From what I understand, upon the arrival of your firstborn child, it is customary to create a getaway as your last trip as independent adults. The last time you will be alone without a dependent. The Babymoon. Melanie and I decided to abuse the extended Labor Day weekend and plan a mini-adventure. We left Orlando at 6:30pm on Friday for the 8 hour drive to Gulf Breeze, FL, a place I had always wanted to visit since childhood, with a small reputation for being a U.F.O. hotspot. (Not a surprise being 5 miles from a large Air Force Base) We arrived, crashed at the hotel for a few hours, and drove the long stretch of Gulf Shore islands down through Destin, stopping on the sides to check out the white beaches, and oil spill cleanup crews. After dodging the Emerald Coast (a name given by the large amounts of algae in the water, in which people were still super stoked to swim in) we settled on a nice dune on Pensacola Beach.
After getting only a minimal amount of oil on Melanie's foot (which I'm sure is great for the Baby) we headed north to the lost city of Atlanta. I had booked a hotel across the street from the Center of Disease Control (a main location in a new feature script I have recently finished) We grabbed some footage (lurking in the treeline away from the suspicious security guards) to be saved for later use.
The next day we headed to our main destination, the Georgia Aquarium, famed for supposedly being the largest Aquarium in the world. We had a blast checking out the enormous Whale Sharks, Manta Rays, Jelly Fish, Electric Eels, Beluga Whales, Piranha, and the lone Sea Turtle, nestled in the "Georgia Explorer" exhibit.
At the end of the day, we swung by the massive DragonCon convention, saying Hi to some friends, and checking out the insane costumes (Werewolf Ghostbusters?) Dinner was had at the famous Vortex Bar & Grill, where you can get the SUPER-STACK HEART ATTACK BURGER. Two half-pound sirloin patties stacked inside three grilled cheese sandwiches, topped with two fried eggs, eight slices of American cheese, ten slices of bacon, with plenty of mayo on the side. I regrettably had to pass.
Our last day was spent with a quick trip to the Atlanta Underground (which looked interesting in the advertisement, but then swiftly turned mega ghetto upon arrival). After a GPS meltdown, we routed to the famous Dreamland BBQ, and chowed down before our 9hr drive home. The portly middle aged mustache wearing male server was kind enough to offer my very pregnant wife a beer with her ribs. Oh Georgia!
I can only look forward to many more trips, only this time with the new addition. Shea. Table of 3!
