London and the US. 11

Memories of Playmobil

As we sat at our places in the arena of the Dixie Stampede, I had an eerie feeling when our waiter presented himself in a basic confederate uniform; he definitely reminded me of something familiar...but not from a movie scene - I could not put my finger on it, though. Later, I recalled the moment and the flashback became clear: the waiter reminded me of the playmobil figures from my childhood.

The waiter, the cowboys, the so-called audience volunteer partaking in the magic trick, the host, Dolly Parton's plastic image on the tv screens, the other waiters, they were all part of a thematic circus that complimented Dollywood, just across Pigeon Forge's river.

It's not a light-hearted affair to see how such a traumatic experience as the american civil war can and has been mellowed down into light entertainment shows like this one. Sure enough, the show ended with a patriotic display and message of unity, in spite of its cashing in on the north-south divide that clings on to american core values.

Dixie.
a nickname for the Southern United States [probably derived from] privately issued currency from banks in Louisiana [...] labeled "Dix", French for "ten", on the reverse side. [...] The notes were known as "Dixies" by English-speaking southerners, and the area around New Orleans and the Cajun-speaking parts of Louisiana came to be known as "Dixieland" [...]

Stampede.
an act of mass impulse among herd animals or a crowd of people in which the herd (or crowd) collectively begins running with no clear direction or purpose [...]

Dolly Parton.
(born January 19, 1946) an [...] American [..] known for her prolific work in country music [...]

Dollywood:
a theme park owned by country music singer Dolly Parton [...] It is located in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. In addition to standard amusement park thrill rides, Dollywood features traditional crafts and music of the Smoky Mountains area. Dollywood also owns the adjacent Dollywood's Splash Country, and the chain of Dixie Stampede dinner theaters [...] as well as other national and local musical acts [...]