{"id":59366,"date":"2023-02-25T03:07:01","date_gmt":"2023-02-24T16:07:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/?p=59366"},"modified":"2025-03-18T03:31:50","modified_gmt":"2025-03-17T16:31:50","slug":"navigating-history-culture-and-power-through-travel-reflections-on-intrepids-gullah-geechee-heritage-trip","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/navigating-history-culture-and-power-through-travel-reflections-on-intrepids-gullah-geechee-heritage-trip\/","title":{"rendered":"Navigating history, culture and power through travel: Reflections on Intrepid\u2019s Gullah Geechee heritage trip\u202f"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cIt is what it is, but what it is is good to know where you come from.\u201d\u202f <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The statement seems to reverberate through the small, hundred-year-old wooden shack we sit in on St. Helena Island in South Carolina. I huddle on a wooden bench on a chilly winter afternoon, listening to local pastors tell us about the history of praise houses on the island, like the Mary Jenkins Community Praise House where we sit.\u202f\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Originally segregated places of worship during enslavement in the United States<\/a>, praise houses eventually took on the role of meeting places, community centres and more for local Black communities on the island. Their existence raises questions about the role of religion, the development of segregated community institutions, the meaning of progress and so much more.\u202f\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mary Jenkins Community Praise House<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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And as we were so deftly reminded that day, one of three days I spent experiencing Intrepid\u2019s new Charleston to Savannah: Exploring Gullah Geechee Culture trip<\/a>, while the history of praise houses and Gullah Geechee communities is often painful, it\u2019s also vital to the story of the United States.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exploring Gullah Geechee heritage\u202f\u202f <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

During our short trip from Charleston, South Carolina, to Savannah, Georgia, we explored complex questions related to who gets to claim and be included in tellings of American history through historical stops, local food, musical performances and more.\u202f\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A post shared by Intrepid Travel (@intrepidtravel)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>