Mom came through with breakfast and we got on the road shortly afterward. David and I listened to the German slaughter of Argentina in the World Cup. Rebecca and Emily kept up their napping tradition in the back seat.
We got to Atlanta in the early afternoon. Our first stop was the world renowned eatery, The Varsity. I was introduced to the world's largest drive-in as a young boy through my dad. It is adjacent to the campus of Georgia Tech, so he allegedly frequented it 2-3 times a week. So if we ever got near the I-285 loop growing up we made the stop for a hot dog and fries. The girls were not as thrilled about grease with a side of hot dogs and onion rings, as me. However, it was my one request for the weekend, so we got to go. As always it was packed, even during non-lunch hours. I had one chili dog and one naked dog with an order of fries and greatly enjoyed every bite.
The Varsity
Standard crowd at The Varsity
We couldn't live up to our tourist mission without getting cool hats
They were pumped about the food.
That's not a sweat ring from her drink
Rebecca likes to degrease her food. On a related note, she also likes to employ foresters.
The grease didn't slow me down.
Full stomachs and clogged arteries smiles are the best.
Our next stop was Atlantic Station, a newer shopping area on the north side of Atlanta. Our main reason for choosing this shopping center was the IKEA store. This Swedish furniture and home good store is only located in a few cities. Rebecca and I have been a couple times but have always been rushed. It really is a commitment to go to this store. You start upstairs, wind around though all the display rooms, organized by areas of the home, all the while writing down items you like. Then downstairs is the self-serve area, where you pick up all the things you liked upstairs. There's only one bathroom at the entrance and exit, so be sure to go before you begin shopping. We made our way through the store fairly leisurely. Our big purchase for the day was a new office chair for Rebecca. For better or worse there is more to that story to come in Part 4. When we finished there we made the short drive over to the other shopping area. The girls went in their stores, while David and I quickly made the lap around all the stores we wanted. I got a few shirts and some brown socks (I know, very exciting).
With the time change, it got to be much later than it felt. We left downtown and headed to our hotel in Marietta. We used my Priority Club points to purchase the hotel rooms. It took longer than necessary to check-in. There were two people in front of me, and I've seen people purchase cars quicker than it took them to check-in. I don't know what the hotel check-in people are doing on their computers, maybe a background check (there must be some government involvement to slow it down that much), but it takes way too long when they should already have my information from the reservation. We finally got our rooms. They ended up being adjacent with a connecting door. We unloaded all our stuff, then headed out for dinner.
David's request for the weekend was to eat at a Brazilian restaurant. Apparently there is a vibrant Brazilian community in Marietta because the hotel lobby guy gave several options. Unfortunately the first was a churrascaria, which meant it was only $40 a person. We continued on our Brazilian hunt only to find the next place was closed. It was about 9:30 by this point, so we just settled on the next place we could find, which was Spaghetti Warehouse. It was very good for a stumble upon place. Sorry about the Brazilian let-down David. They let me down in the World Cup.
We headed back to the hotel to enjoy some cable TV, since neither of us have it at our apartment. All four of us piled in the king size bed to watch School of Rock.
Day 2 continued the fun-filled weekend.
