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friends. On the way I stopped in Athens Georgia. Athens is primarily a college town with the Univesity of Georgia
at its hub. Athens has a cool bohemian feel due to the liberal, avant-garde bent of the University students. I
arrived at my buddy Rick’s place in Atlanta in the late afternoon. He is living with his new fiancée Carla. Rick and
I met some of our other Emory buddies, Chris Reuther, Jason Cansoli, and Cliff at the Highland Tap in the Virginia
Highlands for dinner. It was an enjoyable evening, hanging with some old b-school friends.
Wednesday, October 15: Awoke at Rick’s place in Atlanta. Stopped by Lenox Square Mall to pick up present
for Rick and his fiancée (a candle) and for lunch. I then went to Phipps Plaza to see a movie, the Rundown with
the Rock. It was entertaining, but no Academy Award winner. This afternoon Rick and I went for a run in
Chamblee Park. It was good hanging out with Rick one on one and catching up. Rick, Carla and I ate in at their
apartment that night.
Thursday, October 16: Awoke in Atlanta. Said my good byes to Rick and Carla. Drove to meet Todd Rollins,
another b-school friend who was unable to make it the night before, for lunch at Moes. We caught up for a while
then I was off to Savannah.
Thursday, October 16: The drive was long and boring. Once I got to Savannah, I drove to the Visitor Center
and picked up some information. Then I drove through town looking for accommodations. I was impressed with
the beauty of the City. It was the first Master Planned City in North America. The City's origin plan included 24
squares, of which 21 remain today. I ended up finding a room back near the Visitor Center at a Howard
Johnson's. After unpacking I walked into town. I walked around the downtown area admiring all of the beautiful
historic buildings and squares. I also walked down to River Street and enjoyed the river view and the shops set up
in historic buildings. There were a couple of touring River Boats with paddle wheels docked along River Street. I
ended up at a bar, Sorry Charlies, near the City Market. It was their opening night. I met a couple of nice local
guys while eating dinner at the bar. They were showing game 7 of the MLB play-off game between Boston and
the NY Yankees. A drunken Boston fan put his leg through a glass door and cut it badly while trying to celebrate a
Boston run.
Friday, October 17: While walking around the historic district I stopped at the Christ Church and took a look
inside. This church was founded when the city was founded by Englishman James Edward Oglethorpe in 1733 and
is known as "The Mother Church of Georgia." I took a carriage tour through downtown Savannah. Savannah has
the largest historic district in the United States.
Saturday, October 18: I awoke in Savannah with the intention of driving by the oldest temple in North America,
Temple Mickve Israel, then heading to Jacksonville. After visiting this beautiful, historic temple, I got back in by
car but it would not start. AAA came out to help me. But, they could not get it to start. Since it was a Saturday
and the service station would not be open until Monday, I had to go back to the hotel/motel I just checked out of
and check back in. I took a cab from my debilitated car to the hotel. I got the same room. It hadn’t even been
made up yet. I walked down to River Street, where I bought a sandwich. I ate it outside while people watching.
Then I took a boat to go dolphin watching. The dolphins were just ok from the surface. It was tough to see them,
except for when they jumped out of the water completely which only happened a couple of times. But, it was nice
to be on the river and to be able to appreciate the shoreline. From there I ended up at a bar in the City Market,
where I sat at the bar and watched some of the first game of the World Series. I met a nice couple. They were
living in Savannah, but were originally from West Virginia. They loved living in Savannah. The climate is fairly
moderate year round, the city is a southern gem and the people are laid back in very nice.
Sunday, October 19: Awoke in Savannah, GA. I walked into town. I bought a sandwich at the Market,
upstairs at an Internet Café/Deli. After eating, I surfed the Net for a while and checked my e-mails. Then I walked
down to the waterfront. From there, I walked back to the Market to listen to live music outdoors.
Monday, October 20: I checked out of the Howard Johnson’s in Savannah, GA. I took a taxi back to my
broken down car. I then had my car towed to the only Saab service station in Savannah. The wife of the owner
drove me to the Mall to wait on my car while being repaired. After eating at the Mall, I walked about half a mile to
a Starbucks to get on-line. She picked me up a couple of hours later to take me back to my fixed car. It turned
out that the distributor cap that fires the spark plugs had worn out. It cost me around $550 to have fixed. I guess
things like this are bound to happen when you are on the road for extended periods of time.