American leftists love to malign the South. We Southerners and our culture are the butt of jokes time and time again. Outsiders mock our accents and our traditions, sometimes in really ugly ways. Southerners get the broad-brush treatment regularly, with outsiders hurling generalizations our way constantly.
As I wrote in my book Neon Crosses:
Let’s be honest: the South is the most misunderstood region of the country. Yankees and other outsiders come south of the Mason-Dixon Line with preconceived notions. Years of troubled history and the baggage that goes along with that history have helped contribute to this phenomenon. For many years, slavery dominated the region as both an economic driver, and for years after that, ugly bigotry ruled the South. While it’s true that one can still find remnants of these attitudes here and there, the vast majority of Southerners are warm and friendly and do not harbor this type of hatred.
I’d love to dispel a few of the myths about the South and its people that simply aren’t true. For starters, we’re not all backward hicks who engage in ridiculous redneck pastimes and resist technological progress. For some reason, people who have never been down here think of us as uncultured. When my aunt first moved with my uncle to Washington State in the early ’80s, she actually had a neighbor react with surprise at the fact that we have museums in Georgia!
So as tourists descend on the South for the FIFA World Cup, plenty of people from inside and outside the U.S. are experiencing the region for the first time. Of course, it’s on us to put our best foot forward for everybody, and for most Southerners, that just means being normal.
Related: The Left Issues a ‘Travel Advisory’ for Florida and Other Fairy Tales
Leftists have tried to warn World Cup attendees about the “dangers” they supposedly face when visiting the South, but of course, those dire predictions are unfounded. One German tourist’s reactions to the glories of the South are spectacular.
Side note: I don’t care about the World Cup and have no desire to write about it, watch it, or even hear about it other than as the hook for this story. I’ve mentioned FIFA in passing in other articles in the past, but none of this interests me at all.
The X user, whose handle is @FreddyLA7, has been documenting his travels through the South on his way to a friendly match at Auburn University. He has gotten to experience all sides of the South, from the city to the country.
ATLANTAAAAA🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/xgSAMuFexO
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 6, 2026
Ngl riding the metro in Atlanta is a bit scary. If any of you guys are going to a game there, I’d probably recommend getting an Uber instead. pic.twitter.com/Jel8fkU9D3
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 6, 2026
Bless his heart. We could’ve told him to avoid MARTA.
The greenness of the urban South came as a surprise.
Atlanta is so green it’s crazy. It feels like you’re in a forest the whole time. pic.twitter.com/o8wBzBoR6U
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 7, 2026
Freddy also got to experience some true Southern institutions and enjoy some of the best food anyone could ask for outside of fine dining.
Just had our first Waffle House experience at 1am. Great food, great prices, and friendly staff. 10/10, we will be coming back.😋 pic.twitter.com/QHgftpqfoX
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 8, 2026
Dinner from Buc-ee’s at 1am😋 pic.twitter.com/1p0iZLfmOW
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 10, 2026
Freddy got to see the Great Smoky Mountains in all their glory. He also sorta FAFO-ed when it comes to tubing.
We’ve paid the ultimate price for not spending $3 on a locker during river tubing yesterday. Our shoes are still soaked and completely unusable.
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 9, 2026
Time for some shoe shopping at Walmart😐 pic.twitter.com/P1gQ9vnboP
He experienced an American college campus and an SEC football tradition. By the way, I invited him to come to Athens, Ga., to see the campus at the University of Georgia.
This is the most “The European mind can’t comprehend this” moment of my life. One of my friends said, “Punch me five times tomorrow and I’ll still think this isn’t real.” pic.twitter.com/FWYOY8iyDF
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 10, 2026
Little night tour around Auburn campus🚶♂️ pic.twitter.com/NrPKFubqke
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 10, 2026
There’s an eagle flying around the stadium pic.twitter.com/luC6ENq7oM
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 10, 2026
He also discovered the joys of country music.
The best discovery of our road trip has been a musician called Ella Langley. We had never heard of her before, but after hearing her on pretty much every country radio station, we’ve become big fans. She’s basically the soundtrack of our trip. pic.twitter.com/IhQt4Z3vFV
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 10, 2026
He experienced the mountains, and now he’s gotten to see the Gulf of America.
We made it to the sea🌊 pic.twitter.com/YQsofC6C4k
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 11, 2026
Made the tweet while sitting on this bench https://t.co/7ZCxed4Y4E pic.twitter.com/sEcck51x0B
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 11, 2026
One of my favorite parts of his journey (so far) is how much he seems to have fallen in love with small-town Southern life.
Spending the night in Fairhope, Alabama🌅 pic.twitter.com/Pa6fle77uw
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 11, 2026
I could live here pic.twitter.com/NbYZLPuM4R
— Freddy🇩🇪 (@FreddyLA7) June 11, 2026
Freddy has become a big fan of the South, and I’m here for it. I love seeing people view how wonderful this part of our great country is with their own eyes.
The left loves to sneer at the South, but real life has a funny way of wrecking their favorite narratives. That’s what PJ Media is here for: cutting through the stereotypes, the media spin, and the coastal condescension with stories that tell the truth.
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