Girl About the World

Kids gather around a touchpool at Georgia Aquarium.

I’ve written quite a bit about Atlanta before — like my search for the adorable newsman Anderson Cooper and my obsession with a fish that looks exactly like a grandpa — and this time, I’ve tackled the family-friendly attractions in the city for The Family Groove.

There’s tons to do in Atlanta with kids of all ages. You might want to start downtown, where the Georgia Aquarium (the world’s largest) and the World of Coca-Cola sit as two behemoth attractions within sight of each other. But that’s just the beginning of this friendly Southern city’s sights for small fries. For more suggestions on where to eat, play, and sleep in the area, check out the story here.

The Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site is located in the Sweet Auburn neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia, and is run by the National Park Service.

Across the street is Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King co-pastored with his father. He was also baptized here. The church is currently undergoing a major restoration project.

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“The question is not, ‘If I stop to help this man in need, what will happen to me?’ The question is, ‘If I do not stop to help the sanitation workers, what will happen to them?’ That’s the question.” –MLK

When I asked friends who’ve lived in Atlanta what I should see in my short time there, many didn’t recommend the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site. In fact, many have never been. But given how much I enjoy the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas, the FDR Memorial in D.C., and the Clinton Library in Little Rock, I knew this look at such a prominent American figure would be something I needed to squeeze in.

It’s a bit farther afield than some of Atlanta’s other popular attractions, but there’s a lot to see in one area. I got there using the MARTA East/West line, and from the stop, it’s about a five-minute walk if you’re moving briskly. (Side note: While the area around the MLK site is quite populated, the walk up from the station included significant stretches with no one else around and quite a few people asking for money. A cab is another option.)

A good starting point for the area is the visitor center, where park rangers will answer questions and help orient you to what’s around. Everything is free, including tours of King’s birth home (but the tours fill up fast, as only 15 people can go at a time, so sign up early if this is something you want to do). There are some really compelling exhibits on King’s life and death, as well as the history of segregation in America. Reading through a long list of Jim Crow laws, I was horrified; it made the section on Rosa Parks and the bus strike all the more moving.

As I missed out on the birth home tour, I took another ranger-led one through Sweet Auburn, which went over how the area was once the richest black neighborhood in the world; the fire station that was one of the first to be integrated; Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King co-pastored with his father from 1960 to 1968; and the significance of some of the statues and monuments in the park.

As I walked back to the train, I thought about that small amount of fear I felt when no one was in sight or as I passed by homeless people who called out to me — it doesn’t even compare to the fear civil rights leaders and others faced on a daily basis because of their race or station in life or the fact that they chose to speak out against injustices.

The history of any country is filled with good and bad — and at the MLK National Historic Site, true heroes and true tragedies are both remembered.

Atlanta is home to Georgia Aquarium, the world’s largest, and when I see a stat that includes anything like “world’s largest,” I’m there. Unfortunately, so was everyone else. It’s crowded, to be sure, but that’s because it really is a great aquarium.

Highlights for me included the Asian sea otter sisters all curled up together sleeping, elephant nose fish, a fish that seriously looked exactly like a grandpa (see picture at right), and the monstrous whale sharks.

Animals aside, what I liked most was the layout – it was easy to navigate and make sure you hit every section (my biggest concern whenever I pay an admission fee more than $10). Each time you went through an exhibit, you’d pop right back out to the center, where you could move on to the next one. This also made it easy to revisit any section you particularly enjoyed without having to walk through everything again (I stood in the ocean tunnel twice, and saw lots of different creatures than the first time around).

Although it’s the world’s largest, it wasn’t as big as I expected – if you’re moving at a brisk pace, you can cover the place in about an hour. And I only had to elbow 10 or so kids out of the way to see everything I wanted to. :)

It’s Atlanta Week here on ye olde blog, brought to you by the fact that I forgot to transfer a magazine from my luggage to my purse and was thus left with no reading material on a long flight, giving me lots of uninterrupted time to write off the top of my head. First up, CNN tour:

I, like most people, love Anderson Cooper. Given that CNN’s headquarters are in Atlanta, I thought I’d take the opportunity to tour the building and, perchance, run into him. When I told people this plan, many turned to me and said in a low voice, “You know he’s gay, right?”

A) Yes, I do. B) Can’t I want to meet Anderson for his journalistic skills and not his looks? C) My chances of dating Anderson Cooper are approximately the same (e.g., nil) regardless of his sexual orientation, so I’m not sure it’s relevant.

In any case, Anderson wasn’t in the building, but some other folks were. I got there 60 seconds before the VIP tour that only runs once a week I didn’t know existed was starting, and although I chose the basic tour, I had a change of heart at the last second and plunked down an extra $20 for the privilege of getting to meet and sit in on Rick Sanchez’s show and get that lovely picture above taken. Along the way, I also met and talked to Brooke Baldwin, who, unlike me, knows Anderson. Also unlike me, Brooke was made for TV – she’s gorgeous.

It was really interesting getting to listen in on the control room of the show, and our group of five got to peek into the newsroom (props to the writers who do all that research behind the scenes), read the teleprompter, and learn some fun tidbits about CNN. We also got to ride the world’s longest free-standing escalator, so there’s that.

Anderson may have eluded me this time, but Rick Sanchez told me he liked my dress, so all was not lost.

Like most travel writers, I suffer from wanderlust. I’m a nomad at heart, always searching for my next adventure. And as my lease was set to expire in Texas in May, I didn’t know where to go. Since becoming a freelancer, I can work pretty much anywhere, provided there’s Internet access and cell phone reception. Did I want to move to Boston, a city I’ve spent too little time in but love? Or Atlanta, where I’ve never been but am intrigued by? Or what about something more exotic, like South Africa or France? Or something international but closer to home, like Vancouver? I love moderate weather, so maybe the California coast, or something close to home but not all the way there, like Portland?

My mind reeled. After months of contemplation, I ended up home — right back in the Seattle area where I grew up. It felt like a cop-out in ways, terribly unimaginative, completely at odds with the independent, globe-trotting person I am.

But yesterday, my great-grandmother died, and I was here. I saw her a week ago, and I’ll be at her funeral in a few days. If I lived elsewhere, it’d be a scramble, and I wouldn’t have had the chance to see her one last time. Living far away wouldn’t have made me a bad person — far from it — but living near my family (my parents, sister, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins all reside in Washington) offers something that none of those other options did: a true home.

I’ll always be a wanderer, but I have travel to quell that thirst — and a home to come back to when I’m ready for a break.