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June 2008
Georgia Music on My Mind
Travel to the state's musical hot spots
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Over the weekend, many Georgians had the chance to rock out to the sounds of homegrown musical superstars R.E.M. at Lakewood Amphitheatre. If you’re my age - and especially if you grew up around here - you know how influential R.E.M. was in creating a music industry in Athens, Ga. For the past quarter century, that college town northeast of Atlanta has been a destination for many bands and music aficionados alike.
I enjoy just about every kind of music, and I admit that Athens’ music scene was a big draw for me when I enrolled at the University of Georgia. When I was still in high school, I would drive up to the Uptown Lounge in Athens to hear bands like Dreams So Real (it was 1989). I didn’t get into the famous 40 Watt until I was officially a student - and actually old enough to be in the clubs (18).
For music fans, Athens is definitely a must see; but it’s by no means the only place to go in this great state to get a taste of the South’s rich musical heritage. This week, we will look at Georgia’s many musical destinations. Next week, we’ll expand our scope and check out the different places you can go in our region to explore music from bluegrass to rock-n-roll and country to zydeco.
If I was putting together a musical tour of Georgia, these are some of the places in addition to Athens that would make the list…
Head to Albany to check out Ray Charles’ birthplace and enjoy the $2.25 million park and revolving bronze statue showing the singer at his piano built in honor the man who keeps Georgia on our Minds.
Walk the streets where the Godfather of Soul James Brown spent his youth shining shoes and dancing in Augusta. Then head to the Augusta Museum of History to check out its exhibit of Mr. “I Feel Good”. The city is still working on plans to build a museum to honor the entertainer, who died in December 2006.
Stay in town to explore Atlanta’s internationally-famous hip hop scene at one of the dozens of hip hop clubs around town.
Round out your musical tour in Macon at the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Years ago, we discovered that my husband’s great uncle is a hall of fame inductee. Since then, we have stopped in to visit the museum many times. The exhibits are well done, and we all enjoy learning more about the broad spectrum of artists that call - or once called - Georgia their home. Southern Rock fans will also find Macon’s Rose Hill Cemetery and 2321 Vineville Avenue interesting stops. The cemetery is where you can find the gravesites of Duane Allman and Berry Oakley of the Allman Brothers Band overlooking, and members of the band lived, played and wrote many of their famous songs in the Big House on Vineville.
Would any of these places make your list of stops on a musical tour of Georgia? What do you like about them? Where else would go to celebrate the diversity of Georgia’s musical heritage?
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Exploring the first southern culture
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Last week, we began to look at historical destinations in the South. Many of you wrote in with excellent ways to explore our area’s culture by touring the battlefields that dot our landscape. As time goes on, we will examine specific spots you mentioned more in depth.
Over the weekend, however, we had a quick peek into a time that predates perhaps our region’s most culturally-defining events. We took the kids on a typical drive through north Georgia. (I must say, our kids absolutely love this. They NEVER sigh, look bored or mutter in the backseats.)
We headed toward Carter’s Lake in Gilmer County, where we pulled off to walk around the lake, the reregulation pond and look at the hydroelectric dam. This may come as a shock…but our kids were not very interested in how electricity is produced.
After an ice cream stop at the Chatsworth Sonic, the Still kids were in a better frame of mind to appreciate our nearby historical destination - the Chief Vann House State Historic Site. The house is an impressive brick mansion that was home to James Vann, a Cherokee Indian chief in the early 19th century. Most Cherokee did not dwell in mansions, own large plantations or have dozens of slaves like the Vann family; but a tour of the home site creates an interesting picture of life in the Cherokee Nation area at the time. Typical Cherokee dwellings (small log cabins) are also on display there.
Our whole family enjoyed exploring every corner of the house, the grounds and the visitors’ center. Even better, the bored looks from earlier in the day were replaced by excitement and questions from our kids on the trip home. We discussed the Cherokee as a nation separate from the United States; the Georgia land lotteries that displaced many Cherokee families; the Trail of Tears; and yes, what life must have been like to live in a house (or tiny cabin) where everyone didn’t have their own bathroom.
While Native American culture may not be synonymous with southern culture, there are plenty of reminders of the tribes that have dwelled here - from the Woodland and Moundbuilders to the Cherokee and the Creek.
Tell us of your experiences with Native American culture in the south - whether it’s a festival, a heritage center, a burial ground or a structure like the Vann House. And also, feel free to add more southern must-sees to the historical culture collection we began last week.
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Girlfriends on the go
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Can “Sex and the City: The Movie” do for girlfriend vacations what it did for cosmopolitans? Manhattan’s favorite fictitious gal pals hit a Mexican resort looking swell in bright, cheerful dresses, windswept hats and earrings like Alexander Calder mobiles.
They get their drink on, they soak up the sun — the only thing that’s missing, for obvious reasons, is the vacation fling with a handsome traveler.
The movie paints a great portrait of female friends on vacation, with little of the bickering, check-splitting folly or other problems that often plague friends living in tight quarters.
The Travel Channel offers Ajc.com readers a new vacation page, Girlfriends Getaways. We want to hear your “girlfriend getaway” stories. Do you vacation with your closest friends? Does it create wonderful memories or homicidal thoughts?
Photo: New Line Cinema.
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Where do you go for a taste of our region’s history?
Tell us your favorite historical places to visit
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Just the other day, my husband and I decided that our next planned trip should include a little culture for the kids. They are now at ages where they will actually remember their travels and retain some of the knowledge they soak up while on a trip.
With relatives living in Vienna and good friends in Paris, a European tour - chockablock with famous museums, baroque opera houses, and rich historical, literary and architectural enticements — naturally came to mind. However, I would prefer a better dollar-to-euro exchange rate before we embark on such an expensive excursion.
That doesn’t mean we have to shelve a horizon-broadening trip altogether. I realize that culture, like beauty, is often in the eye of the beholder. The South’s culture may not be as old as Europe’s or as exotic as Asia’s. But, it has modern international cities and many small-town reminders of a way of life long-ago (and not so long-ago) passed. A good understanding of our region’s history and where we’re heading could strengthen the cultural foundation for us all.
The good thing about starting a cultural tour in your own backyard is that you can break it up into many little trips. The temptation to squeeze every bit of enlightenment out of Europe could be very expensive, very exhausting or very much of both.
Over the next few weeks, I will be asking for your thoughts on some of the South’s best cultural destinations. One week, we will delve into literary haunts of the South. We may also spend a couple of weeks looking at the region’s many different centers for arts and music.
This week, however, let’s begin with our region’s historical culture. Tell us your favorite historical sites and why you like them. They can be anything from civil rights landmarks or Civil War battlefields to working villages that give us a glimpse into our region’s past like Westville (in southwest Ga.), the Agrirama in Tifton or Colonial Williamsburg, Va. Or even a museum honoring the man whose invention forever changed the South and its culture — Dr. John Gorrie, creator of the first air conditioner.
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Will summer travel incentives lure you out of town?
Are gas rebates and special deals enough to make you get out and go?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Whether or not the calendar shows it, summer has officially begun. If gas prices and economic uncertainty have kept you from committing to a vacation, now may be the time to start planning. Those very things that make travelers wary of spending money are causing the travel industry to provide great incentives to get you out of the house.
We solidified our summer vacation plans back in January when I had to pay for our summer rental. While those costs have been absorbed long ago, we are also locked into a vacation that requires a 10-hour drive in our family tank. I wish we could take advantage of many of these summer travel incentives:
Hotels and resort properties are fighting back against the high cost of driving, enticing travelers with offers of free gas cards or gas rebates. Check here for several hotels and resorts in the southeast offering gas incentives. Hotels.com, chains like Best Western, as well as individual bed and breakfast inns, are offering gas promotions at select locations throughout the country. And AAA offers free tanks of gas for travelers renting from Hertz.
In addition, vacation areas like Fort Lauderdale, Fla. are offering giveaways and special deals to encourage travelers. Go to www.sunny.org to check out Fort Lauderdale’s Summer of Discovery program. You can receive a free beach towel, a pair of flip flops, and take advantage of 2-for-1 deals on a variety of activities from river boat cruises and snorkeling to kayak rentals and museum admissions.
TripAdvisor’s top 10 list of family-friendly bargain hotels includes several hotels within the southeast that average $123 per night and include cool kid-pleasing amenities. The number one bargain hotel on the list is Dunes Village Resort in Myrtle Beach, SC. For $139 per night, your family can hit the beach and splash around in the resort’s indoor water park — complete with pool, waterslide and river ride.
TripAdvisor also offers a list of top 10 free attractions throughout the U.S.
- Or check out your favorite travel web sites to find cheap vacation packages as well as advice on saving money on your trip.
So will you take advantage of any of these travel industry incentives for your summer getaway? Where will you go? What free attractions in the southern U.S. would you recommend to fellow travelers? Do you have helpful advice for traveling cheaply this summer?
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