The South is gorgeous...period
But, you're so right. Eastern Tennessee is beautiful. I drove through there on my way to Florida this past Summer and on through the mountains. I stopped in SC to check out a Cherokee reservation on top of one of them until the mist began to settle. If I hadn't been concerned about getting back down the mountain through the mist in the dark, I could have stayed up there MUCH longer.
Nod, most of my family came from Georgia too (NE). I went on down into Savannah and HAD to spend time at St Simon's Island (one of my favorite places on the planet). If any of you ever get there, be sure you visit this church. So much history there (dates back to the 1700s, dedicated by the Wesleys), along with spanish moss and jasmine gardens.
check it out:
Christ Church, St. Simons, Georgia