Our uneventful drive through Alabama to Atlanta brought us to my old stomping grounds. But, a lot has changed since 1994! Besides the Olympics related buildings, whole neighborhoods have transformed from working class, industrial areas to high-end condos and shopping. So many more highrises have popped up that I don’t recognize the skyline. And, while the traffic has always been notoriously bad, it is even worse on the surface streets. But we came to Atlanta to visit friends and we had a great time.
We stayed with Judy, Dave, Maddy and Nestle (a walking, furry, chocolate bar) where feasting with good food and drink was the standard. Highlights: Turkish dinner of kofta and couscous by Mark, and mushroom omelets and a fried turkey with dirty rice by Dave, homemade tiramisu by Judy (I set the table). From this home base, we saw Kati and her furry Max (or snowball as Mark called him), and my nephew Patrick who is resembling his dad’s looks more and more – but not his actions, thank goodness! James was harassed appropriately via phone, but wisely stayed in Columbia that day.
Since we were in the heart of the south, Mark needed to learn something about Atlanta, confederacy, and the Civil War. After all, he’s now going to live in the South. So we marched to Grant Park to see the Cyclorama. This was a mandatory stop on a trip up the east coast when I was a child. We walked around the circular diorama back then, before it was restored. Now, you can see scenes from the Battle of Atlanta on July 1864 while sitting, as the seats turn to follow the story narration. The Civil War, with a total of around 3 million soldiers (both north and south) was our bloodiest war, but also the most personal. Soldiers who grew up as friends and even as family, fought one another. The death count was high with 2/3 of this number dying from disease and not battle wounds. The Battle of Atlanta proved to be a turning point in the war, shifting to the North’s advantage.
The Cyclorama painting – largest canvas painting in the world – was done 2 years after the Civil War ended. So the battle stories were still fresh. The painting traveled around for many years as was common for these paintings in the 1800’s. In the 1920’s, it came home to Atlanta to stay. Refurbished in the 1970’s, the painting and diorama are impressive in story and design. Mark found this all interesting and has a bit of understanding now. Civil Wars even happen outside of the Sunni/Shia Iraq situation. Next on his southern orientation is the southern accent!
The steam train ‘Texas’ is in the building also. This train is famous for the Great Chase in April 1862 when Union spies seized another train called the General. It was chased by the Texas – driving backwards – until the General was abandoned. The spies were hanged and the Texas is in Grant Park.
We checked out the Dekalb Farmers Market – my favorite food shopping location when I lived in Decatur. Mark was like a kid in a candy shop with foods from around the world. He was especially excited to see the assortment of breads and a whole section of nuts and dried fruits from Turkey. Needless to say, Turkish pistachios are coming back with us.
Decatur has also transformed into quite a destination town – with lots of upscale and funky shops, restaurants and bars. I knew this would happen one day when I purchased my house down the road from downtown. But it happened after I left!! I’m sure my presence influenced this change :’)
Contest Update: We are coming to the end of our trip. We’ve spent over $700 so far just on gas. Prices ranged, so far, from $2.729 to $3.099 per gallon. Send your mileage guesses. Our trip calculation will end in Lakeland, FL at the parental units’ house. Guesses can be submitted until October 15, 2007. If multi guesses, the latest guess is the one that counts.
Food and Drink: This is a hard one. The home cooking, wine and beer selections were outstanding. We also ate out several times at great spots. The restaurants were: the 5 Seasons Brewery – a brewery with excellent foods and beers. The 2 way duck and the venison were delicious: tender meats cooked medium rare and excellent sauces that highlighted the flavors without overpowering them. The Brick Store Pub in Decatur is a brewery with an assortment of beers requiring a catalogue to list them all. Whew! My Dogfish Head Punkin Ale and Mark’s local Sweetwater beer were both great. The Flying Biscuit in midtown had really good food and amazing biscuits and cheese grits. But after an hour between ordering and eating, I could have eaten the napkins and thought them delicious. So, we’ll have to discount that review a bit.
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