Cherokee Nation

The last couple of days of our vacation were spent in Cherokee, North Carolina, along the southern edge of Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  I posted a little bit about the Cherokee history here and it seemed somewhat fitting that we were able to "close the circle" by seeing firsthand a re-creation of what Cherokee life was like before Andrew Jackson got in the way.

Oconoluftee Village is a step back in time, before the Trail of Tears, before the tribe was separated into what is now the Western Band, in Oklahoma, and the Qualla Band, in North Carolina.  Different stations are set up where you can watch people making pottery and baskets, weaving and making weapons.

We saw demonstrations of how the Cherokee lived, how they danced, how they governed themselves, how they traveled and how they fought.

There was also a botanic garden adjacent to the village, including a farm that grew flowers, vegetables and herbs for use in the village and outside.

A very peaceful place, to which I would like to return someday.