Charleston is a port town in South Carolina with an important Atlantic harbour on Charleston Bay. The town has an old town that is truly unique in the USA, with original architecture dating back to the 18th and 19th centuries. The restored villas, formerly owned by the elite of plantation-owners and traders, are a reminder of Charleston's past as a port and meeting point for the trade in slaves and cotton. The Edmund Alston House, Victorian-style Calhoun Mansion, the ball room on Meeting Street, the Nathaniel Russell House, St. Michael's Episcopal Church and the Heyward Washington House are all worth a visit. The Dock Street Theatre, the French Huguenot Church and the US Custom House are not to be missed either. At the Market Hall, farmers sell fruit, vegetables and meat and even souvenir-hunters will find something they like here.
