Hey, I'm Dutch! » Georgia

Jurassic Park…Sort Of

admin — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 04:08:06 +0000

Atlanta is also home to Fernbank Museum of Natural History. Here is one of its inhabitants attacking P. Run, P, run!

Damn, that thing was huge! Its femur alone was taller than P.

Smile and say “cheese!”

Always Coca-Cola

admin — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 04:37:41 +0000

Right next to the Georgia Aquarium is the Coca-Cola Experience. I didn’t have high expectations, though I was curious to see what the company of master marketing and branding had in store. It actually turned out to be pretty cool learning about the history behind Coca-Cola and it is really staggering to see how global and powerful this brand is. The whole approach they used to franchise the bottling of their product was revolutionary at the time and today drives the model for the rest of the industry.

One of the other cool things about the tour was being able to taste the whole line of Coca-Cola products, which number 64 all around the world. If you ever find yourself in Atlanta or in Italy, give “Beverly” a try. It’s an acquired taste, to say the least. My favorite was Smart Apple from China and Simba from Paraguay.

Georgia Aquarium

admin — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 04:12:49 +0000

Got $250M? Bernard Marcus did and with it he built the world’s largest aquarium in Atlanta, Georgia. The place is huge and houses many specimens, the largest of which are four whale sharks and three beluga whales. The Georgia Aquarium was not conceived merely as a tourist attraction, but Mr. Marcus wanted it to promote the conservation of our oceans and to develop one of the greatest marine research and conservation facilities in the world. It seems they are well on their way.

Hotlanta

admin — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 03:24:24 +0000

The A-T-L. Atlanta. Hotlanta. By any other name, Atlanta is a happening city. A focal point for urban culture and entertainment, Atlanta has the energy of a new Harlem Renaissance. For me, it means family and all the great things about southern hospitality. Yep, I get to visit some family while in town, eat good food, and do some touristy things with P. But more on that later.

Bible Belt

admin — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 04:48:22 +0000

Hey, didn’t we pass that church earlier? Nope, that’s a different one. How about that one? I know we already passed that one. Nope, that’s a different church too. Let me save you some trouble. You’re going to see a lot of churches in this part of the country.

The term “Bible Belt” often refers to the southern states where conservative, evangelical, Protestantism is pre-dominant. This is a term oft-used by journalists and should in no way be taken to mean disrespect to the strong moral values and Christian faith of the South. I only include it here because it cannot be missed during this part of our trip. And for many who meet “godless, heathen, Americans,” they do not often get to experience this part of the country. They also miss out on the “Rosary Belt” of the southern tip of the US, the Mormon (Church of Latter Day Saints) corridor of Utah, Muslims in the Washington-Boston corridor, Jewish communities in New York and California, and the other faith-strong communities throughout the United States. Sometimes it’s easy to forget the earliest immigrants who came to this country were those seeking religious freedom. In difficult times it can be one of our most divisive issues, and in better times it gives us a chance to have important dialogue to better understand that we share far more things in common than we have things that differ and separate us.