Sifting Through Atlanta's Multiple Personalities

Having lived in this southern capital for over twelve years, you'd think that I'd be able to aptly describe Atlanta. Moving here as a student in 1995, I've watched the births of new buildings and businesses and witnessed people date and finally marry this southern metropolis, calling it home. While I can talk about the pockets, or parts of town, that make up this burg the same way I'd describe cousins and uncles, oddly, after years of learning city secrets and socializing, I still can't succinctly describe Atlanta as a whole.

Other cities seem to have distinct personalities, or at least reputations that are somewhat accurate. New York, "The Big Apple," has Broadway and investment banking to bolster its identity. L.A., of course, has Hollywood, while Miami is the mami of beachfront fly boys and girls, and Vegas is the veritable black sheep city with its gambling, night life and all too true tagline. Even Chicago is known as a windy lake front town, with Michigan Avenue providing its personality with an upscale edge and Italian restaurants donating to a distinct food flavor. When people think of Atlanta, a few things do consistently come to mind: civil rights, Coca-Cola and the calidity of our summers. Outside of those three characteristics, impressions of our fair city are all across the board.

I asked myself "What are we known for?" Peaches and sweet tea can't be all there is to it! I've been beating my head against the wall trying to come up with a one final statement to sum things up.

Over the years Atlanta has gained some notoriety on a national level. Trump is constructing a hotel downtown. Atlantic Station took the trophy as far as brownfield projects are concerned and everyone remembers the 1995 Olympics, even if only because of the terrorist bombing. The Georgia Aquarium gave us bragging rights and though it's no Disney World, Six Flags still attracts those which to spin around at high speeds after eating a candied apple. We've got sports teams and players that hit (or miss) the mark enough to be recognized and annual festivals that bring in folks from all over the country. Isn't it Atlanta that has the busiest airport in the U.S? Despite all of these things, I still found myself struggling to come up with a snazzy one liner like "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" or "I Love New York" to describe where I live. Clearly, as a city, we've surpassed the stanzas that make up "Georgia On My Mind." Recently the city went with "It's Always Opening Day," but the ambiguity of the phrase makes it slip from memory all too quickly.

Some of my non Atlanta cohorts have argued that my city has a mild case of schizophrenia. Take, for instance, the club scene, which has become a mixed bag of venues with cabana inspired coziness, membership fees and bottle service, replicating many of the celebrity stocked locales elsewhere. Though I quite enjoy seeing and being seen at these exclusive spots while engaging in a fair amount of social intercourse, I also find that Atlanta is home to just some plain old bars and holes in the wall as well. Restaurant options prove no less diverse, as a city where you might expect to find a lifetime supply of greasy spoons, surprisingly serves up fusion, fast food and sushi options in abundance on just about every block from Midtown to Buckhead. Some even say that Atlanta successfully serves up all the delights of the palate traditionally found in other places. Music too is varied. With nearby Nashville a nook for country crooners, some would expect Atlanta to produce the same sound, but instead we are the stomping grounds for almost every genre of artist, from Usher's R&B, to John Mayer's ballads, and Ludacris' hypnotic hip-hop lyrics.

Atlanta also still lives under the umbrella of the southern stereotypes. However, contrary to popular belief, everyone doesn't talk with a country twang or walk with the swagger of S.W.A.T.s, and it's not because people here try to act like they are from somewhere else. In some cases, people bring their accents and saunters from another city, but even native Atlantans display clear contradictions to the labels handed down through history. But all of this just seems to support the arguments of my friends. Just when I am about to agree that Atlanta is a mixed up metropolis, I pause and think perhaps it is fitting that a city that attracts and retains so many transients each year is more of a chameleon than the cornerstone of any one "type."

In a city that has seen tremendous growth over the past 10 years and is a poster child for urban sprawl is it any wonder that we've turned into many things for many people? Atlanta is home for me, because there isn't just "one thing" that makes it pop. It's a young urban center that is going in many different directions at once, providing people who live here with options to either enjoy the ride or actually contribute to its construction.

Any description of Atlanta takes on the vantage point of the person speaking and where they are from. Some say ATL is becoming a major music city while others site that motion pictures and television crews are popping up, putting us in a position to become the "on location" destination for Hollywood's movie moguls. Condos and curbside beautification make some city dwellers dream of a beautifully inspired pedestrian city, while others envision trolleys and streetcars buzzing through the hilly intown neighborhoods. These varied perspectives and predictions, in their own way, all have some truth to them.

If I feel like taking a leisurely look through lofty galleries, I can go to Castleberry. When I want to stroll past storefronts, just blocks from the city lights, I visit the Highlands. When nightlife calls, Midtown and East Atlanta lounges and bars are open late. The West End caters to my calling for a good bargain on fashionable faux purses and Little Five points will take me out of my element when I feel like lying low. Like the runt of the litter, Atlanta is taking on the best traits of its city siblings and coming into its own. Today, Atlanta is more of a teenager with big dreams, and may even be lacking a little in maturity. But I believe it will emerge as the kind of metropolis that makes a statement, even without the tagline.