Greenville Downtown Guided Tour

I joined a guided tour today, and here’s what I learned! 😊 Greenville County, SC, was founded in 1786 and served as a summer retreat for residents of Charleston. Interestingly, the city wasn’t named for its lush greenery—instead, it honors General Nathanael Greene, Washington’s right-hand man during the American Revolution (a total badass!). Washington tasked him with driving British forces out of the South, and he scored many key victories 🎖️. Back in the day, Greenville was a textile powerhouse, known as the "Textile Capital of the World." Sadly, child labor was common in its factories. To keep workers productive nonstop, there were "dope wagons" that rolled along the production lines, serving food and caffeinated cola. The old cola bottles from that era still look pretty sleek! Back then, pollution was terrible—so bad that no one wanted to visit the downtown waterfall park. But Mayor Knox White, who’s been in office for 32 years (and counting!), made it his mission to revitalize Reedy Falls Park. He oversaw the construction of the iconic Liberty Bridge and the Swamp Rabbit Trail (which used to be a railroad track flanked by marshes—hence the "rabbit" name 🐇). Thanks to his efforts, Reedy Falls Park has transformed into the spot locals and tourists want to visit! Fun facts about Greenville: Its claim to fame includes Duke’s Mayonnaise—a total local staple 😮! It has a link to Einstein: His son, Hans Einstein, lived here for 6 years, and his grandson, Klaus Einstein, is buried here. A hometown hero won a Nobel Prize! Charles Hard Townes, the inventor of the laser, was from Greenville. The statue of him even has a pen tip that glows green (a nod to his work) 🤓. Other cool updates: An old carriage factory in the city is being renovated into a live music venue—can’t wait for that! On Main Street, keep an eye out for 9 bronze mice statues, inspired by the classic children’s book Goodnight Moon. They’ve become a new tourist favorite 🐭. Oh, and about food: Within just 12x19 blocks of downtown Greenville, there are around 238 restaurants—most of which are local! If you want to try authentic Southern cuisine, Soby's is a top recommendation 🍴. Last but not least: During today’s tour (while we were hunting for those bronze mice!), we stumbled upon the BMW Charity Golf Tournament’s celebrity red carpet! I even spotted Curry… wait, turns out it was his brother Seth, not Steph 😂. (Let’s be real—I heard "Seth" and immediately thought "Steph"—I was low-key convinced I’d run into a huge star!) #food #WantToRecordThisMoment #100RestaurantExplorationPlan #ThisTemplateIsPrettyUseful #FoodExploration #LoudlyRecommendLocalFood #OasisInAFoodDesert #ADaySatisfiedByFood #MyTreasureFoodCollection #GlobalFoodieSquad #Greenville #GreenvilleFood #GreenvilleLife #GreenvilleSC #SouthCarolinaFood #FoodCheckIn #FoodTastingVlog #DailyRestaurantVisits