Savannah, Whistle Stop Cafe & Atlanta

Oh Savannah – with your oak trees, Spanish moss, gardens and antebellum houses, you are truly a beautiful city. We spent our two days here dawdling around the streets, taking in the city’s ambience and trying to decide which house we would want to buy if we won the lottery. Designed with 24 garden squares around which the city was built, 22 of these squares remain today as pockets of peace and quiet in amongst the residences and businesses of Savannah.

The gardens are beautifully maintained and are filled with oak trees dripping with Spanish moss

History lessons can be found in the squares where statues and memorials stand testimony to Savannah’s past

The houses of Savannah range from grandiose to simple but each of them exude an elegance no matter their size, style or design.

Our Airbnb, a Victorian cottage dated 1874 and on the National Historic Register.

As we meandered through the squares and along the Savannah River we learned about the city and its colourful past, but I have to be honest: finding the landmarks that are seen in the opening sequence of Forrest Gump made the city shine even more for us.

Statue of “the Waving Girl”, Florence Martus, who greeted all ships entering and leaving the Port of Savannah between 1887 and 1931. Legend says she fell in love with a sailor and was waiting for him to return. When he never came back, Florence died of a broken heart.

One of the oldest theatre’s in America, the Savannah Theatre opened its doors on 4th December 1818

The spire of the Independent Presbyterian Church is seen as the feather in Forrest Gump makes its way to Forrest’s feet at the bus stop

First Baptist Church, also seen in Forrest Gump…

… as well as the Scottish Rite Masonic Center, with its distinctive design.

A visit to the Owens-Thomas House and Slave Quarters gave us an insight into how the gentry and the enslaved lived side by side 200 years ago.

The gardens of the house, looking out at the slave quarters located at the back of the house

From Savannah we headed to Atlanta with another movie-related visit on the way…

We found the town of Juliette and the Whistle Stop Cafe where the movie Fried Green Tomatoes was filmed. The cafe is just as it looks in the movie, the staff were just as characterful as Idgie and Ruth and the fried green tomatoes were as good as we hoped.

Our final Georgia stop was Atlanta, home of the Braves and birthplace of Coca-Cola. We took the two-hour VIP tour of the World of Coca-Cola which flew by as we heard about the history of the soft drink, saw great memorabilia and tasted samples of the many variations found the world over (some of which were really not-so-great like the plum-flavoured cola that tastes like barbecue spare ribs).

This original soda fountain dates back to 1880 and is made from alabaster and onyx

The original prototype Coca-Cola bottle, designed in 1915, had to be made thinner to fit the bottling equipment. There are only two of these bottles known to be left in the world.

The six-pack carton was a Coca-Cola innovation in 1923, to encourage people to take bottles home

A Coca-Cola ration card from World War II.

Georgia you have been a gracious hostess and we are sorry to say goodbye. But not too sorry… Tennessee, with Dollywood, Nashville and Graceland, we are coming to you next!

P&S