Playing the Local Tourist #MyGoldPeak #GoldPeak ad

Thanks to my friends at Coca-Cola for the opportunity to be a local tourist in my area, and for the meal I shared with a friend! All opinions and thoughts are my own.  

I’ve lived in Metro Atlanta for 19 years.  Moving to the perimeter area when I was just 14, I started high school and made new southern friends.  Despite my lengthy stay here in Georgia, there are still so many local attractions and places I haven’t been.  The Marietta square, for instance, is somewhere I’ve been over 500 times, and still had not stopped in several of the locally owned shops, museums or restaurants.  It’s an historic city, incorporated in 1824, but with homes and small businesses dating back to 1824 (It existed even before Atlanta did).  I decided to take my friend Tara on a local tourist expedition one afternoon, stopping into a museum, catching the slow flavor of the Marietta square before we stopped for lunch.

Having been to the square once before for a festival, Tara began asking me about the city’s history.  What was here, what was notable and I found myself spouting information on its history, like the city being named for the wife of its first Mayor, the Great Locomotive Chase (April 12th, 1861) taking place right where we stood, or the Kennesaw House hotel housing a hospital during the Civil War.  It felt amazing to revisit the great moments in history that took place here, and show my friend through it all!  

I took her by the old Marietta railroad station, which is now a welcome center for the downtown area and rebuilt in 1898.  The original structure was burnt in 1864, by men under the command of Union General Hugh Kilpatrick, Sherman’s “merchant of terror.”  They set the entire town of Marietta on fire, saving only a few buildings, like the Kennesaw House.

The next few stops on our local tourist tour took us to the gazebo in Glover Park, where many people take photos and even get married!  We visited The Local Exchange, which is filled with goods, groceries, wares and handmades which are all local to the area or the state; I wanted something from every section! We sampled some bites, smelled the soaps, and even shopped the local authors and artists. 

My most favorite local tourist attraction was the Gone with the Wind Museum, housed in an old cotton warehouse attached to the Kennesaw House Hotel (the Hotel is now a city museum with permanent and guest exhibits).  I giggled as I introduced my friend Tara… to, well… Tara.  She’s been asked a thousand times if she was named for the fabled estate (No, she wasn’t!).  It was lots of fun to “see them together,” though!

I paused for a long while in front of Vivian Leigh’s original Bengaline Gown, worn during the honeymoon sequence of Gone with the Wind.  The hat and veil were recreated by Walter Plunkett, the original costume designer.  It’s the only costume of Leigh’s that is on permanent, year-round display in the United States!  Now if only I could try it on…

After traipsing around the square in the Georgia heat, it was time for a snack break! I treated Tara and myself to some Gold Peak sweet teas at T.G.I. Fridays.  It’s a pretty hoppin’ joint for our neck of the woods; 5:30 on a Saturday night and it was packed, but we were happy to get some straws into a cold southern sips to round out our afternoon.  The Gold Peak Teas were the perfect companions to my old-fashioned french dip sandwich and our shared mozzarella appetizer.

Tara and I sat for over an hour, well past our finished meal and many refills of sweet Gold Peak Tea, talking about what we had seen that day, our families, and her new move to the Atlanta area.  It was so nice to catch up and chat, away from the hubbub of the house and our families for a bit.  I felt refreshed, and a wee bit smarter with all that newly learned history in my brain.  But what about your town? If you were to play local tourist for a day, where would you take yourself or a friend? Is there someplace you’ve been meaning to check out, but have left undiscovered?  I challenge you to buy that ticket and when you’re through with your adventure, find some Gold Peak Tea near you and chat with a friend!  

Catch up with Gold Peak Tea on their blog, or connect socially with Facebook, Twitter and my personal favorite, Pinterest.