This got me thinking about the different types of porches I've experienced around the world. They go by many names--verandas, terraces, decks, balconies, piazzas--but they're all covered spaces that allow one to enjoy the outdoors with some protection from the elements.
Here are five of my all-time favorite porches:
1. Piazza of Governor's House Inn, Charleston, South Carolina
I know piazza means "plaza" or "public square" in Italian, but the large, wrap-around porches in Charleston's historic district are also known as piazzas.
My son Andy and I stayed at the Governor's House Inn a few years ago, and our suite led directly to the second-story piazza, which was furnished with wicker and rattan chairs and settees, plants, books, tables--a true outdoor living room. The piazza overlooks Broad Street, as well as a small garden filled with live oaks.
I got up at six a.m. and sat on the piazza, watching the sunrise and soaking in the pure "Southernness" of it all. Pure magic.
An interesting note: to get to the piazza from the house, you pass through triple-hung windows (they slide up) rather than doors. The house was built this way (circa 1760) to avoid a tax on doorways.
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| Piazza at Governor's House Inn, Charleston, South Carolina. |
2. Veranda at Sans Souci, Jekyll Island, Georgia
Another great Southern porch is that of the Sans Souci building, a one-time high-end condominium that stands next to the Jekyll Island Club Hotel.
Jekyll Island was developed in the 1880s as a club for America's Captains of Industry: Vanderbilts, Morgans, Pulitzers and Rockefellers, to name a few. As the original hotel eventually became less exclusive, men like J.P. Morgan built their own "cottages" (mansions, actually) and condominiums in order to have more privacy.
Sans Souci originally had six units, one of which belonged to Mr. Morgan. Today the building has been turned into hotel rooms, but the magnificent veranda remains. From the second floor, where Andy and I stayed, you look directly into a live oak--it feels something like being in a tree house.
| Exterior view of Sans Souci, Jekyll Island, Georgia. |
| Sans Souci veranda, complete with rocking chairs. |
3. Deck at Rosewood Mayakoba, Riviera Maya, Mexico
At the Rosewood Mayakoba, you can choose suites that overlook the ocean or a series of lagoons. Mine overlooked a lagoon surrounded by mangroves. More than a hundred species of wildlife inhabit the area, including crocodiles, turtles, and endangered birds.
The deck--which extended out over the water--was equipped with a plunge pool (since crocodiles are swimming in the lagoon). It was so quiet I would sit in the pool at night and listen to a symphony of bird calls.
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| Deck of a deluxe over-water lagoon suite, Rosewood Mayakoba. |
4. Terrace, El Conquistador Resort, Fajardo, Puerto Rico
El Conquistador--a massive complex including hotel rooms, restaurants, golf courses, and a water park--clings to the edge of a cliff overlooking the Caribbean. The hotel's ocean-view terraces--in addition to providing access to sea breezes and views of aquamarine water--often offer glimpses of the island of Vieques.
With year-round temperatures in the 70s and 80s, El Conquistador always has perfect porch weather.
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| Ocean-view terrace at El Conquistador Resort, Fajardo, Puerto Rico. |
5. Balcony, River Street Inn, Savannah, Georgia
My son Andy also stayed with me at the River Street Inn, a former 19th-century cotton warehouse in Savannah, and he was a little afraid the wrought iron balcony was going to fall off. It was a little unnerving to stand there together with nothing but a few metal slats between us and the cobblestones five stories below.
But the view is magnificent, especially at sunrise. The balconies look directly over the Savannah River, with the graceful Talmadge Memorial Bridge just upstream. Barges--loaded up to twelve-stories high with shipping containers--make their way upriver to unload at the Port of Savannah.
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| View from balconies of the River Street Inn, Savannah, Georgia. |
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