I grew up with a guy that had a similar experience escorting Russian people in Florida? Alabama? Somewhere in the south where we hid defectors until everything was straight. He was driving some guy around who thought it was a guided tour to Potemkin villages, so he pulled out a map and said pick a place.

They drove to whatever that town was and he said, pick a store. After a couple of hours, I think his mind was blown.

This was a fairly rural, poor part of the state. Later they went to Atlanta and the guy was gaga over... everything.