Joseph Rosendo's Steppin' Out

-It's said a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

-♪ Steppin' out ♪ -Welcome to "Joseph Rosendo's Steppin' Out."

-♪ Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh, steppin' out ♪ -Today we're stepping out, away from the usual and in search of the natural, cultural, and personal sides of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

-♪ Steppin' out ♪ -"Joseph Rosendo's Steppin Out" is made possible by... -There's a reason people call Myrtle Beach "The Beach."

There are 60 miles of wide, sandy beaches along South Carolina's Grand Strand coast.

This vacation destination has golf courses, attractions, food, wine, and Southern sun.

-Since 1975, we've inspired adults to learn and travel in the United States and in more than 100 countries.

From exploring our national parks to learning about art and culture in Italy, we've introduced adults to places, ideas, and friends.

We are Road Scholar.

We make the world our classroom.

-Close to 20 million tourists a year visit Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

What do they come for?

Every visit to Myrtle Beach and the Grand Strand starts at the beach.

The beach is so integral to the 14 communities that line its 60 miles that before New Town was renamed after the wax myrtle shrub, it was just called "the beach."

The Myrtle Beach area and its now regally dubbed "Grand Strand" has for decades welcomed the "eat, drink, and be merry" crowd with an over-the-top amusement-park atmosphere that features Ferris wheels, video arcades, entertainment centers, 50 fantastically themed miniature-golf courses, and 2,000 restaurants... -Okay, there we go.

-...where you can indulge your each and every culinary whim, from pancake breakfast... Wow!

That looks luscious.

...to 5-star seafood feasts.

So, while I sample the typical indulgences... [ Laughs ] ...I'm steppin' out to discover why people come for a holiday and stay for a lifetime.

This looks like a good spot... for a swim.

♪♪ -Focus on your breathing here.

And the right hand is on your right knee.

Find your reversed warrior.

-Unexpectedly, on the sand adjacent to Myrtle Beach boardwalk's controlled chaos, I find a yoga class.

I've learned yoga is the perfect antidote for hyperactivity.

It relaxes the body, clears the mind, and calms the heart.

How do you think yoga fits into all of this?

There's no temples here.

-But Myrtle Beach got the perfect environment for yoga -- ocean breeze, sound of the ocean.

-And you do this for the community?

-Yes, we do it for the community.

-Well, yoga is good for everybody.

-Of course!

If you want to live longer, practice yoga.

-Oh, good.

I'm so happy to hear that.

Well, namaste.

-Namaste.

-Now, that's an unexpected treat.

What other surprises does the Grand Strand offer?

Birds.

I'm not a professional, but few things fill me with as much joy as spying on our fine, feathered friends.

I've officially done it on most every continent.

Located on the Atlantic flyway that migratory birds use in the spring and fall, the 2,500-acre Huntington Beach State Park and wetlands is a birders' delight.

During migration, more than 300 species of birds can be spotted, including the great egret, wood stork, anhinga, roseate spoonbill, and more.

Yet upstaging the birds are the American alligators.

Something about watching them in their natural habitat is fantastic, and we're going to go fishing, too.

So, is this one of your favorite places to fish here?

-Oh, yeah, I've been fishing here since 1980.

-This is a good day for fishing?

-It's always a good day for fishing.

-It's always a good day, yeah.

-And here we are.

This is the spot.

-I'll watch you and follow your lead.

-[ Laughs ] -Great.

-We've got two of them on here ready.

-Okay, beautiful.

-Go ahead and get this out there.

-All right.

-Well, we want to keep it kind of tight.

-Right, of course.

-There you go.

And then we'll just reel it real lightly to make sure it's tight.

-It's been 60 years since I was surf-fishing off Miami Beach, but wherever you are, I found that with fishing, it's always if at first you don't succeed, try...try... try...try...and try again.

Yep.

That's why they call it "fishing" and not "catching."

-Looks like we got a bite on that one.

They're starting to get some action.

Reel, reel, reel, reel.

That's it.

Back it up, back it up, back it up.

Keep going, keep going.

-[ Groans ] -All right, that's good.

That's good.

Excellent.

-Whoo-hoo!

-We got him.

Blue-fish -- look at that pretty thing.

-Look at that.

-Hold on.

I want to get a picture of this.

All right, smile.

-[ Chuckles ] [ Camera shutter clicks ] -Awesome!

Yes!

-Can we put him back in?

-Oh, yeah, you can put him back in.

Awesome.

-Thank you.

A super-strong castaway from the beach is Murrells Inlet, which supplies much of the fish found in Myrtle Beach's numerous seafood eateries.

You know what I love already about your restaurant is that you are devoted to serving people a good glass of wine by this system that you have here.

-Yeah.

So, part of the sustainability project of the restaurant was to come up with some ways to serve things in a better way.

-I've had wines on tap around the world, and they're usually not the best wines.

But here you've got some great wines here.

-I think we should try the Barbera.

-Okay, good.

-It's my favorite.

-Oh, really?

What's it called?

-It is Tiamo.

-Oh, how sweet of you.

-[ Laughs ] -Tiamo.

"I love you" in Italian -- how nice.

-Now we can say "Salud."

-Salud.

-And we can also say -- -Isn't that the best?

-That is pretty tasty.

Yeah.

-Yeah.

I don't think we'll dump this one.

Even though we're a seafood restaurant, we have steaks, we have pork.

-It's South Carolina.

-We have just about anything you can imagine.

But, honestly... -Oh, this is really good.

-...I would drink this with a piece of fish.

-The secret to drinking wine is drink what you like.

-And with the people you like.

-Everybody here comes from somewhere else, it seems.

-Well, I'm from Pennsylvania, originally.

I opened up my first restaurant 28 years ago.

I was a single mom at the time, and I had to make a living.

-So, you opened a restaurant?

-I know.

Yeah.

-Wow!

That was crazy.

-Pretty bold.

And then we opened here in 2017.

And we do all different sustainable practices -- for example, the wines that we discussed earlier.

Our seafood is picked through the Maritime Council.

-Your Oysters a la Heidi.

-Thank you.

-Oysters a la Heidi.

How interesting that you would like that.

Oh!

-Crabs on the half-shell.

-Thank you so much.

-My pleasure.

Enjoy.

So, these are the Malpeques over here.

But these are the Virginia oysters, which I don't really know.

So, I'm excited about eating these.

-Yeah.

You're not having a problem downing those.

-No.

-You want another six?

-Okay!

-[ Laughs ] -What's better than six oysters?

Six more.

-Right.

Exactly.

-These are great.

Thank you.

The beach and the ocean may get top billing here, but I have a hankering for another view of Myrtle Beach.

So, I head to the Waccamaw River.

Beginning in North Carolina and ending near Georgetown, South Carolina, the Waccamaw River Blue Trail snakes 140 miles through cities, heritage preserves, and wildlife refuges.

River Island Adventures offers visitors a way to experience a piece of the Waccamaw's Wateree Trail.

Why this river?

-Grew up in the Myrtle Beach area, and so I was familiar with the Waccamaw River.

And so, I just wanted to do something that was off the beaten path and something that people can't do really anywhere else.

So, I discovered this 48-acre island on a map, and I was like, "This would be the perfect spot."

But there was no land for sale.

So, I got online and got the property owners' names and addresses and wrote them a letter and basically told them, "I don't have a whole lot of money, but I got a really big dream."

And I said a prayer over those 27 envelopes, and, sure enough, two different gentlemen called and said they had owner-financed their land with no money down.

-Wow.

So, providence stepped in, you feel.

-Yes.

-You get the opportunity to deliver your gifts?

-Yes, sir.

-That's fabulous.

I think this is the experience we're looking for, the cultural experiences and the nature experiences, the quiet, gentle experiences that give you time to think, right?

-Exactly.

Yeah.

It's so interesting seeing people that's even lived in Myrtle Beach their entire lives come out here, and I get to show them that there's a whole other ecosystem only seven miles from the beach.

It's like you're in a different world out here.

And so you can really get out here and escape and get away from all the hustle and bustle of the beach life.

-You know, the longer you're on the river, the more you understand that what you need to do is kind of go with the flow and that going with the flow is a good metaphor for the way you should live your life.

The Waccamaw River meanders into the Gullah Geechee Corridor, a federal national-heritage area, and ends near Georgetown, home of the Gullah Museum.

-Hi.

Welcome to the Gullah Museum.

-It's exciting to be able to come and introduce my viewers to a whole different side of... -South Carolina?

-South Carolina.

Our goal in "Steppin' Out" is to have people step out from preconceived ideas they might have about a place, and coming to Myrtle Beach, it really projects itself as an entertainment capital.

-Mm-hmm.

-And it's great to come and say, "Okay, let's step out from that for a while and come and find out something about the people who live here."

-Well, welcome to the most African area of the United States.

-Okay.

Why would you say that?

-Because of how much of our culture that we've retained.

The language is a connection.

The way we worship is a connection.

What we like to eat is a connection.

-Okay, okay.

-Our music is a connection.

-As opposed in other places where people assimilated so much that they've almost lost their culture.

-Yes.

-You know, my background is Cuban.

-Okay.

-My family was from Cuba.

I was born in Florida, down in Miami, and that's what happened to us.

The goal was to assimilate, to hide basically who you were and your separateness so that you wouldn't stand out.

So, this is a place where that original culture was preserved.

-Mm-hmm.

Yes.

So, what makes this part of the United States different is the fact that this was the center of not only rice, but the center of the slave trade.

-That's funny.

You don't think of South Carolina and rice.

-People think that cotton was the big crop.

-Yeah, right.

-And for hundreds of years here in coastal South Carolina, it was all about rice.

When the English first settled in this area, they saw that it would be perfect to grow rice.

-Really?

-The problem is, you don't grow a lot of rice in England.

They didn't know what they were doing.

So, they failed until they learned from some planters that came from Barbados that you need to get Africans from this area of West Africa, from modern-day Senegal to Liberia.

-Okay.

-So, those were the ancestors of the Gullah Geechee.

Rice is a dangerous crop to grow, as well -- the water, the disease, the poisonous snakes.

-Who hangs out in the water?

Yeah.

-You combine all that with the malnutrition and the treatment, and you have high death rates.

-It's brutal.

-Yeah.

So, our culture was allowed to flourish and sink roots very deeply because they were constantly bringing in more enslaved Africans.

-What an uplifting story in so many ways, because of the preservation of the culture that the people have managed to -- -Despite everything.

-In spite of everything, and yet what a devastating, tragic story, too, because of our long history of slavery.

Your family started this museum.

I understand your mother did.

-Yes, she did.

She was always proud of her Gullah Geechee heritage.

So, she called these her story quilts.

-Great!

-These are quilts she would make to tell different aspects of Gullah Geechee history.

And this is the quilt that tells the story of the African ancestors on the continent, how they came to be here, and the freedom after the emancipation that the Gullah Geechee now enjoy.

-Just one of the many treasures here at the museum.

-Yes.

-There's so much pride connected to it that I can feel from you that you're exuding.

The people who come here, who have had their culture ripped away from them over the centuries, it must be so touching, enlightening to them.

-It is.

-Everybody needs to come out.

Thank you so much.

-You're welcome.

[ Birds chirping ] -Blending art with the area's history, culture, and local fauna and flora, another unexpected must-do attraction is the more than 9,000-acre Brookgreen Gardens.

The outdoor gallery showcases the figurative sculptures of Anna Hyatt Huntington and more than 400 other artists.

-This is a great spot to start.

This is what we call "alligator bender," and this beautiful pool of water lilies is filled by pumps that come from the river, and these canals actually feed the irrigation throughout the gardens.

And Archer Huntington designed this himself back in the 1930s.

-And some of these oaks are here prior to the 1930s, for sure.

-They are.

Some of the oaks are close to 300 years old.

-What's the mission for Brookgreen Gardens?

-Two pieces -- inspire and educate.

There's something here, really, for everyone.

-♪ One morning, death come creeping in my room ♪ ♪ So, oh, my Lord, what shall I do?

♪ ♪ What shall I do?

♪ -Miles, I think it's great that you have this here, coupled with the music and the setting, because I went to the Gullah Museum.

-Yes.

-And I learned about the rice.

And I learned about how dangerous it is to grow rice.

-Right.

-And the fact that you've converted this into a bird reserve is great homage.

-Yes.

-It's a sign of the times that the gardens, a former rice plantation and home of America's largest slave owner, now features a garden devoted to the traditions, customs, and ideals of the Gullah Geechee people.

-So, we have a variety of native plants here, of course.

The real attraction in the Gullah Garden here are these interpretive kiosks, and they talk about some key components in Gullah life.

-"Wisdom."

-"Wisdom and respect for elders."

And I think that's timeless, right?

That goes across all cultures.

-Right.

I like this one -- "Tenacity."

-Couldn't we all take a lesson from being a little bit more tenacious in life?

-Yeah.

And they obviously have been to be able to survive... -Absolutely.

-...as a culture.

-"Understanding and respecting your own heritage and the heritage of others."

-Right.

You know, my background is Cuban.

And when I grew up in Miami, being Cuban wasn't as cool as it is now.

So, I had to deal with just an inkling of racism in comparison to what African-Americans have had to deal with for hundreds and hundreds of years.

So, I can't even compare.

But I certainly do understand that it takes a certain tenacity, a self-sufficiency... -Heritage.

-...in order to get through that and then come back.

And I think it's wonderful that you're assisting a very unique culture in this area to help redevelop, recapture, and revitalize their culture, too.

-Yeah, and that's very important.

It's part of our history.

It's part of our incredible culture here in South Carolina.

And it's something we can all be proud of.

-South Carolina was not always as racially accepting as it is today.

With that in mind, like Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, and Little Richard before me, I head to Charlie's Place, where during segregation African-Americans could safely stay and black performers came to play.

Hey, Cookie.

So, this would have been one of the motel rooms that you could have rented if you followed "The Green Book," which was developed for African-Americans so they could travel safely in this racist country at that time.

-Yeah.

-We tell people, "Well, you're walking in this room.

You could be standing in the place where Ella Fitzgerald or Billie Holiday or Little Richard or James Brown, you know, once stayed."

And although Charlie's Place, the supper club and entertainment space, is no longer here, the city of Myrtle Beach and residents, we've worked to preserve the motel units.

The goal is to share, like, musical-era museum, like '40s, '50s, you know, '60s.

-So, each room would represent one of those eras.

-Yes.

-This is a great room.

What I like about this room, you have some great pictures here showing that era.

-Yes.

-And I believe you said that was where Charlie's Place, the club, would have been.

And who are these people in this picture here?

-I present to you Cynthia "Shag" Harrell.

-So, she developed the shag... -Yes.

-...which has become the state dance of South Carolina.

-That's right.

Yeah.

One of the things, also, Mr. Charlie did not believe in segregation.

And so, one of the things about that era was the music, kind of like some people felt it was forbidden.

-Oh.

-But it was being played at Charlie's Place.

-Right.

-And so he allowed the white kids to come over and listen to the music and dance.

"Shag" came from New York every summer, and she taught them the shag.

And, of course, they added a little bit more to it.

And, thus, the shag was born.

-And then they took it out of Charlie's Place and danced it everywhere and made it popular throughout the white community.

-Yes.

-But it's great to know and to say that it started here.

-We say the shag was born... -...at Charlie's Place.

-The shag is alive and well along Myrtle Beach's Grand Strand.

They say it's like a cold beer on a warm night with a hot date and no plans for tomorrow, which certainly makes me want to give it a try.

-The Carolina shag became original here because of the rhythm and blues in the South.

-Oh, okay.

-It evolved from that.

It slowed down, and we had more footwork.

We do all kind of spins and things.

The more you know, the harder it gets.

Are you ready for the beginner class to start?

-Yes, I am.

-All right.

Everybody that's here for the beginner class, if we can get you all to come on out.

All right.

What we're going to do is get you to start in a row.

Yeah.

-All right.

-One, two, three, four, five, six.

-There you go.

-One and two, three and four and five, six.

-One, two, three.

Hey, Charles.

-You got it, man.

-...five, six.

One and two, three and four and rock step.

Give yourself a big hand.

You did good!

[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -Beyond the dance floor, a great place to meet folks is at Conway's Saturday farmers market.

I check out the action with celebrity chef Darren Smith.

-We're actually going to buy some of her blueberries, if I could get a gallon of them.

-Wow.

-And we're going to pickle them.

-Can I have a taste?

-You sure can.

-We're gonna see why he's picking your blueberries over others.

-They're even sweeter this week.

-Wow.

So, chef, we're getting your boiled peanuts here?

-Yes.

And we're going to take them back and make a hummus with them.

-How long does it take you to boil the peanuts?

-I say he do them overnight for about six hours and then as he come out to the market, he let them sit.

-Low and slow, just like everything in South Carolina.

-That's right.

-You want to be soft, but you don't want them to be mushy.

-The boiled peanuts I remember were horrible.

-Yeah.

-Because they were all mushy and wet.

-Not doing them right.

-Not doing them right.

-Got to come to famous... -How long has your family been doing boiled peanuts?

-The best!

The best out here.

-Since my dad been kids.

So, my dad grew up doing the same business as I do right now, -Right.

-My dad, my uncles, my grandma.

-Generations of boiled peanuts.

-Generations.

-We'll talk to my microgreen guy.

We're gonna buy two or three of the different microgreens to put on top of our boiled-peanut-hummus crostini.

So in his first year, he started coming to the restaurant, and then I would tell him what we were looking for -- micro arugula, cilantro, what have you.

And then we just built a relationship.

-Well, I really appreciate you guys working with us, too, because you've allowed us to grow as a farmer, as well.

-It's been nice, kind of a give-and-take relationship.

And the product's always wonderful.

So, we really appreciate you.

-Thank you so much.

-That's why I like coming to a market, also, because you end up supporting the local farmers in your community rather than going to a large grocery store or that kind of thing.

-Exactly.

And making friends.

-And making friends.

-So, here we're going to be using some of the ingredients that chef and I bought at the market.

This is what happens when you go to the market.

You come back with ideas because you're inspired by the passions that people who are selling things at the market pass on to you, energetically.

How did you get the inspiration to get into this business?

Being a chef running a restaurant is not the easiest thing in the world.

-It's not.

There's so much involved and so much work.

You need to be in love with it.

And my brother is where I found the inspiration and the love.

He was a chef when I was trying to figure out as a young man what I was going to do, and he talked about the instant gratification of pleasing the guest.

-Where is he today?

-Well, unfortunately, he passed away several years ago.

-But he left you with the inspiration that made him become a chef himself.

-Completely.

And it makes me want to strive to do better every day and be creative.

-Do you ever get a feeling he's looking over your shoulder while you're doing some of this stuff?

-Yeah, I often do.

I think about him every day.

-Of course.

I had a brother, too, who passed away young and... [ Voice breaking ] ...yeah, that's the way I feel, that he's kind of... he was in show biz, and he's kind of always looking over my shoulder, making sure that I'm doing the best I can.

-It's nice to have.

-It is.

-Yes.

-Well, let's see.

-Let's do.

-Okay.

So, in their honor, here we go.

So, bon appétit.

How do you say "bon appétit" in South Carolina?

-Uh...bon appétit, y'all?

[ Both laugh ] -Bon appétit, y'all.

-Cheers.

-Cheers.

♪♪ -Mmm.

Thank you for stepping out with me in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

At my recent 76th birthday, my friends asked, "What have you learned from all those years of living?"

I answered, "You never know when you may need to begin again."

The 14 communities along the Grand Strand are famous for their 60 miles of beaches, 2,000 restaurants... That is delicious... ...and numerous entertainment centers.

Yet it's people that make a place memorable, and I've been welcomed by so many... -Thank you so much for coming.

-...including those who came for a visit... -Salud.

-Salud.

...and stayed to begin again.

Some stayed as a reward for a life well-lived, while others overcame obstacles and circumstances to step out into a new life and dreams fulfilled.

Travel is a journey of discovery, and there are many paths you could take.

I'm thankful for those here who opened up the gates for me to paths less traveled and endlessly rewarded.

Until we meet again, remember the words of Mark Twain.

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness."

May your next adventure always be your best.

-"Joseph Rosendo's Steppin' Out" is made possible by... -There's a reason people call Myrtle Beach "The Beach."

There are 60 miles of wide, sandy beaches along South Carolina's Grand Strand coast.

This vacation destination has golf courses, attractions, food, wine, and Southern sun.

-Since 1975, we've inspired adults to learn and travel in the United States and in more than 100 countries.

From exploring our national parks to learning about art and culture in Italy, we've introduced adults to places, ideas, and friends.

We are Road Scholar.

We make the world our classroom.

♪♪ -For a DVD of any of my "Steppin' Out" adventures, or my companion memoir and travel book, "Musings: The Short, Happy Pursuit of Pleasure and Other Journeys," call (888) 876-3399, order online at JosephRosendo.com, or e-mail me at [email protected].

-♪ Steppin' out ♪ -Now that we've stepped out in Myrtle Beach together, learn more at JosephRosendo.com, where you can follow my worldwide adventures through my E-magazine, blog, podcast, and social media.

Stay in touch.

(888) 876-3399 or e-mail me at [email protected].

How are you steppin' out?

-I try to do a new thing every year.

-Steppin' out to me means taking chances on people.

-I'm steppin' out first of all on truth and righteousness.

But I am here to tell the story.

-Steppin' out in faith and trying something that I had no idea if it'd be successful or not.

-I'm steppin' out by continually learning and loving my craft.

This is one of my favorite drinks.

This is one you make in front of everybody, and everybody turns their head and looks around and goes, "I'll have what he's having."

-How are you steppin' out?

-[ Laughs ] Oh, can I have a do-over?

[ Laughs ] -That's good.

That was good.

-♪ Steppin' out ♪