Simply South: A look at southern cities of America

The southern cities of America can surprise you with some unique experiences. Here’s listing a few:
Floating population every year prior to Easter, Big Easy, or New Orleans, turns into a colourful city with a flurry of activity and a crowd that sports colourful masks. Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday as it’s also known, is the Christian feasting-period before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday. Parades and parties mark the day in Louisiana where it is a holiday.  

At Mardi Gras World, the largest float-designing and building facility in the world, more than 80 per cent of the floats that journey down New Orleans’ streets during the carnival season are designed and built here. We end the tour on a sweet note with a slice of King Cake, a cinnamon-flavoured treat.

Athens of the South
From a different place and different time. Those are our first thoughts at the Parthenon in Nashville, the building of which is typical of those in the city of Athens. The building and the Athena statue are both identical replicas of the originals. No surprise then that this place came to be known as the Athens of the South.  

The sprawling space also houses paintings from the 19th and 20th century and has a dedicated space for artists to showcase their works. As we take in the 42-foot tall gold-coated sculpture of Athena that stands prominently and is supposedly the world’s only full-size replica of the ancient Greek temple, we’re told that it was originally built for the Tennessee Centennial Exposition in 1897, and then owing to safety issues it was rebuilt in 1929. If you’re a history buff, don’t give this place a skip.

Trade-off
After a taste of the music and fried food in the south, we spring back to the Victorian era at the Belle Meade Plantation in Nashville – the 5,000-plus acre land that saw the rise and fall of the wealthiest horse trading families of those times. We go on an hour-long guided tour of the property – which was once a log cabin, converted into the richest properties through a stud farm by the family – along with a large group of school children, who have been brought to show the estate to learn about the rise and fall of the Harding and Jackson families. Interestingly, a lot of the furniture that was sold off was traced and bought back to give an authentic feel to the estate.

In black and white
If you’ve often heard Martin Luther King Jr’s quotable quotes, then this well-documented museum is worth a visit. We’re standing outside the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis just below the balcony of Room 306 where the  American Civil Rights’ activist – whose “I have a dream” speech is remembered even to this day – was shot dead.

The Lorraine Motel is part of the complex of the museum, offering a glimpse into the history of slavery, Civil War and its aftermath. A striking exhibit is based on the Montgomery Bus Boycott in the ’50s, where visitors can hear conversations between fellow passengers. Interestingly, Mahatma Gandhi‘s fight, depicted right at the beginning of the museum, is the buzz among our bunch of desi travellers.   

Mexican art
Once upon a time a post office, the Frist Art Museum came into being when the city‘s visual-arts scene started sprouting. It comes as a breather in a city where music is the order of day.Art enthusiasts would be familiar with Frida Kahlo, the Mexican painter known for her many portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artefacts of Mexico. With rotational art on display, locals have a chance to witness different kinds of works on a regular basis. Don’t forget to pick up some postcards here.

(The writer was on a city tour by invitation from Brand USA)