Friday, March 30, 2012

The Quiet Side of the Smokies

Just to get away from the hussel and bussell of Dollywood, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge which are very touristy and you drive to Townsend, Tennessee which is called the quiet side of the smokies.

It is not a dull place as they have swimming and rafting, golf, museums and artist galore, but it is not so busy.  It is only about 10 miles from my home near Maryville, Tennesse and we go there frequently because of two reasons:   It is so lovely any season and there is a gas station there who have the best chili coleslaw hotdogs. We usually sit by the river nearby and have our lunch with Katie our dog.

 I belong to a group that goes to cemeteries to photograph tombstones that people who are doing ancestry need to complete or verify dates of relatives long gone at their request. Today was that day in Townsend.

Then after that and after our chili/coleslaw hotdog we just drove around checking any houses on the river for sale. It was not for sale, darn it.  I passed by one and had to take a picture for you all.  It is not the general house you will see in Townsend but it is typical cracker house.  What caught my eye was the wringer washmachine on the porch, so Ma and Pa Kettle.  Then down the street was this lovely church and seeing the heart on the steeple made me stop to take a picture and I hope you enjoy both.  Come down to Townsend, Tennessee sometime, lovely place to visit and have dinner and stay in a cabin.

2 comments:

  1. what a nice church! Sounds like a wonderful little town.

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  2. Chili/coleslaw hot dogs! Our favorite! Down here in Florida we call them Carolina dogs (because we're from there and can get away with that down here!) We fix ours with the bun, then some mustard, the hot dog, the coleslaw (mayo based, none of the vinegar-based ones) and the chili (no beans) holding it all together, sort of. Of course, adding fried or grilled onions to the whole thing is just a bit extra to the mess we always make. Bibs are optional! Husband's mom always departed from style by putting her hot dog on the top. She said, if she had to drop anything it would be the dog and she could just pick it up and put it back! Everyone let her get away with that with only a little teasing because she was vintage, not to mention the matriarch of the family.

    Your mini-trip sounds excellent and what a good reason to go trouping about. When I was a girl, I visited family grave locations with a couple of my great aunts. To this day I wish I could find the tiny lamb headstone of their sister who died in the flu epidemic about 1918. Little Daisy was only three. Those graves were located in a farmer's field, with a little wrought-iron fence surrounding, and a few trees, somewhere near Fancy Gap, VA. I know I could never find it again and that's sad. I'm hoping someone in the family still takes care of the cemetery.

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