CHARLESTON, S.C. — It has been 25 years since I moved to San Francisco and joined my son and daughter in the beautiful city “by the Bay.” No doubt San Francisco is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, but so too is my true “home,” which is Charleston, S.C.

Recently my wife and I have had serious thoughts of splitting our time between Benicia and Charleston. We are currently on a trip designed to give us an idea of what it would be like to spend more than a week or two at a time in this truly remarkable city. So far, it has become more and more appealing.

One of the issues is the weather, and whether Gay would be able to adjust to the high humidity of the Charleston peninsula during the summer and some parts of the winter. She now admits that it has not been quite as difficult as she anticipated. A good fan and some AC go a long way toward overcoming any discomfort for someone unaccustomed to the city’s high humidity embrace.

And then there is Charleston itself. There are very few cities in this country — or worldwide for that matter — that exceed the pure beauty of this place. It has a seductive charm that is like no other city in the South, or any other location in America. Its beauty, combined with the absolute charm of its people, has made it the number one tourist destination in America. Yes, it has moved past San Francisco and Las Vegas in that category, and once you visit you realize very quickly why that has happened.

One of the main reasons people come to Charleston is for the food. “Foodies” from around the country who are constantly searching for the perfect place to find the most delicious food have discovered my home city. San Francisco, of course, is one of those cities, as well, but for now, Charleston has become the number one food destination in America. And folks, it deserves the title. There is no way to describe how delicious this food is. You simply have to experience it for yourself.

I promised my editor that I would continue to write while here, and this is my second column from Charleston. It has become difficult to not write what amounts to a “travelogue” extolling the wonders of the city and the surrounding low country of South Carolina. It would be a travesty, however, not to examine the effects of South Carolina’s politics on the rest of the country. Hardly a day goes by without one South Carolina national politician being featured on at least one national TV news network.

Charleston has for hundreds of years been one of the political centers of the South. Politics is part of the natural fiber of the Charleston citizenry, and is sure to always remain so. Over the years I lived in Charleston, both as a kid and as an adult, I was always exposed to politicians, both as an observer as well as personally. Both of my parents were political to some extent, my mother actually more so than my Dad. As an adult, I had several personal friends who went on to high-placed political positions in Washington. These were friends with whom I played golf and fished, but they were also my social friends whom I invited to fairly large parties at which politics made up a great deal of the conversation.

Cocktail parties, large and small, have always been the most popular method of soliciting campaign donations and pledges here in the “Holy City.” Quite a lot of money is pledged while sipping a tasty cocktail served by a white-jacketed waiter with a broad smile. It has always been said that in Charleston, “a little alcohol always makes the pledge seem less painful.” Many a candidate has sealed the support he or she needed to make a serious run for office over a few months of attending wonderful and sometimes colorful parties, held outdoors in the beautiful gardens of equally beautiful homes.

In Charleston, politics is an art form, practiced by some of the most charming people anywhere. No matter what it might have cost you, the time spent in allowing your host to squeeze from you a proper donation was always a very pleasant experience.

The memory of those wonderful spring and summer parties always brings a broad smile to my face. How could anyone not love this city and the people who make it come to life, today, just as they did a hundred years ago? Isn’t the South grand? The answer is yes — just as it always has been.

Jim Pugh is a Benicia resident.

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