Advice on what not to miss in Mississippi!
 

Hey Missippians!

My boyfriend and I (early 30’s) are planning a 6 month+ road trip of the United States from Washington DC to Washington State and everything in between.

We will be driving through Mississippi, around late spring and we’re hoping you guys could give us some advice, looking at the destinations we have so far.

We want to experience the true flavor of Mississippi. Our travel priorities are pretty wide.

We are somewhat foodies (though we hate the term) from fine dining to food trucks, want to be outdoor enthusiasts (new experience for us, get out of that car and hike) and are very much interested in historical attractions and art museums.

Here is what we have so far in no kind of order:

• Clarksdale
• Greenville
• Holly Springs
• Natchez
• Oxford
• Vicksburgh Nat Mil Park

So what do you think? What am I missing?

Like I said we want to get a real taste but I guess we have to keep in mind that this is a giant USA trip and in the scheme of things (rest of the USA) if you think I can cut something I will but if it’s essential Mississippi… No Way!

Thanks a lot! Gemma

Natchez would be my pick. Check out Mammy's Cupboard for lunch.

Not sure where you're from - but are you allowed to stay her more than 6 months? I thought that was the limit for a tourist visa.

Don't skip Natchez and make sure you go to Longwood Plantation. Fascinating.

If you've done Franklin in Tennessee and all the Civil War Battlefields there, I would think you could skip the Civil War stuff in Vicksburg.

Go to Oxford, skip Holly Springs. It is a university town with excellent bars and music, plus the home of William Faulkner and the scene of historic civil rights activity in the 1960's.

Go west from Oxford to the Delta: Clarksdale south on Highway 61 (gee, sounds like an album name!) to Greenville, leaving the main highway for some of the smaller towns like Mound Bayou and Leland.

Vicksburg, if you like battlefields (in which case you should do Fredericksburg when you are back in Virginia).

Natchez, okay, but I have a hard time with that Old South stuff. I would scoot right on down to New Orleans, but obviously many people feel differently.

Hey NY Traveller

I am eligible for B2 tourist visa.

I have been issued one before (still in my passport).

In fact my last visa was good for 12months not 6 so i dont see any problems.

Thanks everyone. Its great to get opinions other then reading a guide book! Every book i read i'm like 'ohhh that sounds good' turn the page 'ohhh that sounds good'.

Ackislander, i think i will take your advice and skip Holly Springs i am starting to get a little nervous with time.

I am doing a load of civil war sites; Shiloh, Fredricksburg, Harpers Ferry & Appomatox. I am not sure if i will really need to see so much, though i find that period of time historically facinating.

I completly understand your comment on 'old South stuff'.

My perspective is to ohh and aww pause and remember the price paid for that opulence and luxury.

I really would like to see Antebellum sites that show the 'true' history and conditions rather then those that are full tilt 'Gone with the Wind' check out these drapes.

I know there is a plantation in Lousianna which doesnt shy from its roots.

That would be Laura Plantation in Louisiana. It's not far from New Orleans.

The Old South stuff is what it is, but the most racist place I've been to in the US is Boston.

Clarksdale, Mississippi, has a couple of interesting attractions. One of them is an inn composed of former sharecropper shacks. See the following link:
http://www.shackupinn.com/#!home/mainPage

In addition, the town also has a number of interesting festivals. For information, see the following link:
http://visitclarksdale.com

Well, BigRuss, as a Southerner resident in Massachusetts since the late 1970's, I would have to agree about racism in Boston. The difference is that the Chamber of Commerce does not celebrate the past. There is no tour to show where Ted Landsmark was attacked by a white man wielding an American flag as a spear.

There are plantations that do a good job of dealing with the issues of the past. Monticello is one of them, though some docents do better than others. When I lived in Mississippi (seven years) Natchez emphasized the life of the 1/10 of 1% at the expense of the rest of the economic pyramid built on slavery. I would be happy to hear that things have changed.

I'll chime in on Miss. sites based on various trips while living in Missouri. Would agree on your list mostly, but Holly Springs does have its antebellum houses worth touring. Ditto Natchez of course.

Oxford is a laid back Old Miss town with interesting square and well known bookstore plus Faulkner's Rowan Oak. Do eat at Turner Grocery outside town. Somebody...what is that juke joint in Clarksdale I think it is? Great place.

Yes, Vicksburg for sure as an important Civil War site. Several times Jackson has had significant art treasure exhibits in the Pavillion...Splendors of Spain, Treasures of Dresden. We were at a campsite but liked Elite Cafe downtown.

Have a good time. But an added note about racism comment...
as a new resident in Watertown outside Boston I notice a very multi-cultural population. For sure Boston and vicinity has had past racial tensions (and among some maybe still so) but I am hopeful from what I sense that racial relations are improving.

We did a river plantation tour at various places in Louisiana, including Laura Plantation (mentioned above) and they didn't really hide the ball about slavery.

Mississippi has a long history of racism that ranges from bad to awful so there may be a lot of hagiography in the various plantations to avoid coming to grips with it. Can't speak to that because we've not been to the Natchez area estates.

Louisiana doesn't shirk, which is interesting because there's a good amount of continuing racism there today.

It'd be nice if Boston would get over itself, but that area is a hot mess on racial issues and has been for decades. Sorry Oz'Bill, but Boston's had a multicultural population for Ack's tenure there (comes in some part from all the colleges in the area) and it's still a racist dump.

When we moved to Boston in 1979, there was one place, exactly one, where you regularly saw people of different races dining at the same time: the small Legal Seafood Bistro (not the big restaurant) in the Park Plaza Hotel.

There are numbers of restaurants now -- the Ashmont Grill is a notable one -- with very diverse patronages. It's better, but it is but it is still not Chicago.

On the other hand, to support Bill, I am always astonished when I go to other cities to see how small the East Asian population is. In many parts of Boston and Quincy, there are very large numbers of Chinese, Vietnamese, and Koreans.

...and Haitians, Armenians, Sudanese, along with of course Greeks, Italians, Irish, Portuguese. Many in high tech and medical and research in the area. Many times in a nearby shop we hear no English. We smile at Moroccans in flowing colorful gowns playing cricket at nearby playground. Or are they Pakistani?

Well i guess you are going to get intolerant people anywhere.

So i think i am set for the Mississippi portion:

Oxford, Clarksdale, Greenville, Vickburg (if time) and Natchez

I will check out those towns you recommended Ackislander.

Has anyone been to the other delta towns or is Clarksdale/Greenville/Vicksburg enough of a representation for the area?

Has anyone ever driven the great river road scenic byway or Mississippi's portion of the Natchez trace parkway?

Thanks again everyone.