julie shared her route in munich and i was inspired to do the same, so here is mine. in 3 short miles i coast out of my tree-lined neighborhood and pass almost every one of my favorite places to eat and a few murals to boot. i logged just under 800 miles since my students gave me the cyclometer last year at graduation. i can pretty much ride 10 months out of the year solid. dec/jan are icky.
One of my new favorite artists paints chrysanthemums on any surface for free just to help you get your feng shui on. i ride on neighborhood streets and most of my ride goes thru cobbham historic district where the homes are grand and porch life is essential.
my friend mimi welcomed me into the neighborhood when i first moved back here and that's her house behind the cobbham sign.
there's porch art, folk art, and colorful houses in general. even my dentist is in the cute green 2-story. Dondero's international kitchen made a delish turkey apple cheddar chowder this week and it was perfect after my dental appt and just across the street. plus they offer 10% discount to cyclists!
the route is filled with historic markers, craftsman, georgian, victorian, edwardian homes. if i'm out of 1 or 2 things i can pop in the Daily co-op or just go next door to the Grit and let them cook up a golden bowl of vegetarian goodness. in the same block is a funky salon but i've only done waxing there when i need pampering.
big city bread not only has the lightest quiches in town, great coffee, bread and pastries, they make my fave italian grilled proscuitto panini and they have peaches & ginger black tea by harvey & sons. the outdoor area is dog friendly and they hold a christmas market here, fireside of course.
this is about the point where the neighborhoody feeling gives way to the commerce of downtown. but its only about a 10 block by 5 block grid and campus is just on the other side and it all just seems to fit together. the proximity of bars to campus isnt always ideal and i avoid satdey nite.
en route, if i need to tweak something on the bike, pump up the tires, buy a new saddle, or replace stuff, my boys at sunshine cycles, jimmy, ryan, and joel are right there and speedy. i dont think i've ever left my bike there for service, they fix it on the spot mostly. they have the coolest mural by far and i never paid much attention until today! love it, and they are located across from the famous 40 watt, the Clocked diner, home of the meteor burger w/bacon and feta, as well as farm255 known for cooking daily goodness from high acre farms.
plenty of folks live right at the edge of town tho and walk to dine out and have great in-town yards, gardens, art. kim and i lived on meigs and that picket fence is definitely new.
a couple blocks away is my aveda hair salon, home of matt, who knows curly hair, and his trusty co-worker craig who was really fooled by my park ranger halloween costume.
the salon is across from the restored art deco georgia theatre, and next door to the Globe, the hang out of all my peeps ('cept buck who has some old boycott). in fact there sits my optician at the globe for lunch. if ya really wanna be authentic tho, ya need to hit player's corner and get ya neckline buzzed, some soul food at wilsons, and a bourbon at the manhattan cafe.
course if grandma is with you, the last resort grill is the perfect place for a linen tablecloth lunch and still priced under $7. speaking of last resort, i saw their vegetable mural and the one behind the theatre; its not graffiti julie, but close enough.
once i get thru town, campus distinguishes itself from the flow of broad street with a iron fence all around it. back in the day they say it kept the cattle out, or the indians...
most everyone i work with strolls downtown for lunch if not every day, then every other. here's a trio of our top notch economists en route to taco stand most likely.
and the main drag is also the atlanta hwy which offers an easy 1-hour drive west to the ATL, well maybe easy is an exaggeration considering the back-ups at redlights on our parkway, yes we have lights on the pkway. we've never been big on infrastructure first here in ga. but know this, the arch below is the entrance to UGA and you can NOT walk under it until you graduate...or you just might not. peace and ride safe!
