Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Monday, September 26, 2011
Day 4: Saying good-bye to Georgia
The last day. Our only day totally committed to seeing as much as we can. Our plane doesn't leave until 10pm -- so we get an early start and off to be a tourist.
The first stop was Centennial Park. The park that was built right in the middle of downtown Atlanta for the Summer Olympics in 1996 (?). It was a beautiful place and of course we had to have some pictures of it.
Then we were onto the CNN Studios. Ok...maybe CNN isn't my favorite news channel, but I wanted to do the "behind the scenes" tour and see what it was like. Paul stepped up as a volunteer newscaster and had the opportunity to read from a teleprompter like he was promoting the news. He was a big hit! He did such a great job and was very impressive. I'm mad.....they didn't tell me we could take pictures in there until he was already done. I would have LOVED to have a shot of him doing the news!
Our next destination was the Wonderful World of Coca Cola. Seriously....what better place could a Coke addict like me have a wonderful time? This was really a fun place to hang out. We saw old Coke commercials, saw old Coke memorabilia, saw how Coke is bottled, and saw everything and anything that was Coca Cola. But the HIGHLIGHT of the whole place was the tasting room. They had a room full of soda fountains from Coke products all over the world. And you could have all you want!!! Where else could you taste Bitter Lemon soda, or Mandarin soda, or Watermelon soda, or some other really nasty flavored sodas. Some were okay....but others were like drinking mouthwash. My favorite area was the room that had all the U.S. Coke products and you could just sit there and drink all that you wanted.....oh heaven! We were treated to a souvenir bottle of Coke that we had seen bottled during our tour. A really fun place!
Final sightseeing of the day was spent at the Cyclorama. The Cyclorama was a HUGE painting 40 feet tall and as long as a football field that was hung in a circle with an authentic diorama built in front of it which depicted the Battle of Atlanta during the Civil War. You sat in seats which slowly turned in a circle so that you eventually saw the whole painting while it described the battle that took place that day. The museum also housed some Civil War artifacts which we enjoyed looking at.
Last thing in Atlanta for this trip was to find someplace to eat. We headed back town and ended up at Pitty Pat's Porch. An authentic southern restaurant decorated Gone with the Wind style. Seriously, we had WAY TOO MUCH food to eat. Paul chose the salad bar which was filled with Pickled Okra, Beets, Macaroni Salad, fresh green salads, Tomatoes, and so much to choose from. I picked the good old Southern Fried Chicken (I did have help eating all this food). We had an appetitizer of Blackeyed Pea Cakes with a Southern Salsa made with Tomatoes, Onions, and Peaches (oh my gosh.....delicious). My plate had 3 giant pieces of fried chicken and real mashed potatoes and chicken gravy (the best ever). I also had sides of Collard Greens and Blackeyed Peas. Oh and we certainly can't forget the Sweet Potato Muffins they served! Ok....I have to admit I tried to avoid Collard Greens in the past, but oh they were so delicious. The best Southern Meal ever!
We walked off our dinner and headed back to the car. We still had an hour to kill before we had to be at the airport -- but we decided to just leisurely take our time and head that direction. The rest of the evening was spent "people watching" at the airport while we waited for our plane.
We walked into our house at 12:15am but it concluded another great time that me and the husband spent together and lots of fun memories to look back on!
The first stop was Centennial Park. The park that was built right in the middle of downtown Atlanta for the Summer Olympics in 1996 (?). It was a beautiful place and of course we had to have some pictures of it.
Then we were onto the CNN Studios. Ok...maybe CNN isn't my favorite news channel, but I wanted to do the "behind the scenes" tour and see what it was like. Paul stepped up as a volunteer newscaster and had the opportunity to read from a teleprompter like he was promoting the news. He was a big hit! He did such a great job and was very impressive. I'm mad.....they didn't tell me we could take pictures in there until he was already done. I would have LOVED to have a shot of him doing the news!
Our next destination was the Wonderful World of Coca Cola. Seriously....what better place could a Coke addict like me have a wonderful time? This was really a fun place to hang out. We saw old Coke commercials, saw old Coke memorabilia, saw how Coke is bottled, and saw everything and anything that was Coca Cola. But the HIGHLIGHT of the whole place was the tasting room. They had a room full of soda fountains from Coke products all over the world. And you could have all you want!!! Where else could you taste Bitter Lemon soda, or Mandarin soda, or Watermelon soda, or some other really nasty flavored sodas. Some were okay....but others were like drinking mouthwash. My favorite area was the room that had all the U.S. Coke products and you could just sit there and drink all that you wanted.....oh heaven! We were treated to a souvenir bottle of Coke that we had seen bottled during our tour. A really fun place!
Final sightseeing of the day was spent at the Cyclorama. The Cyclorama was a HUGE painting 40 feet tall and as long as a football field that was hung in a circle with an authentic diorama built in front of it which depicted the Battle of Atlanta during the Civil War. You sat in seats which slowly turned in a circle so that you eventually saw the whole painting while it described the battle that took place that day. The museum also housed some Civil War artifacts which we enjoyed looking at.
Last thing in Atlanta for this trip was to find someplace to eat. We headed back town and ended up at Pitty Pat's Porch. An authentic southern restaurant decorated Gone with the Wind style. Seriously, we had WAY TOO MUCH food to eat. Paul chose the salad bar which was filled with Pickled Okra, Beets, Macaroni Salad, fresh green salads, Tomatoes, and so much to choose from. I picked the good old Southern Fried Chicken (I did have help eating all this food). We had an appetitizer of Blackeyed Pea Cakes with a Southern Salsa made with Tomatoes, Onions, and Peaches (oh my gosh.....delicious). My plate had 3 giant pieces of fried chicken and real mashed potatoes and chicken gravy (the best ever). I also had sides of Collard Greens and Blackeyed Peas. Oh and we certainly can't forget the Sweet Potato Muffins they served! Ok....I have to admit I tried to avoid Collard Greens in the past, but oh they were so delicious. The best Southern Meal ever!
We walked off our dinner and headed back to the car. We still had an hour to kill before we had to be at the airport -- but we decided to just leisurely take our time and head that direction. The rest of the evening was spent "people watching" at the airport while we waited for our plane.
We walked into our house at 12:15am but it concluded another great time that me and the husband spent together and lots of fun memories to look back on!
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Day 3: Pizza, Presidents, Peanuts, and more Pizza
Well day 3 began with a Pizza Seminar. Listening to a couple of successful owners talk about the do's and the don'ts to owning your own shop. Good to hear -- hard to get some of the things done that we'd like to. Finished up the expo by sampling some new wing sauces, new dressings, new ham, and checking out some sub rolls (didn't want you to miss all those important details). So the Pizza Expo ends at 2pm and we are off to see Atlanta!
First stop: Jimmy Carter Library and Museum. This was our 7th Presidential Library to visit and we have determined it was our very favorite. Well laid out, lots of interesting things to read and see, and had a nice flow to it. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and didn't even get to see it all because it closed before we could finish.
Second stop: Atlanta Underground. Heard about the shops and bizarre places you could see in the tunnels of Atlanta. We really didn't see much down there -- so we walked from one end to the other and made our way back to above ground to check out Woodruff Park. This park is famous for chess games and we did see several games going on, along with this giant chess game. One other thing that we discovered about Atlanta is that there are many really neat and unique sculptures throughout the city. We took lots of pictures with them!
Third stop: With no sightseeing places open -- we made the decision to drive an hour south of Atlanta to Grantville, Georgia. We have been interacting with another pizza owner in this small town for the past few years through a pizza bulletin board. He had recently closed up his store and we wanted to check it out. Grantville proved itself to be a VERY teeny tiny town with not a lot of things going on.
We stopped at the next small town and found a pizza shop and enjoyed a delicious pizza and some nice cold beer. A great way to end the evening!
First stop: Jimmy Carter Library and Museum. This was our 7th Presidential Library to visit and we have determined it was our very favorite. Well laid out, lots of interesting things to read and see, and had a nice flow to it. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and didn't even get to see it all because it closed before we could finish.
Second stop: Atlanta Underground. Heard about the shops and bizarre places you could see in the tunnels of Atlanta. We really didn't see much down there -- so we walked from one end to the other and made our way back to above ground to check out Woodruff Park. This park is famous for chess games and we did see several games going on, along with this giant chess game. One other thing that we discovered about Atlanta is that there are many really neat and unique sculptures throughout the city. We took lots of pictures with them!
Third stop: With no sightseeing places open -- we made the decision to drive an hour south of Atlanta to Grantville, Georgia. We have been interacting with another pizza owner in this small town for the past few years through a pizza bulletin board. He had recently closed up his store and we wanted to check it out. Grantville proved itself to be a VERY teeny tiny town with not a lot of things going on.
We stopped at the next small town and found a pizza shop and enjoyed a delicious pizza and some nice cold beer. A great way to end the evening!
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Day 2 of the Peanuts and Peaches Tour
Day 2 was going to be a day where we stayed at the hotel all day. That was actually kind of a relaxing idea. No having to drive anywhere -- just do everything at the hotel.
We started the day with a nice breakfast at the hotel restaurant and then it was time to begin preparing for the day's events.
We met all our fellow competitors and drew a number to see when we'd start.
We were lucky #7. When it got close to our time, we found a nice little table in the back kitchen and Paul made the pizza.
He then was responsible for going up on stage and making another pizza for the judges and telling them all about us. I am so proud of him. This was something completely out of his "comfort zone" and he did a great job. I assisted him by baking the pizza in the kitchen, bringing it up to show the judges when it was done, helped serve to the judges, and took pictures. Our pizza looked and tasted gorgeous!
After the competition, the rest of the day was spent talking to different vendors and sampling food. Being at a food show is incredible -- there is so much food to sample.
That evening there was a dinner and a party at the hotel hosted by our food supplier. We were also recognized for competing in the Gourmet Pizza Competition, by receiving a plaque and picture taking with the owner's of the company. We didn't place 1st, 2nd, or 3rd -- but...hey, we tried (they better watch out next year).
After a long day -- it was time to walk around the hotel a little and explore and then go back to the room to plan the next day's adventures.
P.S. The hotel grounds were amazing. The lobby was a 3-story atrium filled with plants, waterfalls, love birds, comfy chairs, and glass ceilings. The hotel grounds were walking trails amongst the lush forest (we never did find a chance to go explore there). It was really a beautiful place to spend the day.
We started the day with a nice breakfast at the hotel restaurant and then it was time to begin preparing for the day's events.
We met all our fellow competitors and drew a number to see when we'd start.
We were lucky #7. When it got close to our time, we found a nice little table in the back kitchen and Paul made the pizza.
He then was responsible for going up on stage and making another pizza for the judges and telling them all about us. I am so proud of him. This was something completely out of his "comfort zone" and he did a great job. I assisted him by baking the pizza in the kitchen, bringing it up to show the judges when it was done, helped serve to the judges, and took pictures. Our pizza looked and tasted gorgeous!
After the competition, the rest of the day was spent talking to different vendors and sampling food. Being at a food show is incredible -- there is so much food to sample.
That evening there was a dinner and a party at the hotel hosted by our food supplier. We were also recognized for competing in the Gourmet Pizza Competition, by receiving a plaque and picture taking with the owner's of the company. We didn't place 1st, 2nd, or 3rd -- but...hey, we tried (they better watch out next year).
After a long day -- it was time to walk around the hotel a little and explore and then go back to the room to plan the next day's adventures.
P.S. The hotel grounds were amazing. The lobby was a 3-story atrium filled with plants, waterfalls, love birds, comfy chairs, and glass ceilings. The hotel grounds were walking trails amongst the lush forest (we never did find a chance to go explore there). It was really a beautiful place to spend the day.
Friday, September 23, 2011
Peaches and Peanuts....Day 1
It's so nice to be able to combine business with pleasure. Especially if it means getting to go on a trip.
This past weekend -- destination: Atlanta (get the Peanuts and Peaches reference???). Sit back and enjoy our vacation/business trip as much as we did.
Had a 9:30 flight out of Houston -- so that meant getting up and leaving our house early in the morning. We arrived at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport around noon on Saturday. After getting our rental car -- it was off to the hotel, which was the Crowne Plaza in Dunwoody (north Atlanta). Trivia fact: Did you know that this airport in Atlanta is the BUSIEST airport in the whole world?
Luckily the food that we packed in our suitcases for the pizza competition made is safely and cold. We packed in it thermal lunch bags with cold packs and put a note on it for the TSA that it was for our food competition. They did inspect that suitcase....but thankfully they left everything as we had packed it.
After arriving at the hotel -- we were starving and it was past time for lunch. Where else would we go for lunch......a pizza shop!! No pizza for this meal, but we were adventurous and ordered two yummy sandwiches that we found on their menu. One that was unique: Beef on a Weck. The Weck is a local bread from Buffalo that was wheaty, very salty, and had caraway seeds. Can't say either one of us really liked it.
Our other sandwich however, was absolutely delicious -- the Royal: sausage patty, capicola, roasted red peppers, onions, and melted provolone (yum yum). While eating lunch we researched our options and had to decide how to spend the rest of our afternoon. Paul found information on a street fair called the East Atlanta Strut that was held only one day a year in September. Well guess what.....it was that day! So off we went with the GPS and found the strut.
After getting stuck in Atlanta Braves traffic we finally reached the destination. We walked the street checking out all the art, bands, and "differently dressed" people that we found and ended up at the Atlanta Public Library Book Sale. UH OH....bad move. We spent 1/2 hour there and ended up buying about 20 books for $5.
We did get a catchy photo of Paul while strutting around!
After leaving the Strut it was off to a challenging game of trivia! We found a local place that had trivia. We missed the first round, but caught up quickly and managed to pull off a 4th place finish from about 25 teams. Yay us!
It was a fun first day in Atlanta.....but very late and then it was off to our luxurious bed and off to sleep.
Stay tuned for the rest of the trip!
This past weekend -- destination: Atlanta (get the Peanuts and Peaches reference???). Sit back and enjoy our vacation/business trip as much as we did.
Had a 9:30 flight out of Houston -- so that meant getting up and leaving our house early in the morning. We arrived at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport around noon on Saturday. After getting our rental car -- it was off to the hotel, which was the Crowne Plaza in Dunwoody (north Atlanta). Trivia fact: Did you know that this airport in Atlanta is the BUSIEST airport in the whole world?
Luckily the food that we packed in our suitcases for the pizza competition made is safely and cold. We packed in it thermal lunch bags with cold packs and put a note on it for the TSA that it was for our food competition. They did inspect that suitcase....but thankfully they left everything as we had packed it.
After arriving at the hotel -- we were starving and it was past time for lunch. Where else would we go for lunch......a pizza shop!! No pizza for this meal, but we were adventurous and ordered two yummy sandwiches that we found on their menu. One that was unique: Beef on a Weck. The Weck is a local bread from Buffalo that was wheaty, very salty, and had caraway seeds. Can't say either one of us really liked it.
Our other sandwich however, was absolutely delicious -- the Royal: sausage patty, capicola, roasted red peppers, onions, and melted provolone (yum yum). While eating lunch we researched our options and had to decide how to spend the rest of our afternoon. Paul found information on a street fair called the East Atlanta Strut that was held only one day a year in September. Well guess what.....it was that day! So off we went with the GPS and found the strut.
After getting stuck in Atlanta Braves traffic we finally reached the destination. We walked the street checking out all the art, bands, and "differently dressed" people that we found and ended up at the Atlanta Public Library Book Sale. UH OH....bad move. We spent 1/2 hour there and ended up buying about 20 books for $5.
We did get a catchy photo of Paul while strutting around!
After leaving the Strut it was off to a challenging game of trivia! We found a local place that had trivia. We missed the first round, but caught up quickly and managed to pull off a 4th place finish from about 25 teams. Yay us!
It was a fun first day in Atlanta.....but very late and then it was off to our luxurious bed and off to sleep.
Stay tuned for the rest of the trip!
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Comfort food
Nothing says Atlanta more than
fried chicken, mashed taters and chicken gravy,
collard greens, black-eyed peas, and sweet potato muffins.
I think I've died and gone to Heaven!
Sunday, September 18, 2011
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