When I was Young In the Mountains

In the past five years Asheville has been won the Country-wide superlative contest for Best Place to Retire (Better Home and Garden), Best Place to Raise a Child (Atlanta Journal) and Best Place to Move (Wall Street Journal and Relocate-America.com). If you ask any authority figure they will reiterate the truth of these superlatives.

If however, you ask a local, (I recommend asking one of my multitude of cousins) they will be more inclined to ramble on about the decline of western civilization, commencing with “this here gentrification of downtown…”

One enchanting thing of Asheville lies in it’s ability to hold Shindig’s On The Green where old timers, like Bobby Hicks, (10 time Grammy Winner) play for free as the town caller, Joe Blidge lead the old and the awkward in rowdy street dances. “Everyone to the center now, with a big whoooowwwooo…” 

The summer rain always begins to fall during the last street dance. Children dash out into the night, chasing fireflies and crickets, heedless of the rain in their quest for a summer entertainment…

Asheville’s Appalachian’s are a special breed of mountains, dubbed both the Blue Ridge Mountains and  the Smokey’s, (depending on where and who you ask).  Personally I call them My Sweet Tea Mountains, because there is nothing better than the smell of these deciduous woods at any time of the year, except perhaps a nice glass of Ma’ama’s tea, sipped slowly while climbing a trail.

The Cherokee Indian Reservation is located just West of Asheville, while Sliding Rock (Yep, a natural rock slide!), Looking Glass Falls and Mt. Mitchell (Highest point East of the Mississippi River) all lay to the South. Johnson City is North, heading over by the Nantahala Gorge (best tubing ever!) and eventually up the Shenandoah  River (Have you heard the stories?).

Visitation of these places does not lead to the backwater South that you image when you day dream of North Carolina. You will not muster up Confederate flags or rein-actors of the Civil War when you drive up into the hills. Rather you will find very crisp water hidden down winding trails, perhaps gaurded by hippies with clean dreadlocks and Jimbe drums…

Finally, as a tourist staying in Asheville it might be wise to participate in one of the four bus tours available (I recommend La Zoome, conducted by local comedians). Through this tripyou will view the River Arts district, where hundreds of galleries display earthy wares in mismatched warehouses.You will see small theaters which have popped along the outcroppings of the city. And you will learn that: Carl Sanburg,  Thomas Wolf, the Vanderbilts and Black Mountain College are not the only famous names associated with this city anymore…

When I was young in the mountains my hometown was not yet a novelty location. It was simply my home. And that was enough for me.