10-page story on Tennessee’s Smoky Mountains: Rising along the eastern flank of Tennessee, the Great Smoky Mountains are known for their hiking trails, waterfalls and wild bears – this is, after all, the most naturally biodiverse pocket in the US. But a road trip through its old-growth forests reveals a more humane story. Here, tight-knit communities are preserving ancient Appalachian crafts and traditions, from pottery and broom carving to folk dancing, all alongside some of America’s most bombastic resort towns.
For years, people have flocked to Memphis’s South Main Arts District to visit The Arcade Restaurant, one of Elvis’s favorite diners, and the Lorraine Motel, the site of Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination and now the Civil Rights Museum. Recently, an influx of fun, quirky businessess has bolstered the area’s historic assets. Here are the spots to see before you swivel your hips onto bluesy Beale Street.
While we all love a road trip, modern times are calling for more eco-conscious options when it comes to exploring our holiday destinations. Thankfully, North America is full of vibrant cities that are easily accessed and enjoyed by train, tram or good old-fashioned walking. So, swerve the gridlock and gas stations and dig into these five fab hubs that are perfect for touring without wheels.
Ten magical places to connect with female empowerment.
While the world is filled with enchanting destinations connected to ancient fairy tales, many of these original stories haven’t fared well in our post #MeToo era. However, if you sweep aside the tales of old, with damsels in distress waiting for their prince to arrive, there are many woke tales of female empowerment, set in spectacular destinations that no fourth-wave feminist would be embarrassed to visit.
“Christmas is not a date. It is a state of mind,” so said the author Mary Ellen Chase. To some this could be a throwaway comment, but to The Inn at Christmas Place, a left field hotel that lavishly celebrates the holiday season every single day of the year, it’s nothing short of a mission statement.
Lockdown has done strange things to our relationship with our homes. Months of WFH and gazing at the same four walls have left many yearning for a change of scenery. Travel restrictions have created itchy feet. We’re starting to eye-up the paintbrush and consider splashing our drab walls with a riot of glorious colour; seeking ways to inject some of that buzz and excitement – usually found by being out there in the world – into our domestic spaces.
Memphis Tennessee is at the root of contemporary music in America. Although the USA is rich with inspiring musical cities from New York’s gritty hip-hop beats to Nashville’s country twang, if you want to go all the way back, you need to head to Memphis to discover the city that gave us rock and roll, soul and the blues.
Without Memphis, we wouldn’t have had the legendary Elvis Presley. Memphis is the city that introduced young Elvis to African American music – via the bustling juke joints of Beale Street and buoyant gospel church services – which he then blended with country music to create the trailblazing sound of rock and roll in the mid-’50s. It’s also the city that lifted Elvis from rags to riches, upgrading his low-income housing to a palatial Graceland mansion, in just a few short, sweet years. Memphis made Elvis, and he repaid it by faithfully staying rooted to the city for his entire adult life.