Foreign Flicks

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So, here's how cool my friends are. Right now I have one friend in Paris doing a Fulbright study (Hi Ash!) and basically living the Parisian life of crossaints tous les jours and another old schoolmate who is taking a year to travel the world - starting in Japan and moving west (Go Jessica!). So I'm incredibly lucky to be following along on their adventures via their blogs - the next best thing to actually body snatching them and taking their fun adventures for my own!

The crazy thing is yesterday they BOTH posted about a seemingly simple experience: going to see a movie. But, of course they were both doing that in a foreign country (lucky dogs)-so naturally, their experiences weren't quite what they expected.

Ashley, in France, was disappointed that the popcorn was not accompanied by our compulsory neon yellow liquid artificial butter and that car ads displaced her favorite previews. Jessica, in India, enjoyed the assigned seating in her 1500-seat theatre - plus the crowd participation!

I love going to the movies in countries I visit - some tourists may think it's a waste of time when there are so many sights to check off the list - but if you're someplace a little longer it's a great break from the hustle and bustle. Plus, as these two bloggers experienced, it's a great way to discover nuances of a foreign culture that you might not otherwise see. In India, I remember the assigned seating (awesome!) as well as one particularly enjoyable snack - boiled corn (not popped!) with a variety of flavors. Of course, being me, I spilled mine all over the steps. I also remember seeing Avatar in a Tokyo theater where everything was super super modern and super super crowded. I got sick from the 3-d glasses and the heat of all the people in one small theatre. Anyways, just thought I'd share the coincidence of these two bloggers writing about the same kind of experience thousands of miles apart - and pass along their fun blogs to you!

Atlanta Dreaming

Ok, you didn't think yesterday's little post was the end of my coverage on our trip to Atlanta, did you?

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Honey, please -- I write a travel-ish blog and this is the only trip I've taken in a while. You know you're gonna get the full Monty!

We stayed the weekend with my lovely friends, Mer and Matt. I've known them since our crazy college days but this was their first time meeting The Boy. Our good friend Lauren also joined us for the festivities. Yay!

Thursday:

Arrived late in the evening. Squealing and hugging, then eating. 

Bedtime.

Friday:

Enjoyed high tea at the lovely The Potted Geranium tea house in Greensboro. We were on our best behavior and looked like the ladies and gentlemen we certainly weren't for the rest of the weekend...

Then there was some major pool time. Gotta love sparkly sunscreen, warm sunshine and reading the juicy bits of a Nicholas Sparks novel aloud. Oh, and there might have been some of this...

Sports Illustrated photo shoot, y'all

We closed the day with some exploring in small town Georgia, where the peaches grow.  Gotta love that southern architecture ... and this red door.... and the collage feature on Picasa...

Aw, so handsome!

Dinner was at Flip Burger, an awesome gourmet diner created by Richard Blais of Top Chef fame. OMG so delicious. I went wild and crazy for a steak tartare burger but the hit of the night was the Krispy Kreme donut shake. 

MMMMMMMMM

Saturday:

We were up before the rooster calls (not really) to be first in line (not really) for Six Flags Over Georgia! I looove me some roller coasters and waiting in line is no biggie when you've got a fun crowd to play 20 Questions with. I highly recommend the Superman - you actually get to fly, face down, over the park.
Amaze.

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After hitting most of the major rides and thoroughly depleting our capacity for waiting in line and ingesting fair-food, we went home for a nap break before heading off for a night of revelry at The Village Theatre. The guys from The Village put on an awesome Saturday night improv show, complete with audience-participation drinking game. 

No pictures exist of my antics at this show, thank goodness.

Sunday:

M & M have two itsy-bitsy, cutesy-wutesy dogs and on Sunday we treated them to a walk through Atlanta's gorgeous Piedmont Park. The park was huge, lush and surprisingly gay-friendly. Who knew?

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Next, we enjoyed massive slices of cake here, then strolled through a local art fair slurping famous King of Pops popsicles (yes, I am now on a diet.) Back at home, we got our college on with some beer pong and a Zac Efron movie. 

Killer combo.

Monday

Last day. Wah-wah. Took it easy with some dog walking and sushi binge-eating. Yes, we hit a sushi buffet. Be jealous.

It hit back too, but that's another story. Before we knew it, it was time to head home. We had a great view from the plane :

And cried all the way home :(

Muchas Gracias to our dear friends in Atlanta for having us. Matt, Mer and Lauren - it was so, so good for my soul to see you. Zoe and Holly, thanks for the walks and licks, you cuties. Love you all!

xo,

E.