>>2824140
There are pockets of tacky hyperconsumerism, and some very exclusive mountain estate developments in the North Carolina mountains - living at 3000 feet elevation means temps 10+ F cooler than down in the flatlands.

Most of Appalachia has a very antiquated feel to it. It's not like the faux-rustic aesthetic of the western mountains, where prospering towns try their best to maintain a traditional facade along their thoroughly modern and hip Main Street districts. Across the most rural parts of Appalachia, things look rustic and quaint simply because nobody has bothered to build anything new in the past 50+ years.