Can all this be done?

I%26#39;m in Atlanta for a conference next week and have a free day. I was thinking about going downtown and doing the following:

? Georgia Aquarium

? World of Coke

? Underground (to buy souvenirs)

?King Center

My question is -- is that too much for a day? Where%26#39;s the VERY best place downtown for a great lunch?

Thanks for any input.

Can all this be done?

I think you can do this in a busy day. The aquarium will probably take around 2 hours; you probably won%26#39;t want to spend much time in Undergroun because there%26#39;s not much to it; Coke is within easy walking distance of Underground and the Aquarium; and the King Center is a quick MARTA ride from the Five Points Station or Georgia State Station, which are near Underground. I%26#39;m not sure what all is at the King Center - I hear it%26#39;s been in a state of disrepair recently.

Can all this be done?

You might want to skip Underground. I suppose if you already there it might be worth walking through. I just like the area even in the daytime. There are too many young men hanging around with nothing to do.

I meant to say, I don%26#39;t like the area even in the daytime.

I agree, I think you can do it as long as you plan carefully.

One word of advice about the King Center. Beyond stopping outside to see the tomb, I would spend your time across the street at the Martin Luther King Jr. Historical Site run by the National Park Service. It has a very good exhibit that details the story of his life, along with seasonal exhibits.

Unfortunately, the King Center has fallen into a state of disrepair and has little of interest beyond a few documents and articles of clothing on display. The NPS wants to buy it from the King family but it%26#39;s far from clear if this will actually happen.

Lunch? How about Mary Mac%26#39;s Tea Room on Ponce de Leon Ave.? Classic southern cooking in a friendly atmosphere.

http://www.marymacs.com/

Also, Six Feet Under and Ria%26#39;s Bluebird are across from Oakland Cemetary, which is also a great site to visit and is within easy walking distance of the King Center. Both of those restaurants offer great lunches. About a block further are Carroll Street Cafe and Agave which are excellent restaurants. Six Feet Under also has rooftop dining with and excellent view of the beautiful cemetary.

Yes, definitely go to the cemetery. Mary Mac%26#39;s is great though too.

I would skip the World of Coke and substitute the Oakland Cemetery if the day is nice.

Ditto on Oakland cemetary, however if you do end up going to World of Coke, you can do something I got a kick out of. There is a tasting room, where you can sample Coke products from around the world that we never see here in the U.S.. Some of them, especially some fruit drinks from Asia and Africa are great. But there is one from Italy, called Beverly, that is the foulest concoction I have ever drank. It is incredably bitter and tastes like the worst medicine you%26#39;ve ever taken. After trying it I just stood in the area and when anybody would come by I would tell them ';You%26#39;ve just got to try this Italian soda. It%26#39;s great!'; Pretty soon we had a group of people with puckered up faces, desperately looking for a trash can so they could spit it out. Then they%26#39;d come back and watch and laugh as others got had. It was like a spontaneous party.

But that%26#39;s just me.

Nuke

What a character you are! It has been a while since I went to the World of Coke but I do remember several of the concoctions being pretty vile. Maybe the worst is the one you mention. I just can%26#39;t remember.

Most of the World of Coke is a big commercial you have to pay to get in to see.

To some us locals, we think World of Coke is overpriced and overrated. However, some tourists come from far away and a visit to the World of Coke is exciting. Tasting coke products not available in the U.S. is really kind of cool. Some of you guys are waaay too hard on Coke. I think most tourists enjoy visiting World of Coke. (Just my humble opinion)

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