Atlanta
Monday 5th September 2016 – After a relaxing lay in and a sunny side American egg breakfast we headed to Lake Lanier where Aaron’s brother, Duncan, had a boat. Laden with a picnic, cold drinks and speedy water toys we jumped into the boat and set off. The sun warmed our skin while the water looked cool and inviting…what luxury spending the day on a beautiful lake with great company. First was the wake board…Duncan was amazing at it…you could see how much he loved water, speed and danger as he whizzed along effortlessly…playing with the sparkling aqua as he went…all the while Kee steering the boat expertly for optimum enjoyment. Next it was Aaron’s turn…he was willing, able and determined to master this beast…and master it he did…I was pretty impressed watching him ride the surf. My turn came all too soon…speed…water…danger…really not my thing…I’m an earth girl and as much as I like swimming and being in the water free to move…the added element of risk and jeopardy made me very nervous. Totally out of my comfort zone I had a go…seconds later, having forgotten to let go of the rope as I fell…I drank in more lake water than I thought humanly possible, I gasped for breath. It was terrifying being in the water and not being able to breathe properly…I tried to sign to Aaron that I was not ok…he got the message and jumped in to rescue me…my word…glad to be alive I scrambled onto the boat for safety. Happy to be on board I watched in awe as the boys had a go at water skiing…again I watched them, frivolous in the water, with enormous cheesy grins on their faces. Determined not to be beaten I built up the courage to have a go…three attempts later I threw in the towel…I’d tried my hardest….but wanted to live another day! I wasn’t wrong about the precariousness of this water game when a few minutes later Kee was up on the skis relishing her turn and all of a sudden she fell into the frothy mouth of a monster wake. She lay still floating on her back and I knew something was wrong…we sped to her in the boat and Duncan jumped in to help her…she had hurt her back in the fall…my word what a scary game this was. We got her on board as quickly as we could…luckily she appeared not to be in too much pain and soon enough she started to feel herself again. That was it for me…Kee and I were dropped off to float and chat on our lilos while the boys continued their high octane trip out on the lake…everyone happy! Returning home we picked up groceries from the supermarket, dined in, played Spelltower and enjoyed the company of Hughie and Leo…the delightful Siamese twin cats.
Tuesday 6th September 2016 – At 12 noon we surfaced…Aaron sore all over from his water pursuits…and me…delighted to be alive and kicking and ultimately thrilled to still be in one piece! What a gloriously lazy day. We sipped tea in bed then strolled to Kroger, the local supermarket, to stock up on goodies for the fridge. Kroger is fantastic with everything you could possibly want and at a super price too…shopping is much more reasonably priced in Atlanta compared to LA and Hawaii…it was like Aladdin’s Cave to us mere mortals. Weighed down with groceries we decided to take the trolley all the way back to Duncan’s house (Aaron would return it later on)…my better half was steering when he hit an uneven curb and over the trolley went…I looked on…all in slow motion as the beautiful sunflower plant we had bought for our hosts went flying through the air…luckily Aaron caught it before any major damage was done and for the rest of this precarious journey I was on watch for any possible hindrances that could bring us to our knees again! That night after Duncan and Aaron had endured their military workout we dined on fish, salad and vegetables…washed down with Kee’s cocktails for the girls and ice cold beer for the boys. Later the girls beat the boys at Shuffle Board…the females of the house were champions that night!
Wednesday 7th September 2016 – What a truly comfortable bed we were being treated to at Duncan and Kee’s with pillows like fluffy clouds…no wonder we didn’t want to get out of bed in the mornings! After breakfast and some playtime with the cats we treated ourselves to some episodes of ‘Banged Up Abroad’ followed by languid sunbathing by the pool. In the evening all four of us went to the ‘Farmers Market’ otherwise known as ‘ Brookhaven Food Truck Night’. Every Wednesday you can experience live entertainment and tasty cuisine on wheels, where all manner of food trucks entice you with their culinary delights. I opted for a watermelon salad while Aaron selected a Po-boy shrimp sandwich…an American Deep South speciality…a feast…all to the live vibe of ‘Blue Suede Shoes’. Additionally take a picnic blanket and your own liquid refreshments to finish off a perfect evening…all under the light of the moon…bliss.
Thursday 8th September 2016 – Today we wanted to take the metro into town to search for a new camera. Aaron took charge and it was decided that we would get off at ‘Five Points Station’. Well…what can I say…off we hopped into the realms of edginess! Downtown Atlanta turned out to be a place you really didn’t want to be…plus no camera shop in sight! After walking round the block with Aaron being high fived by some decidedly dodgy characters we quickly realised our mistake and jumped back on the train. This time we headed to Lenox Station…a much safer neighbourhood with an enormous Mall to boot…just what we needed. Searching high and low for a camera shop we soon figured out we weren’t going to find one here…so instead we enjoyed some window shopping, Aaron’s favourite being an Electric Tesla car…a real stunner of a machine while my highlight was a silky coffee courtesy of Starbucks…delicious!
