One of the many sections of the Fisher Gardens
We don’t have any photos of the Garden of Eden, seeing as how photography wasn’t yet around. (Who knows – maybe if digital cameras had been around, Eve would have been too busy readjusting her fig leaves and her thighs in more flattering poses to even think about tasting forbidden fruit.) But if we did, I imagine it would look something like the Fisher Gardens in Highlands, North Carolina.
Take one couple passionate about gardening, one 52-acre mountaintop, add teams of talented gardeners, landscapers and architects and about a gazillion plants and you’ve got an earthly paradise. Only this one is better than the Garden of Eden – it’s got a croquet lawn. Read the full post »
The interior of 30 Tables, where windows face Peachtree and Spring streets.
I’d bet a box of moon pies that only in the South would the discussion at dinner at an elegant restaurant turn to the topic of mayonnaise. But that it did at my dinner at the newly opened 30 Tables last night.
And I’m glad it did. Not because I’m a huge fan of the creamy condiment although it does have a place in my heart and my fridge, but because it meant this restaurant space is finally where it needs to be – in the hands of people who know what Atlantans want.
Read the full post »
My husband and I on the Glenn Hotel rooftop during the travelgirl anniversary party.
(How can I resist that headline?)
Savoring a glass of wine on a rooftop on a warm, glorious day ranks right up there with lounging in a beachside hammock in my happiness file. I’ve been lucky enough to look down on my scenic hometown of Atlanta twice in the past week from lovely rooftop lounges above the city – one brand-new and one just renamed.
Last week I visited Glenn Hotel, right in downtown Atlanta, where Bob Amick of Concentrics is opening a new restaurant. 30 Tables will go in the thus-far-doomed space where BED and Maxim Prime made short-lived efforts to win over dubious concepts in the Atlanta market.
If anyone knows what Atlantans like to eat and what concepts will appeal to them, it’s Bob, so here’s hoping him much success with his new venture. I’m dining there next week – so will report more on the restaurant then.
They have renamed the beautiful Glenn Hotel rooftop 11 Stories. I’ve been up here a few times, most recently for a travelgirl anniversary party, and love the atmosphere up there. Somehow the proximity of office buildings and the CNN Center just heightens the enjoyment – it just feels more decadent when you’re surrounded by people still tied to the office.
A few weeks ago we got a sneak peek at AltoRex Rooftop Lounge on top of Pacci Ristorante in Midtown. Read the full post »
What makes a hammock even more relaxing? A massage of course.
As kids, we found heaven in a hammock in our backyard. First, we grabbed an old corduroy blanket (Sears, circa 1968) and tons of rope, located two trees about four feet apart and went to work.
We tied each end of the blanket around the trees, yanking the rope as hard as we could, tied it, then jumped in our hammock. We generally got a few good swings out of it before gravity got the best of us and we plunged to the earth – butt first. Then we’d repeat the entire process until we got bored and began roaming house to house in search of cherry popsicles.
No such worries with the hammocks at the spa at the Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island in Florida, where one of their treatments is Heaven in a Hammock. They are the only spa in the country with this treatment, and I got a small sample of it when representatives from Amelia Island visited Atlanta recently, hammock and all.
Read the full post »
This man may escape swine flu when he travels. And any chance at a social life if he wears that get-up. For the rest of us, it's not that easy.
Ha! There is no such thing. And even if you think you are ever-vigilant about germs, something like this could happen to you.
We were on a family trip to St. George island in Florida. As we were packing up to go, my son said, “Who has the yellow toothbrush in the bathroom?”
“That’s mine,” I said.
“Oh, I used it to kill a bug”
“When???” I asked, thankfully remembered that I hadn’t yet brushed my teeth that day.
“Tuesday,” he said. Today was Saturday.
Here’s my first tip on how to cut down on germs when you travel – never, ever have children of any kind. Maybe it’s too late for that. Anyway, here are tips for anyone to cut down on germs when you travel. Read the full post »
