HotLanta Here We Come!

Howdy fellows!

Here we are, sipping a CocaCola while watching the news on CNN, and eating an Hot Dog purchased at the Varsity! ;-) LOL

It doesn't get more "HOTLanta" than that, let me tell ya!

So, how y'all doing today?

We left Macon, GA this morning for a very short drive of 89 miles to get to downtown Atlanta.

I still can't get over the fact that people in Georgia are so nice!
Awww, the good ol' southern hospitality, what can I say!?!?

We checked in at our downtown Hotel, a Super8 we found on the GPS that has excellent prices, clean rooms, but most of all, is only steps away from where the action is.
If I look out of the window right now I can see the CNN World Headquarters and the Olympic Centennial Park. We can basically walk pretty much everywhere without having to use the car, which has been parked at a 24H garage.

It's been quite a relaxing day, we visited CNN and took a tour of the premises for $12.
The tour guide was also very nice, I used my Italian charm to start a conversation with her, she was very friendly... ;-)

We saw the "behind the scenes" at CNN, quite interesting to know how things work, some facts and numbers on the Cable News Network, and of course, the TV studios that they use to broadcast live all of their channels!

The black guy and the blond lady where "On Air", then we also saw the weather man, and we stopped for a talk with someone that is supposed to be famous but that I really don't have a clue who he is! (Sorry GUYS! LOL).

We made a brief stop at the Olympic Centennial Park right next door to CNN to see the Olympic Rings and the famous fountain...and that's when it started raining! We had to take shelter in a nearby little coffee place, where we had originally planned to just wait for the rain to stop and sip on our Cappuccino, and then go to the "Atlanta Aquarium".

We eventually ended up waiting too much, so we postponed the visit to Free Willy and Moby Dick for tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow, it's probably going to be a BUSY day!
In our schedule we have the Aquarium, the Zoo, and the Botanical Gardens, and stop at the Varsity Drive-In to have a Hot Dog!

In the late afternoon if the weather is nice, we're planning on heading out to Stone Mountain to see the Confederate Carving on the world's largest granite block, and then hang around there till dinner because at 9.30PM they'll start the summer laser show program!

This evening we're out and about, to explore what the Atlanta nightlife has to offer.
I spotted a very nice Brazilian Steakhouse (churrascaria), similar to Chima in Fort Lauderdale. It's one of those "all you can eat" places, but let me tell you, with an Italian like me they're definitely out of luck!

I think this is all for today.

Thank you so much for all of your nice comments and words of encouragement, I appreciate it!

Keep us in your prayers, while we drive across America...I love this country! ;-)

God Bless You,
Nico

Downtown Grill - Macon, GA

If you're ever in Macon, GA, go have dinner at:

Downtown Grill
562 Mulberry Street Ln
Macon, GA 31201
Tel. (478) 742-5999

Entrees are in the 20s but I can assure you that their steaks are out of this world, and so are the side dishes and the desserts, absolutely outstanding.

Beth was our waiter, I don't know if she had any formal training in waiting tables, but she was great, very pleasant and kind with us, and also very beautiful, an eye candy for sure! ;-)

"Macon by night" is very nice, several buildings have superb lighting which certainly enriches their character, we had the top down this evening, it's beautiful outside.

Good night folks,
Nico

Welcome to Rural Georgia!

Here we are guys,

About 90 miles away from Atlanta, GA where we're probably going to spend Memorial Day weekend.

Today it's been another of those days on the road, with 308 miles driven from Saint Augustine, FL to Macon, GA where we presently are.

It's been a nice day weather wise, I was startting to suffer the steamy hot temperature we had yesterday in FL, it's still hot, but not as much, we're in the mid 80s.

The first stop along the way beside Jacksonville, FL for a short visit with a friend, has been Thomasville, GA where we did the first of the nice things that will make this trip "fun & weird".

We stopped at the "Big Oak Tree" in Thomasville where you can call a number with your cell phone and they snap a picture of you that they put on a website with all the other crazy people who had the same brilliant idea.

If you want to see the pictures, just follow this link:

http://bigoak.rose.net/

After that we drove 10 miles back on US 84 because Hap had a crave for Peanut Brittle (My first time eating it, DELICIOUS!). After that we visited the Rose Garden, and the thing that I'll probably remember the most is the scent of the roses, pretty amazing. The garden itself was really not a big deal, but Hap found the dirties restroom ever at the garden, another thing that makes the trip fun! LOL Yeeeehaaaaa!!!! :-)

The last stop in Thomasville, GA was the historic downtown district.

One of those Main Street USA that Disneyworld copied for their Main Street.

We've seen several nice houses, and we had a small guide with a preplanned walking tour which certainly made the whole experience a lot more enjoyable. We also had the chance to visit Lt. Flipper grave (the first black American to graduate from West Point, quite an interesting story).

Afterwards we drove another 160 miles to Macon, GA where we're staying for the night.

We got the cheapest rate we will probably ever have ($35+tax) with Free WiFi included!

The room is clean and spacious enough for the two of us, and it's wuite close to downtown Macon which is our next stop for the night.

I think this is it for the day, tomorrow we're planning on spending some time in Macon doing some sightseeing, and the head north towards Atlanta where we have a zillion things to do! ;-)

Peace everybody!!!

Nico

Eccoci! (Here We Are)

The drive was smooth, we stopped at a rest area for lunch, and had one of my big Italian Subs.

It's been a great day, sunny with temperature close to the high 90's! Someone please tell the guy up there to turn the heater off! LOL

Saint Augustine is always a very nice place to visit, and yes, the oldest house, the oldest school, the oldest "whatever" are still there for your eyes to see.

We checked-in at a Best Western close to the "Castillo De San Marcos", a few steps from the Old City, and we also had time to take a stroll down Main Street, not as many people as I would have expected, but oh yes, plenty of screaming school kids on a day trip!

Getting ready to take a shower now, and go out for a light bite to eat.

Tomorrow is a new day, and on the agenda we have a 200 miles drive to Thomas County, GA, and in particular to Thomasville, GA, a quaint little town in the scenic southern region of the state.

More to come, stay tuned!

Over and Out,
Nico

Pronti, Partenza, Via! (Ready, Set, Go!)

Here we go! Ready to rock and roll! ;-)

The Odometer indicates 19,547 miles.

I have estimated that when we will be done at the end of this journey, we would have probably added another 12,000 miles, which in Kilometers comes to about 19,000!

The car is packed, squeaky clean, and ready to go.

The itinerary is still a work in progress, but the first leg of the trip is all set, first stop this afternoon in Saint Augustine, FL.

This is probably the only day where more than 300 miles are going to be driven, as we're not planning on staying on the road for more than 2 hours a day, at least on the East Coast where there's certainly a lot to see.

Daytona Beach and its speedway is also on our program, I'm planning to take an awful lot of pictures, you guys get ready! ;-)

Talk to you later.

Peace,
Nico