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I only knew about Chicago's two airports (Midway and O'Hare--which was the world's busiest airport until some years after the 1996 Olympics), Kennedy Airport, LaGuardia, Heathrow, Charles de Gaulle, Orly and LAX. I obviously knew other major cities had airports. But they never stood out in my mind. I hadn't heard of Hartsfield-Jackson until I moved here (I didn't fly the first time I came here and we drove when I moved here).
I didn't know what sports teams were in Atlanta either. I just knew of Northeast coast teams, California's Milwaukee's, Boston's and St. Louis. I guess I just never caught the game when Chicago's teams played Atlanta's.
I knew some people that I met through work lived in an Atlanta suburb called Stone Mountain, but I didn't know there was an actual Stone Mountain Park with the world's largest piece of exposed granite. I also didn't know it had the world's largest high relief sculpture partially carved by the same man who carved Mt. Rushmore until after I moved there. I had heard of Mt. Rushmore, but never the Civil War carving. Maybe because we didn't really study the Civil War much in school and the Civil War is something that people in other parts of the country outside the south don't think about or care much about.
I didn't know that Kriss Kross was from Atlanta. I also didn't know Coke was based in Atlanta. I drank Pepsi back home lol.
Again, never saw a picture of Atlanta's skyline before moving here but could easily recognize Chicago's or New York's in a photo. In certain photos with certain angles, I can't tell them apart. Though the building that stood out to me after moving here was the Bank of America building.
I'm not pointing these things out to bash Atlanta, just that I didn't know much of anything about the city, even after a brief visit in 1995 and I didn't learn anything about it until after I moved here in 1997. I just knew a lot of people were moving down here so they could buy a house or they were told that black people could "make it" here.
I think it's great for the city that the 1996 Olympics put it on the map. But to me it begs the question of whether or not Atlanta would have gained the same popularity it has in the last sixteen years if the city had never gotten the Olympic bid.
I love how some people seem to think that their ignorance about Atlanta means that other people suffer from the same ignorance. Okay...you didn't know much about Atlanta and couldn't recognize the skyline - big deal. That doesn't necessarily mean that the general public shares your lack of knowledge. I mean, it's fine if you weren't very aware of Atlanta, but there is no need to project that onto others.
Well-traveled people are usually much more aware of major U.S. cities as are people who are generally interested in cities and urban issues.
I still think "trees" are a silly thing to hold up as a symbol of Atlanta. Every city has trees, there are even trees in Manhattan. The ironic thing is that even with all those trees in Atlanta, there is less opportunity to really get out amongst them and enjoy them than in more built up cities. Most of those trees are on private property. Atlanta lacks a true "forest" park like Rock Creek Park in DC where you can literally get lost hiking in the middle of one of the nations biggest cities. Even Central Park has the Ramble and a big patch of forest in the north end. It seems like Piedmont Park is finally starting to get the idea with the latest expansion but I think the west side is ripe for a big park with plenty of hiking trails and a well managed forest. Maybe a mini Sweetwater Creek type park ITP would work there if there is enough empty land(and there seems to be on the west side).
I'm a native of beautiful North Carolina, and I've spent the last 20 years living in Southern California, Boston, and 10 years in NYC. I've also driven to the West Coast 9 times. I've been to every major city in the lower 48 except for the northernmost ones: Seattle, Minneapolis, and Detroit.
All of Metro Atlanta is covered by a continuous canopy of non-stop trees, all the way up to the tall buildings downtown. There are no bare spots. I can't think of any other major cities with as many trees, though D.C. Maryland and NoVa come close.
You don't have to value the trees, but I do. They hide urban blight. Trees beautify virtually every thoroughfare and arterial throughout metro Atlanta. There aren't any "Pico Blvd.s" or "Queens Blvds" in Atlanta. There aren't endless hideous suburbs like Jersey City or Nassau County, Long Island, or West Covina, El Monte, or Garden Grove, CA.
Granted, Atlanta's arterials are quite primitive and basic, but I think the tradeoff is worth the endless green landscape.
I like how Virginia doesn't allow billboards, and they are also pretty much absent in Raleigh-Durham. (Though I-85 has a lot).
I-85 in Gwinnett County, GA has been obliterated by way too many billboards. It truly has become an eyesore.
I love how some people seem to think that their ignorance about Atlanta means that other people suffer from the same ignorance. Okay...you didn't know much about Atlanta and couldn't recognize the skyline - big deal. That doesn't necessarily mean that the general public shares your lack of knowledge. I mean, it's fine if you weren't very aware of Atlanta, but there is no need to project that onto others.
Well-traveled people are usually much more aware of major U.S. cities as are people who are generally interested in cities and urban issues.
I don't know much about cities I haven't lived in or visited at some length. We spent a week with friends in St. Louis a few years ago but until then I couldn't have told you much about it other than that they had a big arch and a baseball team named the Cardinals that Stan Musial and Tim McCarver (former Atlanta Cracker) played for. I'd zipped though there on business but hadn't paid much attention to it.
It turned out to be quite a lovely and history rich place. Our friends lived in the Clayton area and we had a grand time touring the city and the countryside.
I don't know much about cities I haven't lived in or visited at some length. We spent a week with friends in St. Louis a few years ago but until I couldn't have told you much about it other than that they had a big arch and a baseball team named the Cardinals that Stan Musial and Tim McCarver (former Atlanta Cracker) played for. I'd zipped though there on business but hadn't paid much attention to it.
It turned out to be quite a lovely and history rich place. Our friends lived in the Clayton area and we had a grand time touring the city and the countryside.
I guess knowledge of formerly unknown places comes with age and maturity. I think there was probably a time in all of our lives when we didn't know much about cities outside of the ones we lived in or the ones nearby. I imagine that the under 25 age group is undoubtedly much less knowledgable about the U.S. and world in general than the 30 and overs just due to lack of experience, and that may explain some of the posts in this thread. With age comes broader knowledge.
My mom who has lived here for about 8 years now didn't even know Atlanta was among the top 10 metros. She thought New Orleans was bigger then Atlanta. I had to read out the list of the top 10 metros. She also didn't know Dallas and Houston were so big.
People around the nation and world are aware how big the big 3(LA, NYC, Chi) are, but after that, many people are clueless.
Despite this fact and SURPRISINGLY, Atlanta is the 7th most visited city in the nation with over 40 million visitors a year so people are definitely aware of Atlanta in regards to being a destination. Atlanta is very big in the South, but once you start getting out of the south, it's not very large.
My mom who has lived here for about 8 years now didn't even know Atlanta was among the top 10 metros. She thought New Orleans was bigger then Atlanta. I had to read out the list of the top 10 metros. She also didn't know Dallas and Houston were so big.
I would have to stick up for your mom on that one. For most people this sort of thing is probably a complete non-issue.
It is Atlanta's super-unique urban/suburban forestry that is a marvel.
Atlanta the city in a forest
It's not a widely known or appreciated feature. It was probably 20 years after I moved here that I first heard of Atlanta's arboreal distinction. Atlanta is not talked about as the "treed city".
Maybe not in your circles, Mathman. That doesn't mean a lot of other people aren't up on the subject.
Quote:
For a sprawling city with the nation’s ninth-largest metro area, Atlanta is surprisingly lush with trees—magnolias, dogwoods, Southern pines, and magnificent oaks. Its mix of antebellum architecture and sexy glass high-rises reflects the paradox of the place; Atlanta is an ever-evolving city, honing her identity as she grows. Though steeped in Civil War history and a devotion to Southern hospitality, Atlanta is also a hotbed of upscale shopping, creative cuisine, and an exploding arts scene. Locals are passionate about college and professional sports, but also about foie gras, collard greens, and pecan pie. Neighborhoods like trendy Virginia-Highland and upscale Buckhead share cultural space with alternative Little Five Points and East Atlanta Village. The heart of the southeast has a captivating intersection of liberals and conservatives, blacks and whites. New attractions—the Georgia Aquarium, Atlantic Station, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center, and the recently redeveloped World of Coca-Cola—show that Atlanta, ever re-defining itself, has no plans to rest on its laurels.
"Why do you put sugar in iced tea but not on grits?"
"Just what is a grit anyway?"
Some visitors come to Atlanta looking for Old South stereotypes -- white-columned mansions surrounded by magnolias, owned by slow-moving folks with accents as thick as molasses. Instead, they discover a region that's more cosmopolitan and a heck of a lot more interesting than what they'd expected.
****
But commerce and development are not the only things that characterize this bustling metropolis. Its success is due in no small part to its quality of life, which is hard to beat. Atlanta is often called the City of Trees, and the streets are indeed filled with dogwoods and azaleas. The city has a small-town quality to it, with dozens of neighborhoods and parks. A temperate climate makes Atlanta a magnet for anyone who enjoys the outdoors, and the city's southern roots ensure graciousness and hospitality. As Atlanta has grown in stature, it has attracted residents from across the continent and around the world, further enriching the city's social fabric. You'll still hear gentle southern accents here, but at least half of Atlanta's citizens were born outside the South. Interestingly, many of these transplants find themselves bending to the local customs, saying "please" and "ma'am" and holding doors open for one another.
The sprawling canopy of magnolias, water oaks and pines that earned Atlanta the nickname “The City in a Forest” is looking significantly thinner these days.
Lol, someone replied to my comment about "Atlanta being the 7th most visited city" by using reputation comments.
Quote:
ATLl is the 7th most visited due to the airport. Do you really think people would choose Atlanta, when LA, San Fran, New York, DC, Miami, Las Vegas, Chicago are TRUE visitor destinations?
I don't know who gave me this comment, but I'm pretty sure if it went by airport, that would spike up into 70+M due to 90M passenger travelling through the airport alonea year.
Also, many of the visitors are actually from other areas of the South. There are also MANY conventions and events here so that also spikes up the number by a lot.
And people don't have money to fly around the country to see the other "true" destinations. I would love to go to SF, but I don't have the money atm to pay for it, but I can take my ass to Savannah for a weekend driving and be considered a visitor.
A visitor doesn't necessarily have to be 1000 miles away. A visitor can be one from Birmingham, Chattanooga, Charlotte, or any other close Southern city.
I would really LOVE to know who wrote this reputation comment. It seems like they are trying to be anonymous...I guess so they don't get heat from the other posters. I understand though. There are MANY Atlanta boosters here who will get all up in your grill to change your opinion about their city to a more positive one.
Alanta has regional and MAYBE national importance, but it does not have worldly importance other then hosting the 1996 Olympics.
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