Domestic trip abroad

GATLINBURG, TENN – Spring break is a time to relax, a chance to recharge the figurative batteries of college students. Many students on spring break find themselves in exotic locations like Jamaica, Mexico and Costa Rica, to name just a few. Others take the time to fulfill class credit on school-sponsored trips to other foreign destinations such as Japan, France and even Croatia.\nFor me, this year’s trip was domestic, and once again the passport continued to collect dust on a shelf with other unused items such as Christian literature and exercise videos. The more I think about it, however, the more it seems like Gatlinburg, Tennessee, which is a stone’s throw away from iconic American attractions such as Dollywood and Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is as foreign a place as Central America and the Balkans.\nIf nothing else, Southerners are known for their hospitality, kindness to strangers and charm. But walking around Gatlinburg, it’s difficult not to notice the alarming amount of loyalty to Confederate – not American – identity. Indeed, the town’s tourist shops, which easily outnumber the actual tourists, are proud to point out their overflowing lines of Confederate-themed apparel and bumper stickers. From an outsider’s perspective, it seems the town, or at least a few of its prominent business owners, are quicker to highlight their Confederate roots than their proud American citizenship.\nHere’s a topical, and admittedly anecdotal, view of some of Gatlinburg’s fine offerings:\n• Waiters refer to non-Southerners as “yankees.”\n• A young child, no more than 5 years old, wears a shirt that prominently displays the Confederate flag and swears loyalty to General Robert E. Lee.\n• Joke bumper stickers are sold that are made to look like hunting licenses. The “permit” laughingly gives the holder the right to hunt Hollywood liberals, media elites, Democrats and homosexuals.\n• A store touting itself as a souvenir shop sells roughly 100 different bumper stickers and window decals that incorporate the Confederate flag, usually with phrases such as “The South shall rise again.” Only eight are available that make use of the American flag.\nIndeed, the Confederate flag represents much more than a region’s resistance to abolish slavery, and it signifies more than an uprising that was quelled nearly 140 years ago. Confederate symbolism can be as much a source of regional pride and heritage as it is a flashpoint for closed-minded individuals. However, it’s difficult to view the blatant overuse of Confederate (and dare I say conservative) ideals as anything but distinctly un-American and therefore foreign. Does Gatlinburg sympathize with the U.S. or the old notion of the Confederacy? It’s hard to surmise. At times, do pockets of the South seem more foreign than domestic? Unfortunately, yes, at least to this “yankee.”\nThis doesn’t indicate a reason to shun the region or avoid it as a future spring break destination. What it does mean, however, is that if certain circumstances don’t change, it’s not too foolhardy to bring a passport for future visits. \nI’ll blow off the dust just in case.