The Vibe of Savannah

One of my friends from grade school through high school is trying to come down to Savannah to visit. I recommended that she come down for Beach Bum. Anyway, today in an email, she asked me what the "vibe" of Savannah was. I thought yall might be interested in what I wrote. Feel free to add anything in the comment section so that I can give her a better feel for what the true vibe of Savannah is.

What follows is my response:

Hmmm the Savannah Vibe. I asked my kids and I got: “It’s straight (meaning it is good)”…. “it’s different…like…you got different people from outta town and they come down here and they see the old buildings and the shops downtown and the beach and it is nice. Then you go to West Savannah or the projects and it’s not so nice.” Then I asked her if it seemed like two different cities and she said, “No, it’s one city…it just depends on where you are at.”

Now allow me to articulate it a little better.

There are a few different types of people that live in Savannah.

The Catholics: Half of the Irish people in the state of Georgia live in Savannah. These people are traditional Savannahians. A lot of my friends fit in this category. Our parents hung out together when they were young, our grandparents have known each other all their lives, and I would be willing to bet that our great grand parents were friends too. When I meet someone who is older and I introduce myself they often say, “Bunger…hmmm who is your daddy?” Then they will either tell me that they are friends with my dad or that their older or younger brother was friends with my dad. Also, since they were good Catholics and didn’t use contraception, a lot of my friends’ parents grew up with like 7 or 8 siblings. I make fun of my friends a lot for the way they all dress the same. Plain or stripped Ralph Lauren shirts are boss. They all have dressed this way since 6^th grade and I don’t think they will stop until the funeral home director gets a chance to dress them. Sadly, I used to feel classy when I would wear polo shirts back home, here, I feel like I am putting a uniform on. Everyone likes to drink. It seems like it at least. My brother likes to talk about this saying he saw in a souvenir shop that said, “In Atlanta, they ask you where you are from. In Charleston, they ask you who you grandfather was. In Savannah, they ask you what you drink.” And when I say everyone likes to drink, I don’t just mean high school kids to college kids and young adults…but also real adults…and kinda old adults…and really old adults. I guess what we would call these people back home would be "preppy."

The Beach Bum: very laid back and accepting party atmosphere…some self proclaimed “Tybee Low-Lifes.” In the summer, there are a lot of Georgia and South Carolina crackers who make Tybee their vacation destination and that just adds to the entertainment. Don’t think Tybee hasn’t captured the imagination of Hollywood types either though. Sandra Bulloch owns a house here, Al Rocker has been on vacation here…Johnny Depp I think… I don’t really know. But our biggest claim to fame is General/President Andrew Jackson retired here and you can still see his lifelike corpse hobbling from bar to bar. If you are lucky, he might pee on you accidentally (long story, I will tell you at another time).

The Hood: No one really knows anything about this aspect of Savannah, aside from those that live in the hood. I have come close to learning some things about this demographic of Savannah; however, I think it will take a while to really understand it. I am still working on figuring it out. When I do, I will let you know. However, the hood accounts for a large part of Savannah in land size, population and popular culture (see the rappers Camouflage and Big Boi).

The Tourist: This would be you. I am just kidding…not really though. I will sneak you in the backdoor. They are all over the place, all year long. Everyone acts like they hate them, even though they are the reason that Savannah is so nice…from them pumping all kinds of money into the local economy. They are easily spotted based on their fanny packs, and Tybee Island/Savannah t-shirts. They also will be congregating in front of Paula Deen's The Lady and Sons restaurant, because they are idiots.

The SCADster: The Savannah College of Art and Design is one of the most prestigious art schools on the East Coast…after RISD, but before a lot of others. It cost a buttload to go to, so most of them are rich kids. There are some similarities to The Tourist. Both are not well liked by the locals. Both pump tons of money into the local economy. The SCADster is slightly easier to point out, due to their pink hair and/or skinny jeans…and you should see the girls. Basically they are hipsters…and all over the place. I have met some cool people from SCAD…but this isn’t about that…this is about generalizations and stereotypes. The two things that SCAD really has going for itself, in my book, is that they buy old buildings and renovate them and do a really good job. Their renovation program is one of the best in the country, and thus Savannah has some of the best renovations of buildings as old as the 1700s. Also, a lot of the artists stay in Savannah after they graduate…so the town has some culture. The second thing they are really good for is: each spring they host the SCAD Graduation Concert at Forsyth Park. One of my favorite days of the year. There is no open container law in Savannah, so you are alloweed to get "to go" cups from bars and walk around with your drink, while you are in between bars. This lack of an open container law also comes in handy at the SCAD Concert because you just pack a cooler and go sit in the park and hang out. It is absolutley amazing.

There are some other types…but these are the ones I am most familiar with.

Tonight I will be in the fourth row of the Johnny Mercer Theatre to see one of my favorite bands of all time: Wilco.