Sep 10th, 2012 at 1:00PM: I just love visiting factories. After finishing my Southern Road trip, I've now been to 99. I went on my first plant tour when I was 8 years old, and my family went to visit Ford's Rouge plant in Dearborn, Michigan.
Like me, you can visit many of the car plants that have been built in the South over the past 20 years. (See here for a list – and companies are adding tours all the time.) ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
southernroad posts
The Southern Road: 6 Tips For A Car Plant Tour
Sep 10th, 2012 at 1:00PM: I just love visiting factories. After finishing my Southern Road trip, I've now been to 99. I went on my first plant tour when I was 8 years old, and my family went to visit Ford's Rouge plant in Dearborn, Michigan.
Like me, you can visit many of the car plants that have been built in the South over the past 20 years. (See here for a list – and companies are adding tours all the time.) ...The Southern Road: The Next Bend In The Road
Sep 10th, 2012 at 10:00AM: In Alabama, they say that Huntsville has the intellect; Birmingham has the money; Montgomery has the power; and Mobile has the bay.
Soon enough, Mobile also will have airplanes, which will be built at a factory that Airbus plans to open in 2016. And from there, the same folks that brought you the southern auto industry hope they can develop a southern aviation corridor.
And while it's still ...The Southern Road: Ty Cobb Lives On
Sep 9th, 2012 at 10:00AM: I have been a fan of the Detroit Tigers since I was old enough to hold one of the big, fat, orange pencils that they used to sell at Tiger Stadium. Through the years, I've heard plenty about Ty Cobb, the famous, supposedly mean slugger who set records that still stand. Since his nickname was "the Georgia Peach," I knew he was from Georgia.
So, when I spotted a sign for Royston, Georgia, on ...The Southern Road: How To Eat A Boiled Peanut
Sep 8th, 2012 at 12:00PM: Boiled peanuts are one of those delicacies where you either love them, or you don't. You can find them all over the south. They're boiled because they are cooked in salted water, and are then kept warm in their juices in an electric casserole or crock pot.
I first encountered them in a gas station between Birmingham and Montgomery, and dipped up a cupful to try in private. I wound up with a ...The Southern Road: The Perks Of Gas Station Food
Sep 7th, 2012 at 3:00PM: The South has its highways, but in order to get to some places, you have to take four-lane or two-lane roads. That's where you'll find gas stations. And in many gas stations, you'll find food.
Up north, hardly anybody I know eats food from a gas station, unless they're starving and it has a Subway attached. Down south, gas station food is its own form of cuisine. If you're fortunate, you can ...The Southern Road: Under The Factory Roof
Sep 7th, 2012 at 9:30AM:
I can't stop thinking about Corey Burkett. And Tonya Williams. And the Burton family.
These folks - and thousands more - are southerners who have joined automobile companies to plot new careers and, hopefully, achieve some of their personal and financial goals. And the jobs along the Southern Road aren't just going to people who were born in the South.
During my trip, I met people with ...5 Southern Travel Tips For Women
Sep 6th, 2012 at 1:00PM: I spent two weeks this summer traveling across the Deep South for Gadling, on top of a two-week business trip/vacation there in May. When the mayor of Chattanooga told me, "You have the heart of a Southerner" I blushed, but I also felt like I must have figured out how to feel comfortable there. The South is a little different from the rest of the United States – especially if you're a woman ...The Southern Road: History And The Future Collide
Sep 6th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
If you mention Montgomery, Alabama, to anyone outside the South, you'll probably get a response that includes Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King. People know Chattanooga, Tennessee, best for the Glenn Miller song about a choo-choo, and others because they are Civil War buffs.
These two Southern cities, rich in history, now have something crucial in common: they've become car towns. Along ...The Southern Road: In Praise Of Zax Sauce
Sep 5th, 2012 at 1:00PM:
I am in love with Zax Sauce. So in love that I brought seven packets back from the South. If Zaxby's bottled their sauce, I would order a case.
Zaxby's is a franchised chicken chain that's had enormous growth across the South the past 20 years. The first one opened in Statesboro, Georgia, in 1990, and there are now 500, stretching across the South. There are only two things you need to know ...The Southern Road: Visiting The Luxury South
Sep 5th, 2012 at 11:00AM: Chris Hastings has beaten Bobby Flay on Iron Chef. This year, he won a James Beard Award. On any weeknight, his restaurant is packed with diners who look over the shoulders of his kitchen crew as they cook right in front of their eyes. But Hastings isn't cooking in Manhattan or Chicago or San Francisco.
He owns Hot and Hot Fish Club, in Birmingham, Alabama, and he's in the forefront of a legion ...10 Tips For A Southern Road Trip
Sep 4th, 2012 at 1:00PM:
On my trip through the new industrial South, I drove more than 4,000 miles, visiting 10 cities and nine factories in 10 days. The scenery ranged from the Great Smoky Mountains to the Gulf Coast, from live oaks to pines. Along the way, I sampled gourmet cuisine and boiled peanuts, gas station cuisine and outstanding fast food. Here are my top 10 tips for planning your Southern road trip.
1) ...The Southern Road: Traveling Through The New Industrial America
Sep 4th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
If you're not from the American South, you probably have an image of it in your head. It might have squealing pickup trucks and Daisy Dukes. Or hoop skirts and cotton plantations from "Gone With The Wind." Maybe the streetcars of New Orleans, or the twang of Paula Deen.
What if I told you that the American South has become a land of opportunity, where people no longer have to leave home to ...
