Chapter 2 Summary

The narrator backtracks to explain how, as a writer for Esquire and editor for New York magazine, he developed a fascination with Savannah. He begins by explaining his realization that the cost of one evening's meal in New York City is comparable to a weekend in another location. One weekend the narrator and a group of friends travel to Charleston, South Carolina, and he decides to spend an extra night visiting Savannah.

The narrator describes the connotations he has of Savannah, all instances that reference historical events. He mentions the story of Captain John Flint, who dies of alcohol poisoning in the mid-1700s. He refers to Savannah as a refined, proper community mentioned in Gone With the Wind, and another experience in which an old newspaper displays the headline, "Tango Is No Sign of Insanity, Holds Jury." He also is familiar with...