Atlanta

What you "do" depends on where you will be staying. If you are anywhere in the north east part of the city (within a reasonable distance of Hwy. 9 or GA 400), you could drive up to Dahlonega. This is a great little town where the **very first** gold strike was -- even before the one at Sutter's Mill. There are lots of great little shops and an absolutely WONDERFUL LQS on Church Street. Depending on the route you travel, there is another LQS on the way up there and you could stop in at the Outlet Mall is you wanted. From Dahlonega you could go further north and east to Helen which is a cute little town with "German" style architecture. There are loads of shops again and a nice restaurant -- The Troll Tavern -- that is right alongside the river. IIRC, the town started off as a result of growth of a local paper mill. When the mmill closed down, the town started to decline. At that time, one of the local "big wigs" had done on holiday to Germany and came back with the idea that the town should be transformed to something like a small town in Germany. Brigitte (my German friend) says the architecture is a jumble of what you see in all the different parts of Germany but it's a cute place to visit none the less :-). There are lots of scenic things to see in the northern part of the state and I recommend Amicalola Falls State Park (near Dahlonega), Ruby Falls (near Helen) and Talullah Gorge even further north and more east. Unfortunately, there won't be a lot in the way of "along the road" type of scenery unless you like the woods in winter as I do. The rest of the year (especially in autumn), the drive up to all of these places is just beautiful. If you are an adrenaline junkie AND you want to spend a ton of $$, you could go to Six Flags which is just off of I-20 east of the city. Savannah is too far to drive in one day (about 4 to 5 hours depending on where you start off) and it requires at least one full day just for sight seeing. Stone Mountain is sort of south east of the city and there are all sorts of things to do there but there is an admission. Callaway Gardens is several hours south of the city and a lovely place to visit but I don't imagine it would be too much fun this time of year.

If you are into history, visit the "Underground" (???) there is a big cyclorama of the the burning of Atlanta during the War Between the States and lots of other stuff. Very touristy, but very interesting. Your cousin probably knows about the other tourist stuff too. Stone Mountain is awesome, and a lot of fun too.

Pati, > I'm going to Atlanta this weekend - besides eating food someone else

I think you should do a searh for all the local quilt shops so that you can visit them while you are in atlanta.

I've never been there, but I hear they have a wonderful aquarium. Gen

I love zoos and aquariums, and Atlanta has both!

-Irene

The one thing every visitor does in Atlanta is get lost. There is no such thing as going around the block. The downtown area is laid out like a wagon wheel. If you make a wrong turn, you can easily wind up in Alabama or New Mexico. Quite fun really. DH and I have always thought getting lost was about as much fun as whatever we'd planned anyway. Polly

thanks for your input - I've been to Atlanta once before and saw all the traditional things - the underground, and Stone Mt. Since my cousin will be unavailable until suppertime on Friday - I'm going to check out several of your suggestions. One thing cous mentioned was a downtown fabric wholesale district, which she described as funky. Though it's not specifically quilting related - I sure like the sound of funky! I also think I'll try out the Dahlonega and Helen trip - I love browsing little towns and seeing new things. Thanks so much for the suggestions! Think I'll pass on the adrenaline though. Coffee's good enough these days for me (:

Musicmaker

Oh YES!!! I haven't been yet but everyone I know who has been says it is absolutely wonderful. The zoo is nice too and has Panda Bears!!!! There aren't many zoo's that have them so it's a good place to visit! CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

VBS -- the only problem with driving around Atlanta is the traffic! If you look at a city mad, it looks as if someone took a bunch of black thread, cut it into little pieces and then sprinkled it on the paper!! I swear that EVERY street was once a cow path that was widened and [paved -- LOLOL! There are no decent street signs and the streets at every major intersection have a different name for each direction! I came here from Lizard Land (aka Phoenix) where the streets are ALL straight, most major street names stay the same regardless of which town you are in (Phx, Mesa, Tempe, Scottsdale, etc.), and virtually every intersection is 90 degrees :-). Except for Grand Ave. the whole area is pretty much set up on a square grid. Imagine going from that to Magnoliaville and you'll know why I avoid going into Atlanta like the plague -- LOL! CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

It's been years since I was in the fabric district but it WAS a great outing! I'm sure you would really enjoy it! Don't forget the Aquarium. I haven't been yet but it is supposed to be really wonderful. If you would like company on the trip north, I would be more than happy to take you up there. Of course, if you want to make the trip alone, I understand. I do stuff like that by myself all the time so I know how enjoyable a day trip alone can be. If you do go to Dahlonega, you'll be driving just about right past my house! I live just 2 miles off of Hwy. 9 and only about 7 miles from GA 400 and those are the two best routes up to Dahlonega. Anyway, if you want to get together, just give me a holler, OK? E-mail me and I will give you my phone numbers. You never said when you will be here so hopefully I will be around. DH and I are going to New Orleans for Mardi Gras but we don't leave until the end of the month. CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

That's true ... the traffic *is* bad, but the attitudes aren't!

Hubby and I convoyed from VA to FL and drove on 'Lanta's (in)famous beltway ... I was so panicked at the notion of losing hubby in *rush hour traffic* that when another car seemed as though it was going to get between hubby and I, I cut it off (you have NO idea how terrified I was at getting lost - this was pre-cellphone days and with the way hubby was "groovin' out" to his tunes, I figured it would be hours later before he'd notice me and the kids gone!). I did the obligatory "Sorry!" wave to the driver I cut off, and expected to get the "single-finger salute" in return (I'm used to DC driving and attitudes).

Well, I got a friendly "That's okay" wave - I could even see the fella smiling! It was THAT exact moment when I realized that moving further south was a Good Thing!! Haven't been sorry a single day since! :)

Hugs!

-- C>

dear queen of kitties - I definitely would like to have you join me on Friday afternoon to show me Dahlonega, and of course to meet another rctq'er! email is bettinger at consolidated dot net and cell phone which I'll have with is two one seven - 549- 993four

Musicmaker, not knowing if all the spelled out numbers makes one jot of difference!

GOODY :-) -- I'll e-mail you with my phone numbers. When you say Friday -- I assume you mean this Friday the 18th? Next Friday would be OK, too if it's then. I'll go send an e-mail in the next few minutes. CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at