, local ingredients.  Light, delicious fare.  Learn how the two CAN be combined into a satisfying meal, based on traditional recipes of the Carolina Low Country (low lying areas along the coast), such as unique ways to prepare vegetables, grains, and seafood.

Spouses’ Workshop 6M –Embroidery Charleston Style: Learn some new embroidery stitches from a local needlework expert, and create a lasting memory of your trip to Charleston with a special hand-made (by you!) souvenir.

Spouses’ Workshop 7M –Longer-lasting Flower Arrangements: Local garden club members will help you create a beautiful floral design using materials common to the Carolina low country landscape.  We will also learn how to condition cut flowers so they will last longer in your arrangements. 

Spouses’ Workshop 8M – Wine Pairings: Develop or expand your knowledge of “What wine goes with that meal?” from a sommelier, or wine steward, from a local fine restaurant.  This trained and knowledgeable professional specializes in all aspects of wine service as well as wine and food matching. 

Spouses’ Workshop 9M - Woodworking Demonstration: Doorknobs, bowls, and fine writing instruments can all be turned on a wood turning lathe.  Here’s your chance to learn about turning wood into objects that will turn heads.

Afternoon Workshops

(Repeat of Morning Workshops)

Spouses’ Workshop 1A – Sweetgrass Baskets

Spouses’ Workshop 2A – Knitting

Spouses’ Workshop 3A –Ghosts and Legends of Charleston

Spouses’ Workshop 4A – Learn to Shag

Spouses’ Workshop 5A – Local and Lo-Cal :  Healthy Low Country Cooking

Spouses’ Workshop 6A –Embroidery Charleston Style

Spouses’ Workshop 7A –Longer-lasting Flower Arrangements

Spouses’ Workshop 8A – Wine Pairings

Spouses’ Workshop 9A - Woodworking Demonstration

For all spouses’ tours and workshops, Professional Improvement Credits for public school teachers will be applied for through the South Carolina Dept. of Education.