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April 22, 2004
The Thursday Three
Thanks to Possumblog for the questions:
1) What three (3) Southern places, towns, or regions (aside from your own, if you currently reside in the South) do you think you would enjoy living in?
I have lived in and enjoyed both Birmingham and Athens, Georgia. Birmingham has some great neighborhoods with a wonderful sense of community. Athens has a variety of cultural opportunities. For these same reasons, I'd consider living in Chapel Hill or Carrboro, North Carolina.
2) What 3 (three) Southern places, towns, or regions have you ever visited and would never want to set foot in again? (I make the special note that you must have actually visited there, mainly because some people have irrational negative opinions about places based entirely upon what they have heard from others. Nothing like first-hand experience.)
This is an easy question: South of the Border, South Carolina; Gatlinburg, Tennessee; Selma, Alabama. South of the Border is simply the tackiest town in existence, a tourist trap filled with offensive signage and overpriced junk. Gatlinburg isn't much better in that regard, but at least the mountains are attractive. Selma is amazingly the most racist city I've visited in the south. This amazes me considering its place in the civil rights movement, and I've never felt comfortable there.
3) Finally, what are the three most distinctly Southern tourist traps you have ever visited?
Hmmm.... I'll go with the most distinctly southern tourist spots.
Bellingrath Gardens in Mobile has a wonderful mansion and its gardens are filled with azaleas and other signature southern flora.
Graceland may seem an obvious choice, but Elvis always prided himself on being a southern boy at heart.
Music Row in Nashville holds much of this country's musical history.
