So How Are the Viking Tours?

Today’s visit to Charleston, SC was an interesting experiment for us. It’s not that we don’t know the city. We have visited here regularly since 1984, and at one point even considered moving here. There was a period in my ministry when the Medical University of South Carolina was the closest hospital, and I came down here several times each week. And besides all of that, anyone who knows me will tell you my history genes are on steroids. We know Charleston.

We know it well.

What interested me today is this: I suppose that on our river and ocean cruises with Viking, we have been on nearly a thousand tours: cities, wineries, farms, kitchens, museums, art galleries, concert halls, churches—you name it. This morning Glenda said, “We know Charleston. We have been here hundreds of times. Do you want to cancel our excursion to Charleston? For us, it’s like being home again.”

At first I was inclined to agree with her, but then I thought. “No, let’s go on the excursion, and let’s pretend we don’t know this city. Let’s see whether Viking and their associates in the tourism business do a good job of giving strangers an adequate introduction to places tourists have never been before.”

We started out with a general bus tour of the city under our guide, Roy, a native of Charleston who has worked with several historical organizations before completing the rigid certification required of tour guides. His knowledge and articulate presentation are amazing. He took us to the College of Charleston and the Citadel first, explaining in lucid detail the part these organizations have played in the life of the city. On the campus he showed us the grave of General Mark Clark, one of my heroes, and a longtime resident of Charleston. While he was still living, we used to pass by his house, which bordered the Citadel Campus, just to offer a silent salute. As our bus moved through the city Roy pointed out locations where important battles, disasters and historical events occurred. He discussed the wealth of this city before the Civil War and did not shy away from examining the important place African-Americans played in its history. He explained how Charleston did not begin to recover from the economic disasters of the Civil War until President Theodore Roosevelt put a naval base here in the early 20th century. The Great Depression was another economic kick in the head relieved only by World War II. The federal government is still the city’s largest employer.

The second part of our visit was a walking tour under the capable guidance of Fran, a veteran tour guide, whose family has lived here since colonial days. We walked the streets to see the Charleston single houses and their beautiful gardens in more detail. She discussed the rigid rules of the Board of Architectural Review. We marveled at the infinite variety of the front doors of the houses. She showed us where George Washington stayed, and where George Gershwin got the idea for Porgy and Bess. We saw the palatial hotels where notables such as Theodore Roosevelt, Alexander Graham Bell, and Henry Ford lodged during their visits. She pointed out that up until the Civil War, the per capita income in Charleston was higher than in any other American city. She gave us examples of how life was like before the Civil War, after the cataclysm, and in the early 20th century when poverty was palpable here. She shared her considerable knowledge of the plants and gardens that make this city a horticultural fairyland. Finally we took a detailed tour of the Nathaniel Russell House, a residence whose classical beauty matches anything I have ever seen on either side of the Atlantic.

So the question Glenda and I started with was, “If we knew nothing about the South, would we consider the tour today an adequate introduction to Charleston?”

Our answer is an emphatic “YES!” It was not an exhaustive tour, but in the time we were allowed it could not possibly be so. I have been reading and talking with historians about this place for decades, and I am still learning. Even so, the tour we got today would give a person from a different part of the country a reasonably good introduction to Charleston and the powerful contribution this city made to the culture and history of the Carolinas. It also leads me to believe that the thousand other tours we have taken with Viking have probably given us a fair and reasonable overview of the countries we have visited over the last ten years.

Many thanks to Roy, Fran, and to the folks at Viking who provided such a thorough and balanced introduction to my homeland. We had a great day in Charleston.En savoir plus