Southern Cemetaries

We are finally in the wonderful city of Savannah. We spent all of yesterday travelling, and landed in the city around midnight. We came home and unpacked, and then turned in for the night. Today was our real first taste of the city. Before we delve into any interviews, we need to get a sense of the landscape and scope out potential locations for interviews. We started the day with a driving tour of the city with Bella's family, which was immensely helpful since they are local. We drove around the different squares, identified potential interview sites (A psychic's shop, a famous sculptor's church exhibit, an antique records store, the list goes on), and spent some time with the Savannah paper finding contact information for locals we may want to get in touch with. Next, we drove to the famous Bonaventure Cemetery. It is, rightfully so, a point of pride for Savannah. Most of the cemeteries I have seen in Cleveland are on the side of the road, while Bonaventure covers acres and acres of private green land, leading right down to the Savannah River. We saw gravestones earliest dated at 1809, and latest dated in the late 20th century. There are enormous mausoleums and sculptures to honor the dead, but most striking was the cemeteries relationship with the natural world around it. Instead of a cleared plot for gravestones, the gravestones obey the enormous trees that occupy the land, yards of thick moss hanging from their branches. It does not look like a man made entity, and it is one of the more peaceful places I have ever been. We read the story of a little girl named Gracie, a charming little girl who's parents owned a hotel in Savannah in the late 1800's. She was as known throughout the south as the hotel was, and by the age of five people were making special stops to the hotel just to spend time with her. At the age of six she tragically passed away while suffering a bout of pneumonia. Her grave is adorned with a life size statue of her (which is in perfect condition), that aims to capture her innocence and grace as a young girl. There is a gate surrounding the grave, to preserve it's integrity, and it became just as much of an attraction after her passing as she was while she frequented the hotel. Lots of material already, and surely more to come.