Livin' Large South of the Mason-Dixon Line
Our trip started (too) early Monday morning at the Philadelphia airport. Leaving on a holiday is THE way to travel. There was no traffic to speak of on the Schuylkill Expressway, which meant we made it to the airport in record time. There were no security lines (unlike my last trip to Boise), and our flights actually took off and landed on time.
The Atlanta airport was much more hospitable this time compared to when Kate and I flew to Craig and Heidi's wedding in April. Being on the right airline (Delta) at the right terminal (A) made all the difference.
Our final destination on Monday was Knoxville, TN. For some reason they have assigned the code of TYS to the Knoxville airport. We're still trying to figure that one out, but have some insight that it's named after some (dead?) dude named Tyson McGee. The airport itself was lovely (Kate's word choice, not mine) for such a small facility. We had our choice of rocking chairs overlooking the tarmac or leather couches and a giant TV. There was a full-size Ruby Tuesdays in the airport, but we decided to fend for ourselves outside the airport compound.
Our first stop after baggage claim (yeah, liquids and toothpaste) was Subway. We then hit the road to the Knoxville visitor's center downtown. Getting there was a battle with the GPS system since they have apparently moved roads and not bothered to tell anybody. Once there, we picked up some brochures. I also highly recommend the bathrooms. Realizing there was nothing to do in downtown Knoxville, we did some shopping on the north end of town and did our part to contribute to the 9.25% sales tax in this state. Apparently TN is a state with no individual income tax, so instead they tax the heck out of everything else. I picked up a gift to Katie's new office -- a mini photo frame. We then headed a bit further out to do some more shopping at the Tanger Outlet at Sevierville, TN. Katie acquired another pair of cute Nike sneakers.
We then had a very nice dinner at Calhoun's in Pigeon Forge, TN. We contemplated mini-golf after dinner, but were foiled by a light rain. So, instead we hit the road and drove down the "strip" in Pigeon Forge, which Kate has affectionately termed "Hillbilly Las Vegas." After some back-of-the-envelope calculations, we have determined Pigeon Forge to have the highest per-capita of Shoney's, Taco Bells, mini-golf, and neon bulbs on this side of the Mississippi.
The drive from Pigeon Forge to Cherokee, NC was fraught with danger as we drove through the "Petrified Forest," as Katie referred to it. It was dark, raining, and not well marked as we proceeded through the Great Smoky Mountain National Park on route 441. We finally made it to the Hampton Inn on the Cherokee Reservation in North Carolina and settled in for the evening.
The Atlanta airport was much more hospitable this time compared to when Kate and I flew to Craig and Heidi's wedding in April. Being on the right airline (Delta) at the right terminal (A) made all the difference.
Our final destination on Monday was Knoxville, TN. For some reason they have assigned the code of TYS to the Knoxville airport. We're still trying to figure that one out, but have some insight that it's named after some (dead?) dude named Tyson McGee. The airport itself was lovely (Kate's word choice, not mine) for such a small facility. We had our choice of rocking chairs overlooking the tarmac or leather couches and a giant TV. There was a full-size Ruby Tuesdays in the airport, but we decided to fend for ourselves outside the airport compound.
Our first stop after baggage claim (yeah, liquids and toothpaste) was Subway. We then hit the road to the Knoxville visitor's center downtown. Getting there was a battle with the GPS system since they have apparently moved roads and not bothered to tell anybody. Once there, we picked up some brochures. I also highly recommend the bathrooms. Realizing there was nothing to do in downtown Knoxville, we did some shopping on the north end of town and did our part to contribute to the 9.25% sales tax in this state. Apparently TN is a state with no individual income tax, so instead they tax the heck out of everything else. I picked up a gift to Katie's new office -- a mini photo frame. We then headed a bit further out to do some more shopping at the Tanger Outlet at Sevierville, TN. Katie acquired another pair of cute Nike sneakers.
We then had a very nice dinner at Calhoun's in Pigeon Forge, TN. We contemplated mini-golf after dinner, but were foiled by a light rain. So, instead we hit the road and drove down the "strip" in Pigeon Forge, which Kate has affectionately termed "Hillbilly Las Vegas." After some back-of-the-envelope calculations, we have determined Pigeon Forge to have the highest per-capita of Shoney's, Taco Bells, mini-golf, and neon bulbs on this side of the Mississippi.
The drive from Pigeon Forge to Cherokee, NC was fraught with danger as we drove through the "Petrified Forest," as Katie referred to it. It was dark, raining, and not well marked as we proceeded through the Great Smoky Mountain National Park on route 441. We finally made it to the Hampton Inn on the Cherokee Reservation in North Carolina and settled in for the evening.
posted by Scott C. Savett at
10:19 AM
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