It’s Not Quite Europe…
01.15.07 – 01.16.07
It wasn’t until after I traveled through so much of Europe that I really started to appreciate the places I used to take for granted near my own home town. For example, the North Georgia mountains, Savannah and Tybee Island, Hilton Head, and the Bravarian-esque town of Helen. Until the next time I can afford to get off the continent, I’ll have to rely on these places to wan my increasing wanderlust!
I was a bit curious as to why the hell a place in rural Georgia would go to the trouble of emulating Bravarian style architecture and themes so I did some research. It seems that Helen was formerly a small mining town, and some local businessmen decided to reinvent the entire community aesthetic in an attempt to increase tourism. Their plan worked brilliantly and the place thrives to this day as a direct result.
This weekend I met up with some Atlanta based Couchsurfers and decided to go on check out Helen and the Unicoi State Park where we went camping:
Unicoi is okay. It’s not far enough off the beaten path for my tastes though. Yeah, it’s cool to be able to camp in safety, but the park rangers who drive by every hour kind of kill the thrill of being completely on your own. Especially when they talk like Boomhower from King of the Hill and say things like, “My ol lady is fixin me a heap of catheads for dinner” or “Ya’ll kids ain’t from round these parts, is ya?”
After having to pantomime everything from “Where is the bathroom?” to “Where can I buy condoms?” in Estonia, I have a new appreciation for fellow speakers of the english language…no matter what form…as long as I don’t have to act out my impulses, I’m cool.
To be fair, we didn’t exactly ‘fit the mold’ of the type of person who usually travels to those parts, anyways. My friend AK is of Iranian-Mexican heritage, Dana is a first generation Romanian immigrant, and I’m black, we’re all in our mid-twenties and had enough alcohol with us to kill a small whale. Everything about us drew attention. Note to self: open-containers in state protected parks is ILLEGAL.
But I digress….There’s a lot to do at Unicoi if you’re the outdoors-ey type. It’s a very family oriented place so watch out for wandering babies and mothers with strollers. Take your pick from several trails that are as short as a mile, or as long as the trip from the park to Helen. Go at night, with some friends or alone but it’s not the type of place that welcomes partiers.
For more on Unicoi visit GeorgiaStateParks.org
