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Visiting Richmond

urbanvb

By urbanvb
in Richmond

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Cadeho City

Cadeho

Posted
Posted

Message to Northerners: we are not stereotypically Southern!

Fried green tomatoes and okra pancakes? Bleh :sick:

But hey, if they want Southern hospitality and an escape from that mega fast pace... then by all means!

Carytown the OLDEST shopping district???????????????????????? :angry:

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Cadeho City

Cadeho

Posted
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I like the fact that they wrote about us, but once again we're painted as Civil War obsessed and so Southern we're like Gone with the Wind and I'm surprised there's no Piggly Wiggly. I read an article in the T-D a while ago that mentioned how a Washington Post article about us painted almost the same stereotype. They wouldn't paint Charlotte with the same brush.

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Cadeho City

Cadeho

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That's not pessimisim. I try not to ignore things when I see them. It was an observation of something that could have been less offensive to me. It shows how the outside world views us still.

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Cadeho City

Cadeho

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That's not what I was offended about. It has nothing to do with race. I was offended that we're seen as a super Southern city when we're more cosmopolitan than they gave us credit of being. I'm a Civil War history buff and one reason I love Richmond's history. So that was the wrong spin you took off my post. We're not hung up or stuck on the Civil War as the article made us to be.

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eandslee City

eandslee

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Posted
That's not what I was offended about. It has nothing to do with race. I was offended that we're seen as a super Southern city when we're more cosmopolitan than they gave us credit of being. I'm a Civil War history buff and one reason I love Richmond's history. So that was the wrong spin you took off my post. We're not hung up or stuck on the Civil War as the article made us to be.
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wrldcoupe4 Metropolitan Area

wrldcoupe4

Posted
Posted

I thought the article gave Richmond a nice nod regarding being cosmopolitan:

"And notwithstanding its ties and testimonies to Robert E. Lee and other heroes of a long-lost world, Richmond today competes with Washington, its near neighbor, in up-to-date cultural sophistication."

To a New Yorker, Richmond IS probably super southern. The article highlights many of our historical attractions and quite a few deal with the Civil War. I don't think the article is condescending at all when it points out Richmond's southern attributes.

I would hope that this perception is changing...obviously, it hasn't totally gone away - and in a lot of ways, Richmond still is a small, sleepy, southern town...in comparison to the hustle and bustle of the cities in the north.
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burt Megalopolis

burt

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There is no question that traveling from the North, say for instance on a train, there is a distinct demarkation once you cross the Potomac. Virginia, especially away from the hustle and bustle of megalopolis, is a different and delightful world.

I thought the story was a bit tongue-in-cheek, but one that will attract the curious traveler.

After all, she did favorably compare the two capital cities on a sophistication level. Until a decade or so ago, no one would have written that.

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gntrphoo Unincorporated Area

gntrphoo

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Cam, I know exactly what you mean. Although the article is very positive, it perpetuates the very stereotypes that I often combat when talking to my friends about Richmond. I mean come on, when's the last time any of us have seen a woman "perched daintily upon a creaking porch swing awaiting potential suitors" while sipping a mint julep? It would have been more appropriate to write about the unique neighborly night life that occurs in the fan as families sit on their porches gossiping while their kids play in the street. Or maybe some one can tell me where you can buy a hat "that only Southern women can get away with wearing" in Carytown (other than the costume shop/vintage clothing stores that every city has). Cam, I definitely understand where you're coming from.

On the other hand, as Burt correctly states, the article achieves its goal of "attracting the curious traveler." I think we all know that Richmond has much more to offer than its history; however, the author chose to write about Richmond's history because that is Richmond's competitve advantage when it comes to tourism. If the article were about great cities in which to live for example, surely it would have spent more than a passing sentence on Richmond's impressive art scene, growing nightlife, extensive shopping options, great park system, etc. I have to admit, I cringed a little while reading the article, but I understand why it was written the way it was, and I am glad to see Richmond getting some positive press.

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Cadeho City

Cadeho

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gntrphoo, I'm glad you understood what I saw and I am not denying it would be a boost to our tourism to those who read the article spark an interest. I do love your Southern imagry, but I do declare, you forgot the lady's fan!

Eric, no harm done, it just caught me way off guard there.

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  • 4 months later...
burt Megalopolis

burt

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Famed author visits Richmond, his home town, to accept an auspicious award -- From today's inRich:

<a href='http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/ipb_seo.php?url=http://www.timesdispatch.com/content/cva/r...10-21-0292.html' rel='nofollow' target="_blank" onclick="java script:urchinTracker('/outgoing/www_timesdispatch_com');">http://www.timesdispatch.com/content/cva/r...10-21-0292.html</a>

PS: I think he predated Cam at St. Christopher's. ;)

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Cadeho City

Cadeho

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Posted

And I have yet to meet him! Maybe I should go to homecoming sometime... but then again... since I was on the football team (manager only) I had to be there for 4 years... and how can I miss a man dressed in all white?!

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  • 8 months later...

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