Charleston Real Estate Market

     The buzz around the holiday season seems to be a little different this year. Instead of the mad dashing around from store to store, party to party, I’ve noticed friends scaling back and spending more time than money. Not to the Ebenezer Scrooge degree, of course, but slowing down enough to really enjoy time with friends and family. I guess it’s more of a quality over quantity decision. I’ve got to say I like it. Spending time with friends who are actually present in mind and body and not dashing around is the best gift there is.

     If you are trying hard to get in the spirit, there are plenty of holiday- themed events coming your way. Trees will be lit, carols sung and good cheer will be in the air as the holiday season kicks off.

     Looking for some sand with your Christmas? IOP will light their tree on the first at 6pm on the front beach. Downtown Charleston’s festivities center around Marion Square and kick off with the Tree Lighting on the 3rd from 4:30-6:30.

     The Parade of Boats begins along the Mt Pleasant waterfront at 5:30 and will be visible from downtown right about when the Marion Square festivities are ending. The CSO Gospel Choir will present their Christmas program at the Gaillard beginning at 7:30.  

     Fair Warning: the Reindeer Run will be held on the Lower Peninsula on the morning of the 3rd. Last year over 3,000 folks took part in the 5K Run and Walk. Beginning and ending at the Southend Brewery for a post race party, you might as well join in and not try to get around it!     

     The 4th will see the Charleston Parade from 2-4pm. A free Christmas Concert will be held afterwards at the Gaillard Auditorium at 7pm. The Arrival is presented by the East Cooper Baptist Church.

                  North Charleston is filling the weekend with lots of treats for the kids. A free pre-school program will be held at Amory Park from 10-noon on the 2nd and 3rd. The festivities continue on the 3rd from 4-9pm with the Christmas Parade beginning at 6pm at Mixon and Montague, proceeding around Park Circle and ending at the Armory where the Tree Lighting ceremony will take place.

     The Garden Club of Charleston will deck the halls of the Joseph Manigault House for the month of December beginning on the 3rd. Boone Hall will do the same. No plastic at either location!

     There are more festivities throughout the month. Dressed in all the trappings of the season, the Charleston Stage’s A Christmas Carol runs at the Dock Street Theatre from the 2nd to the 18th.

     If you need a break from your shopping, stop by Wine under the Oaks at Boone Hall on the afternoon of the 4th, noon to 5pm.

     A mother, a daughter and three possible dads…add a trip down the aisle and you have the favorite, Mama Mia! Part of the Best of Broadway series, the show runs the 6th and 7th at the N Chas Performing Arts.

     Back to holiday festivities, the 6th Annual Festival of Wreathes will be at Charleston Place on the 8th from 6-9. Bring a toy, receive a discount on admission.

     Family Yuletide at Middleton Place features storytelling around the campfire, wreath & ornament making on the 10th from 5:30-8pm.

     The Sanctuary at Kiawah has a few new twists on the season.  Saturdays are special at the Sanctuary. Mornings at 11 will be your chance to learn all about decorating Christmas cookies. Who wouldn’t love that project? Then at 2:30, enjoy some hot cocoa while Mr. Claus listens to your wish list during the Storybook Tea with Mrs. Claus.  On the 11th, enjoy the jazz brunch and an exhibition and “how to” seminar on historic holiday tablescapes with the “Charleston Silver Lady.”

     Also on the 11th, the Charleston Men’s Chorus will present their Christmas Concert at the Sottile Auditorium at the College of Charleston at 3 pm. A great way to take a break and get in the mood for the holidays.

     Mt. Pleasant will open their holiday season on the 11th with over 100 floats filling Coleman Blvd. The tree lighting and fireworks will follow at Moultrie Middle School.      

          The Citadel invites you to a free holiday musical concert at their Summerall Chapel on the 13th at 7pm. A hand bell choir and a flute choir, a bagpiper and soloists will be on hand to entertain you.

     If you’re on IOP on the 14th at 4pm and would like your youngster under 12 to learn to decorate cookies, the Rec Center is your place. The 19th will be a day to build Gingerbread Houses.

          Later that day, go back in time and experience the 10th Annual Dickens Dinner at Circa 1886 with a four course meal inspired by “A Christmas Carol” and a retelling of the story at 6:30pm.

     The season wouldn’t be complete without the magic of the Nutcracker. Charleston Ballet will present the seasonal favorite on the 10, 11, 16 and 17th at the Gaillard. Talk about smart! The CBT is joining with the Charleston Animal Society to help find homes for their dogs. Called Muttcracker, the scheme will add dogs needing homes to the Nutcracker’s opening scenes and possibly the party scene. You can meet the “stars” during intermission. The Animal Society will be on hand to make sure it goes off without a hitch.

     Join the Charleston Symphony Gospel Choir at the Gaillard on the 17th at 7:30pm for a wonderful evening of holiday music.

     The Moscow Ballet’s Nutcracker will be at the N Chas Performing Arts Center on the 20th at 7:30. No dogs at this one!
     It’s Chanukah in the Square from 4-6pm at Marion Square on the 20th. Enjoy traditional foods, music and dance and witness the lighting of the nine foot tall menorah by Holocaust survivors.

     Find out exactly “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” at the IOP Rec Center at 1pm on the 21st. It’s free and so is the popcorn!

     It’s Back! Happy New Years Charleston!!! This high energy celebration is a non-alcoholic event featuring family oriented concerts and presentations to mark the beginning of a new year. Held at Marion Square, the free event runs from 4pm-10:30pm on the 31st.

     If you need a respite from the hustle and bustle, the City Gallery has the Watermedia exhibit, works of water by 62 award winning artists from across the state and the Corrigan Gallery has Kristi Ryba’s The Art and Science of Memory, an interesting reconstruction of reality.

      So what’s the world saying about Charleston lately? The CBS Early Show was here recently, touring the town to find out just what there is about us that makes Conde Nast Traveler readers select us as the best town around.

     New Yorker magazine had an interesting article on Husk. It centered on Chef Brock and his farm that preserves and reintroduces heirloom crops and pigs to new audiences.

     Departures, a deluxe American Express venture, did a full spread on “An Insiders Tour: A look at Charleston’s red-hot restaurants, boutiques and historic sites.

     If snow is a must to make your holiday complete and traveling just doesn’t fit your schedule, try the Blizzard at Blue Heron Trail in Ridgeland. According to CNN the Blizzard will hit on the 2nd from 6-9pm.

     Tennis anyone? The Annual Holiday Classic benefitting the Hollings Cancer Center is slated for the 2nd-4th at the Family Circle Tennis Center on Daniel Isl.   

     Don’t forget the Reindeer Run on the 3rd start and finish at the Southend Brewery with a big party at the finish.

     The Jingle Bell Run and Walk will be on the 10th in Mt Pleasant and the 34th Annual Kiawah Island Golf Club Marathon will also be held that day.

     The Citadel’s Bulldog Breakaway Christmas 5K will begin at 8 am at the track, move through a lap around the campus, Hampton Park and back.

     In business news….Streit USA Armoring is expanding its Lowcountry operations and adding about 51 jobs…General Dynamics will acquire Force Protection…Westinghouse will move parts weighing up to 700 tons each through the port here for the Fairfield nuclear plant expansion… and Cummins Technical Center will double its capacity at its Charleston County center and add 31 jobs. They design and make parts for diesel engines.

 Have a safe Holiday season and Be careful on the roads!

    

 

 

 

 

 

Filed under: Around Town on November 29th, 2011