A good old fashioned fall road trip with stops along the way to see good friends is one of the things I have been most looking forward to this fall. My first stop was Atlanta, Georgia to see my good friend Adrienne who I met 15 years ago when studying abroad in London and have had many good times together since then visiting each other in whichever city one of us happens to live at the time. The weekend was mostly about catching up with a good friend that I don't get to see as often as I would like to.
Lighted city mural at Ponce City Markey in Atlanta
Stop #2 is Athens, Georgia to see another good friend from graduate school. She recently moved back here and since I was in the area, I am excited that I get to see her on this trip. I spent a good part of the day in the Georgia State Botanical Gardens. Unfortunately the welcome center and all of the buildings are closed on Mondays but the grounds are still open with many paths and trails to explore. I spent over two hours here just walking around and taking pictures of the changing leaves, flowers, bees, and butterflies in the area. It is very serene here with not too many people on a random Monday afternoon but the fall weather was perfect and hearing the crunch of leaves under my feet while I walk the trails is not something I often get to hear in Florida.
University of Georgia is, of course, one of the big rivals of my Florida Gators but driving around Athens and the University of Georgia it is interesting how similar both towns feel. Big, beautiful brick buildings make up both campuses and while Georgia definitely has steeper hills both have lots of trees and greenery throughout the city and campus and no matter where you go there is that college town feel.
After picking up a quick lunch my next stop for the day was the Sandy Creek Nature Park. Again, Monday is not the best day to go if you want to explore the facilities as they are closed but all the trails are open and there were very few people around when walking on the trails.
We ate dinner at a place in downtown Athens called The Last Resort and it was hopping considering it was a Monday night... the line must be out the door on weekends. I had the chicken praline with creamy grits and it was amazing. I love anything sweet but it also had a little tang from mustard to cut the sweetness and green beans to go with it so you can feel like you are being healthy.
No comments:
Post a Comment