Mother Daughter Weekend in Atlanta, GA

A few months ago, my mom saw "The Lion King" in Nashville and has been raving about it nonstop.  She scoured the Internet to see if there was a theatre within driving distance that would be playing the show before I left for Cambodia.  She found out that it would be in Atlanta in April, so she bought tickets and planned a much needed girls weekend in Atlanta.

We arrived in Atlanta on a Thursday evening, staying in Midtown right across from the Fox Theatre.  We stayed at a fabulous old, boutique hotel conveniently located within walking distance of a lot of fun sightseeing.

On Friday, we decided food was our starting point and made our way to the highly recommended "Flying Biscuit" restaurant.  It was delicious!  I decided to get the pimento cheese eggs Benedict with cheese grits, can't get more "Southern" than that, am I right?  It was amazing, we had to force ourselves to eat at other restaurants throughout the weekend as I'm pretty sure we could have returned to this place over and over again.  We also went to Margaret Mitchell's home, the house in which she wrote her famous novel "Gone With the Wind."  About a year ago, I made a list of "must-read" novels for twenty-something ladies, and this novel was on the list.  I spent about four months reading through it, and although it was a little long, I am glad to have read such an important classic.  I think it's important to read those kinds of books, and hope to continue to read through them as the years go by.  Anyways, we did the tour there and enjoyed walking around the home and gardens.  It's kinda like the house in the movie "Up," right in the middle of all these skyscrapers, pretty neat.  It was a beautiful afternoon and lovely for walking and exploring.  That evening, I had made plans to visit some of my PASSPORT friends who attend schools in Atlanta.  We decided to attend a Braves baseball game and eat at the Varsity.  All in all, a very fun, very Atlanta evening.

Displaying my delicious brunch at The Flying Biscuit

Historic Marker Outside Margaret Mitchell's Home

Infamous Turner Field.  Great seats at that!

 Love catching up with these forever friends.

On Saturday, we decided to visit the World of Coca-Cola and explore the Olympic Park since it was so sunny and beautiful.  We walked around the museum for a while, then tasted the "cokes" from different parts of the world (most of which were disgusting).  I sampled some Asian-flavors to prepare myself for Cambodia, as well as sipped some Stoney Tangawizi which brought back so many memories from my time in Tanzania.  After the World of Coke, we went to Piedmont Park, originally we had planned to visit the botanical gardens, but while walking there we noticed there were lots of people heading that way too.  We were told that there was a huge art fair in the park.  We decided to check it out, and literally there were hundreds of artisans as well as performing arts from different cultures.  We browsed, ate some great food and watched some African drummers and dancers.  It was a great afternoon and not something we typically get to do in the smaller towns/cities in Kentucky.  

Saturday evening was dedicated to "The Lion King."  We had the best night.  We ate at a really great local restaurant, outside on the patio, and enjoyed some cocktails.  And the show, it was pretty amazing.  The creativity it takes to put a story like that on stage is pretty mind-blowing.  The costumes, the singing…it was all so, so good.  I had always wanted to see it, so it was great to finally watch it on stage.  There is just something so fun and special about seeing live theatre.  

Enjoying a Coke with the Founder of Coke, duh.

3D Coke Movie

"The Lion King" at the Fox.  Amazing. 

On Sunday, per my insistence, we did the "Walking Dead" tour.  I am a huge, HUGE Walking Dead fan, and I knew that a lot of it is/was filmed in ATL and the surrounding area.  Essentially, a former "Walker" from the show takes you around the city pointing out filming locations.  We saw a lot, and I kinda nerded out about it, but I don't really care.  I had never done anything like it before, so I was pretty excited.  We also went to a place called the "Goat Farm" which is actually a place for artists to work, but they apparently shoot a lot of films/shows there.  Most recently, it was used as District 12 from the movie "Catching Fire" so that was pretty cool to see as well.  After our tour, we met my former youth ministers in Marietta, GA.  We got to spend some time with them and their three fabulous kids.  I was hoping to catch up with them before leaving for Cambodia, so it worked out well as they are now living around the Atlanta area.  

With my boyfriend, Daryl.  

Season One: department store, where Glen and Rick meet, Sheriff's office, and hospital where Rick wakes up.  All pretty important spots in Season One.  Seriously fun stuff! Haha :) 

Where Rick rides into town….yeehaw!

District 12

Farley Family.

All in all, a great weekend.  We did so much, but it was a much-needed weekend away for both of us. 

Thoughts on Kilimanjaro

This is Mount Kilimanjaro, a looming peak in Tanzania.  It is the largest free standing mountain in the world, the highest peak in Africa, and 4th highest in the world.  And I'm climbing this....
 

Rarely this clear, but fantastic scene if you catch Kili on a beautiful, clear day.  Also, this is not a picture I took myself.

In approximately 15 days, I will start climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro.  To say that I am excited or nervous would be an understatement.  This is something I knew I wanted to do when I found out that I would be returning to Tanzania, especially for such an extended amount of time.  However, when I started saying it, I just wanted to sound cool and hardcore.  I would tell friends and family, "Oh yeah, totally, I'm definitely climbing Kili...no big deal."  When I arrived, I realized I had to climb it or at least try because of all my "awesome" bragging.  However, as the days and weeks have flown by, I find myself getting more anxious by the day.  You pass Mt. Kilimanjaro on one of the main highways I use a lot when I am doing local travel and sightseeing.  There are days you can see the top, and I find myself thinking, "Why did I sign up to climb this again?"  Oh well, it will be a huge accomplishment, and I am excited for the challenge.

I am really excited about the group going.  I will be going with two of my housemates, another intern, my housemate's brother, the other intern's friend, and my friend from high school, Candida.  It will be a fun group to pass the countless hours climbing and hanging out at campsites.  The plan is to leave December 2 (Saturday), climb for seven days on the Machame route, and return on December 9 (Friday). 

We got our schedule today.  So here is exactly what I will be doing and seeing each day of my adventure. 

Itinerary:

On 3rd Dec. Pick up from Arusha at ICTR gate at 9:00am and transferred to Machame Gate, registering, paying the entry fees  and weighing of the luggage for the porters. Start your climb through the montane rain forest, characterized by dense vegetation, a muddy trail and short sections of steep climbs. The first campsite, Machame Camp (3100m) is right after the dense tree cover in an area with lower but still thick bushlands. Duration 5hrs.

4th Dec.Your climb continues through increasingly sparse trees and bushes into moorlands. Picturesque hanging mosses often cover trees and offer an ethereal quality to the landscape. The day finishes with Shira Camp(3950m), which is on a small plateau in the high moorlands, and features views of Kibo in the northwest and Mount Meru towards the east. White necked ravens can be seen throughout the day. There is also a set of small caves a short walk from the campsite known as the Shira Caves.Garden of the Senecios, with part of Kibo in the background. Duration 4hrs.

5th Dec. The climb starts in the moorlands and moves into alpine desert,with fewer trees and more rocks. The highest point is the base of the Lava Tower, after which the trail descends into the Barranco Valley. More vegetation is present in this zone, especially the area just before the Barranco campsite(3950m). This area is called the 'Garden of the Senecias' which features many of the huge senecio plants. Shorter lobelia plants are also present. Duration 6hrs.

6th Dec. Starts with the ascent of the Barranco Wall, which is considered a scramble in climbing terms. The top of the Wall has attractive vistas of Kibo and the surrounding landscape. The trail continues with many up and down sections across small streams and rivulets, and finally crosses the Karanga River to the Karanga campsite(4100m). Duration 3hrs.

7th Dec. Climb the path up and across a rocky zone, finishing at the high camp Barafu (4600m) after 3hrs. Very little vegetation can be found on the inhospitable terrain. A field of sedimentary rocks litters the ground like many broken mirrors. (Note - the six day trek omits the Karanga campsite, and climbers continue directly to Barafu on the same day.)

The summit is usually attempted on the very early morning of the 8th Dec. (around midnight). Climbers typically take somewhere between five and seven hours to ascend, using headlamps and cold weather gear. Making the ascent on a full moon or shortly thereafter can make the head torch unnecessary and the night ascent a beautiful experience. The first milestone, generally reached shortly after dawn, is Stella Point(18,652 ft/5,685 m), which is on the crater rim. Following Stella Point, the trail continues for another 30 mins to the summit - Uhuru Peak.

The descent back to Barafu takes roughly four hours. Some climbers 'scree slide' down the slope, which entails skidding/running down the loose gravel at medium speed. From Barafu, climbers typically take a short break, and continue downwards through the alpine desert and ensuing moorlands to Mweka Camp(3100) also 4hrs.

9th Dec. and final day has trekkers continue through the mountain forest to Mweka Gate. Troops of black-and-white colobus monkeys can often be seen in the dense growth. This descent  takes about 3hrs to Mwika Gate(1800m). Pick from here and driven back to Arusha.

Wish me luck!