Is Lumberton the worst town in North Carolina?
I lived in Lumberton for 3 years (moved in ‘08.) I wouldn't say it was the worst when I was there to begin with. I found Fayetteville (aka “"Fayettenam”) worse with its pig headed hot rod speeding marines, bad traffic and treeless flatland. Gradually, I learned the truth. There are processing plants in the area, turkey and pork so the aroma of manure and death is in the air on certain days of the week when they clean them. Ever since they closed the Converse and fabric mills in the area, you have a lot of people that were use to high pay with low education so that now the largest employers are Walmart and Robeson County School District. So you end up with a lot of uneducated entitled people. I worked at Lumberton high school for 6 years and supposedly it is one of the most diverse districts in the state. A large number of students come from broken homes. There was a growing problem with gangs and meth labs in the area as well. I had a student who was pregnant with her 4th child at 15 and was gang raped and forced to watch a child run over on train tracks, raped again and left for dead in a ditch! The mall in the downtown is pretty much dead. There are wealthy people in the area with old money and they are quite clickish with it. I lived in Duck Cove which is considered one of ‘wealthier’ areas and caught flack for it as if I were stuck up. I was discriminated against by black people thinking I was Native American which I actually am not. It was the first place I'd ever been openly discriminated against in my life. So if it was like that 9 years ago, I hate to imagine what it's like now! I'm pretty glad I moved!!
Why is North Carolina so cheap all around?
North Carolina is where I was born, and have lived my entire life (and still do). We're not necessarily cheap, but we're like buying a sheep farm in a 3rd world country compared to LA. The reason is because people don't need as much money here. We make a reasonable proportion of what we sell, and therefore local items are common. Cost of living is low. I'm from a town called Boone, NC. It's right on the border with Tennessee and about a 45 minute drive to Virginia. It is way up in the mountains, and therefore a bit different from the rest of the state. However, my father moved from Greensboro to here, and therefore I've been to Greensboro and the area many, many times. NC is a great place to live. It's practically a different country from west to east though. Where I am in the west, it's mountainous, extremely conservative (outside the town in the rural parts, where I live), full of a weird mix of dudes with coonskin hats and liberal college students. Locals speak with an entirely different dialect of English known as "southern appalachian english" which came from the Scots-Irish that settled here (I'm scots-Irish). It's like we're 20 years behind everyone else, and most people don't want to change that. Growing up I knew families who only let their girls wear bonnets and skirts, and they all played the fiddle incredibly well, and could flat-foot dance to the music. Oh yeah, and weather wise, it was -15° F last week. Not as temperate as L.A. Then in the east, you have sandy islands, palm trees, hot sandy shores, bikini girls (lol), and the small towns are totally different. It's much more multicultural. Most towns out east are about 40% black, 40° white, and the rest are other races. It's evenly split between conservatives and liberals, and if you like warm weather, that's the spot for you. I'm sorry I can't give more info on the east; I've never been there. Good luck, and I hope you receive a warm welcome in NC :)
What places should I visit in North Carolina in January? I will be there 8 days.
If I were you I would head into North Cackalacky from the west and snake your way thru the Smokey Mountains and head towards the north eastern corner of the state. Along the way they’ll be interesting towns to visit rich with historical significance. North Carolina was one of the original 13 colonies and is known as the tar heel state. Many Civil War battles were fought in NC as well and many of the smaller towns along the way have their own museums with civil war memorabilia that is quite interesting. When you reach the NE corner of the state the Great Dismal Swamp is a “must see” along with the hand dug section of the intercoastal waterway that cuts thru the swamp. The Outer Banks of NC is a huge sandy dune with small towns that dot the most eastern points of NC and where Black Beard the Pirate plundered many a ship before being killed in a battle with the Royal Navy off Ocracoke Is. The Wilbur and Orville Wright monument is located here too and is where man first flew in a machine under it’s own power.
What is the best north georgia mountain town to visit?
Each small town has something to choose from. Ellijay is having its annual Apple Festival the 2nd and 3rd weekends of October. I live here and the leaves are already starting to turn. The night temps have been dropping into the 40s. It is really nice right now. Just 15 minutes north is Blue Ridge which has some nice shopping downtown. Dahlonega is about 45 minutes east. Amicalola Falls is between Ellijay and Dahlonega. This is nice to visit. Forst Mountain is just west of Ellijay. Come visit and enjoy the mountains with us.