Cherokee, NC.

On route to Tennessee, Mr. Hawthorne and I made a quick stop in Cherokee, NC.

Cherokee, NC, is in the heart of the mountains where the Great Smokies and the Blue Ridge meet. The Blue Ridge Parkway originates here. The Cherokee People have protected this area for over 11,000 years.

Traffic is backed up entering town ...

... due to the construction of another Harrah Casino. Gambling is big business here.

We stopped for a few minutes to go through the Cherokee Museum, a recognized authority on Cherokee history, housing more priceless artifacts and archives than anywhere else in the world. This award-winning collection tracks 11,000 years of Cherokee history. Sorry, didn't take pics except for this one: Too dark in there.

This is right outside the museum.

As it happened, the fifth annual Southeastern Tribes Cultural Arts Celebration was in full swing when we got there. This event, held September 17 and 18, brings together artists and craftspeople representing the Cherokee, Creek, Chickasaw, Seminole, and Choctaw tribes to present traditional tribal dances, storytelling performances, craft demonstrations, primitive skills, encampment, contests, games, and traditional foods. I picked up a few brochures ... ... and I so wanted to stay for the Indian Pole Dancing ...

... but alas, it was not meant to be.