Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - (Page 41) upwardly * mobile I *PLEASE PRONOUNCE IT “MO-BEEL”! I’m a bit prejudiced, having been a Mobile native who’s lived here most of my life. But I’m not alone: The city is abuzz with an excitement that’s palpable. You can feel it in the humid air that sends Mobilians out in their boats and personal watercraft to seek sanctuary in local rivers, Mobile Bay, and the Gulf of Mexico; you can smell it in the heady scent of the breeze that blows in off the bay; you can taste it in the fresh seafood; and you can see it, most visibly, in the city’s new skyline, thanks to the opening earlier this year of the long-awaited RSA Tower, the tallest building along the Gulf Coast all the way to Houston. Mobile is changing in so many good ways. For as long as I can remember, Mobile has been compared to New Orleans, and it is reminiscent of the Big Easy in its waterfront location, its beautiful old homes, the love of jazz, Mardi Gras, and the laid-back attitude of the residents. Ironically, following Hurricane Katrina, several thousand people moved here after losing their homes in New Orleans and along the Mississippi Coast. Mobile’s downtown area and busy waterfront—home to shipbuilders, the Port of Mobile, and other businesses that depend on the Mobile River and its connection through Mobile Bay to the Gulf—are changing, too. The Carnival cruise ship Holiday departs the Mobile Cruise Terminal 70 times a year for the Western Caribbean. Retirement Systems of Alabama built the 41-story office building that now dominates the skyline, but equally important to most Mobilians, RSA at last renovated the beloved Battle House hotel, which had sat boarded up since 1974 after being the hub of social activity in the city for a century. Other downtown buildings that have been empty eyesores for years are being renovated, revealing the gorgeous historic architecture that other, younger cities would envy. story by MICHELLE ROBERTS MATTHEWS | photography by COURTLAND RICHARDS Holiday 2007 41
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue Editor's Letter Contributor Gumbo Words & Notes Coastal Calendar Storefronts Sweet Dreams Art of Living Fixtures Our Backyard Make Yourself at Home Beach Bam! A Big Easy Christmas Upwardly Mobile Can't Drive Old Dixie Down Rock On! The Play's the Thing Cheers Dish Chef's Table Let's Eat Reader Services Last Bite Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - (Page Cover) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - (Page IFC) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - (Page 1) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - (Page 2) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - (Page 3) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - (Page 4) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - (Page 5) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Editor's Letter (Page 6) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Editor's Letter (Page 7) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Contributor (Page 8) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Contributor (Page 9) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Gumbo (Page 10) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Gumbo (Page 11) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Words & Notes (Page 12) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Words & Notes (Page 13) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Coastal Calendar (Page 14) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Coastal Calendar (Page 15) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Storefronts (Page 16) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Storefronts (Page 17) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Sweet Dreams (Page 18) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Sweet Dreams (Page 19) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Art of Living (Page 20) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Art of Living (Page 21) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Fixtures (Page 22) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Fixtures (Page 23) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Our Backyard (Page 24) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Our Backyard (Page 25) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Make Yourself at Home (Page 26) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Make Yourself at Home (Page 27) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Make Yourself at Home (Page 28) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Make Yourself at Home (Page 29) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Make Yourself at Home (Page 30) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Make Yourself at Home (Page 31) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Beach Bam! (Page 32) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Beach Bam! (Page 33) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Beach Bam! (Page 34) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Beach Bam! (Page 35) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - A Big Easy Christmas (Page 36) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - A Big Easy Christmas (Page 37) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - A Big Easy Christmas (Page 38) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - A Big Easy Christmas (Page 39) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Upwardly Mobile (Page 40) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Upwardly Mobile (Page 41) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Upwardly Mobile (Page 42) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Upwardly Mobile (Page 43) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Upwardly Mobile (Page 44) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Upwardly Mobile (Page 45) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Can't Drive Old Dixie Down (Page 46) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Can't Drive Old Dixie Down (Page 47) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Can't Drive Old Dixie Down (Page 48) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Can't Drive Old Dixie Down (Page 49) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Can't Drive Old Dixie Down (Page 50) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Can't Drive Old Dixie Down (Page 51) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Rock On! (Page 52) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Rock On! (Page 53) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Rock On! (Page 54) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Rock On! (Page 55) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Rock On! (Page 56) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Rock On! (Page 57) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - The Play's the Thing (Page 58) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - The Play's the Thing (Page 59) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - The Play's the Thing (Page 60) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - The Play's the Thing (Page 61) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - The Play's the Thing (Page 62) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - The Play's the Thing (Page 63) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Reader Services (Page 64) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Reader Services (Page 65) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Cheers (Page 66) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Cheers (Page 67) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Dish (Page 68) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Dish (Page 69) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Chef's Table (Page 70) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Chef's Table (Page 71) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Let's Eat (Page 72) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Let's Eat (Page 73) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Let's Eat (Page 74) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Let's Eat (Page 75) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Let's Eat (Page 76) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Let's Eat (Page 77) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Let's Eat (Page 78) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Let's Eat (Page 79) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Last Bite (Page 80) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Last Bite (Page 81) Southern Breeze 2007 Holiday Issue - Last Bite (Page 82)
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.