It took me quite a while to admit that I would never move back “home” to Massachusetts. Half of my family lives there, but after 14 years of living in the South, I know it’s where I belong. Charleston, specifically, is a wonderful city to live in for many reasons.
1. The weather. Although hot and humid, we have beautiful summers. We can go to the beach more than half the year and our winters are very mild. It was so nice this afternoon that Matt and I decided to walk the Ravenel Bridge. Say hello to Matt. I’m sure you remember him from previous posts.
While walking the bridge, he noticed an interesting rule for users of the bicycle and pedestrian lane: “No jumping, bungee-jumping, base-jumping, catapulting, or any like act from the bridge.” Um, what? Catapulting?
2. Local vendors! One of my new favorite products are these pickles from Charleston Pickle Company. I picked up two jars last week and I couldn’t get home soon enough to eat them. I tried to open them in the car but they were sealed too tight! 
As soon as I walked in, I opened a jar and started eating them with a fork. 
3. Charleston is called “The Holy City” because we have so many churches. I am not a member of one in particular, but would like to be, so Matt and I decided we’re church hopping to find one we like. It sounds like we are married. Having both attended East Cooper Baptist before, we decided to try Seacoast’s contemporary service. We both enjoyed the experience but want to go back to one of their traditional services. 
4. Restaurants open all the time. The new Triangle Char & Bar opened up in Mt. Pleasant, so a few of us went after church. I had the Classic Cuban: ham, pork loin, Swiss, Cuban mustard, pickle, on pressed bread with “sweet sticks.” Sadly, there were only 3 pickle slices on the whole thing. Next time I will ask for extra extra pickles.
5. The people. It is incredibly easy to make friends here because everyone is so friendly. I always chuckle when I visit my family in Massachusetts because the majority of the people really aren’t interested in who you are/what you have to say. Last fall, a survey conducted by Travel + Leisure magazine concluded that Charleston has the most attractive people. I’d like to think that’s true – I have some pretty friends!
6. Just last week Travel & Leisure magazine also ranked Charleston as the #2 U.S. city to live in! This is pretty big, considering New York City is #1 and Chicago is #3. See the rest of the list here.
7. Trader Joe’s is opening in Mt. Pleasant on July 29th! I am sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo excited. Yes, that excited. Here is the progress as of last week. 
8. Last but not least, I have some exciting news. I have begun writing a weekly blog post on the new Mt. Pleasant Patch, a site dedicated to covering news, events, and more. You can find my introductory post with healthy living tips here. Stop by and say hello!