The Worst Travel Day Ever

Being back in our apartment after our whirlwind of a trip is one word: Quiet. It has taken us a couple of days to get back into the swing of things and get used to having no one else around the house. Also we have come to realize again how there is nothing to do in Athens. Luckily, we need some rest.

So to start at the beginning. The worst travel day ever actually started with some good things. Since we had an early flight the next morning, 5:30 am, we decided to reserve a hotel room and stay the night in Atlanta close to the airport where we would also be able to leave our car. We packed up and left the house by 4:00 pm on Thursday thinking it was nice not to be rushed and have plenty of time to make sure the house was locked and everything in order. We made it to Atlanta without incident. Our plan was to eat at Gladys Knight's Chicken and Waffles for dinner. We found the restaurant easily but missed the turn for the parking lot and were immediately surrounded by homeless people. I guess the location is on edge of the good part of town and by off shooting one block you enter the ghetto. It wasn't terrifying but it was kind of alarming. And when I say surrounded, I mean it. People were all over the street and in the parking lots. Turns out there is a shelter a block away from our destination.

We lucked out going on Thursday night as it wasn't busy and we hear there is often quite a wait time on the weekends. The food was really good. Steve got chicken and waffles and I got the smothered chicken which was fried chicken served over rice and covered with gravy. Yum.

 Happy and with full bellies we headed to the hotel. I checked us in and got our first bit of bad news. Since our flight was at 5:30 am, I had figured we'd take the 4:00 am shuttle. Well, the hotel description online totally lied and there was no such shuttle. We would have to take the shuttle at 2:30 meaning we would have to wake up at 1:30. This totally defeated the purpose of staying in Atlanta as that would have been the time we would have needed to leave from Athens. As it was only 7:00 pm when we checked in, we thought, well at least we'll get a few hours sleep and then get the early shuttle. Well guess who didn't want to go to sleep? Henry. We tried everything, going for a drive, laying him in our bed, even walking him in the stroller back and forth in the hallway outside our room for an hour. Finally he fell asleep at 12:00 pm. Our frustration and exhaustion was miserable. And it was hot, like 85 degrees. So we all got a wonderful and not refreshing at all 1 1/2 hours sleep before our wake up call rang into the night.

 The shuttle worked out really well except that it dropped us off before 3:00 and the check in desks weren't even open yet. We waited, Henry stayed awake of course after his invigorating cat nap. We finally got to check in and got through security. As it turns out, it was kind of lucky to be at the airport so early because we arrived just 30 minutes before hundreds of military men leaving basic training. Our luck was short lived. That early in the morning, none of the trains in the airport are working so we had to walk for 30 minutes to our gate. We collapsed, sweating at our gate hoping for a quick rest before our first flight to Charlotte. Well Henry was more energized than I have ever seen him. It was unreal. He would not be restrained in his stroller and happily ran all around the terminal. Ridiculous. During the short flight to Charlotte, he did manage to fall asleep for about twenty minutes across our laps but not before quite the fight to keep him in our shared seats.

Our plane from Atlanta had been delayed so we had to run to make our connecting flight to San Diego. We made it and were met with the wonderful news that the flight was not full and that Henry could have his own seat. Hooray. I almost started crying with joy and exhaustion.

But despite all our efforts to amuse him and hold his interest, Henry would neither sleep nor be content to sit in his seat. Everyone on the flight was sleeping but us as we kept pulling tricks out of our red carry-on bag. New crayons, coloring books, new toys and books wrapped in lunch sacks were supposed to be strategically opened spaced out over the flight but in desperation I let him open them all in rapid succession. He walked up and down the aisle, ate bags of snacks and finally with only 40 minutes left, fell asleep in his seat.

We were a hot sweaty mess. Oh and he peed through his pajamas in my lap too. Sigh.

Luckily we made it to San Diego, changed our clothes, met up with Grandpa and Grandma, got into a rental van, ate at In n Out, made it to great Grandpa's house and then all took long naps. We recovered and the trip took a turn for the better.

Weaver D's

We finally made it to Weaver D's Delicious Fine Foods, an Athens staple. Its motto "Automatic for the People" inspired the REM album title. They have early hours so we could never get there but this last Saturday we did and thanks to a free groupon coupon from Chelsea, we dined for free.
It was super crowded but was worth the wait. We both got white chicken plates, mine with a delicious broccoli casserole and mac n cheese. Henry loved the mac n cheese but I thought it was only okay. The fried chicken was everything you would expect from a hole in the wall in Georgia which means it was light and crispy and divine! The atmosphere was very down south homey with two long tables for all customers to eat at together. It is always fun to experience the culture here and have it be a success.

#1. sammy's cafe, downtown provo

To say that Steve and I are in a restaurant rut would be a complete understatement. We only eat out about 1-2 times a week, usually Friday night, and when the time finally comes to decide we usually fall back on one of the usuals. Well I'm fed up with the usual so I have challenged us to try at least 10 different restaurants by the end of the year. I thought it would be fun to record our findings here for anyone else who still lives in the valley.

The deal with only eating out once a week is that if you try something new and it stinks, that's it for the week. And after a couple of disappointing experiences, its easy to fall back into the routine. It quickly becomes disheartening unless you pick the right places.

Since it was Steve's week to choose our date night restaurant (we take turns picking) he suggested sammy's off Center Street in Provo. I had always wanted to go there thinking it looked kind of hole-in-the-wall funky.


Photo courtesy of sammyscafe

Sammy's Cafe

27 N 100 W Provo, UT

less than $10 a person

The place is kind of rundown inside but that doesn't make it any less charming. You order at the register and then eat at a fun 50's style deli counter. And the AC works beautifully too.

We each ordered Sammy's masterpiece burgers, split an order of seasoned fries and a strawberry cheesecake pie milkshake. While you wait for your food, your milkshake comes and it was delicious. They take a slice of cheesecake (or pie if you choose) and put it right in the shake. Big chunks of graham cracker crust heaven! The burgers came and they were really good. The masterpiece has grilled mushrooms and onions and the best part is they melt the cheese over them so that the toppings stay intact instead of oozing out the side and making the bun all soggy. Brilliant. They also serve sweet potato fries which looked good but I thought the seasoned fries were delicious too.

We left happy and full, wanting to go back. Maybe next year when our challenge is over.

The rest of the weekend was fun, eating fresh tomatoes from the garden, having a Bourne movie marathon and going to the Oquirhh Mountain Temple dedication. And for me, lots of crafting, which I will post more about later.