A number of years ago I drove through Savannah, Georgia. I decided to detour off the highway and visit the city for lunch. I was really curious to see the park where Forrest Gump was filmed. Remember when Forrest Gump was sitting on the park bench, waiting on the bus, and kept talking to various people with his “life is like a box of chocolates” wisdom? Great movie.
So I stopped and asked someone where this scene was filmed. The first person didn’t know. The 2nd, the 3rd, and 4th person I asked didn’t know either. I kept thinking to myself, “you have to be kidding me – no one in Savannah knows where Forrest Gump was filmed?” The more people I met who didn’t know its location, the more determined I was to locate this park! More than 2 hours later and having asked what felt like all of Savannah, I finally found someone who knew where this park was located. After visiting the park, I realized that we often take for granted these “treasures” we have in our own back yard.
We have some great spots in North Carolina to visit. Do you know the Top 10 most visited tourist attractions in North Carolina for 2010? Here are these top visited treasures:
- Biltmore Mansion in Asheville = 1.06 million visitors
- Fort Macon Historic Site in Atlantic Beach = 799,322 visitors
- NC Zoo in Asheboro = 755,531 visitors
- NC Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh = 708,398 visitors
- Fort Fisher State Historic Site in Kure Beach = 618,373 visitors
- Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh = 570,793 visitors
- Discovery Place in Charlotte = 530,423 visitors
- Wright Brothers Memorial in Kill Devil Hills = 478,391 visitors
- Museum of Life and Science in Durham = 433,018
- NC Aquarium-Fort Fisher in Kure Beach = 429,883 visitors
This doesn’t even include the Blue Ridge Parkway in western North Carolina that attracts millions every year. What treasures do you have in your local community? Have you visited them lately? I encourage you to take time to reconnect with those attractions in your own back yard and take time to enjoy that treasure.
Oh and by the way, Savannah was designed in approximately 16 squares; each feels like its own private park. The park where Forrest Gump waited on the bus is called Chippewa Square; located on Bull Street, between Hull and Perry Streets. You won’t find the park bench that Forrest Gump sat on because that was a movie prop; but you will immediately recognize where he sat, where he ran down the street, and the church steeple where the feather floated by on its way to landing on his leg. I discovered all of this detail from an employee at a local bank – she was so helpful. I hope I just saved you a lot of time from asking so many local Savannah residents where Forest Gump was filmed when you visit Chippewa Square – enjoy!!
By Tony Jarrett
