We had just enough of a layover to do our 2 favorite LA things: eat In-N-Out Burger and watch giant planes land at LAX. In-N-Out Burger is a California institution with delicious burgers and shakes that are completely fresh. After 11 hours sitting on a plane, we were all ready for our In-N-Out meal.
When we lived in coastal Oregon, Bob took several business trips to LA. It was on one of those trips that he found the best In-N-Out Burger of all, which sits at the end of one of the LAX runways. Massive planes coming in from all over the world fly overhead as they're on a final landing approach. We ate our meal outside in the California sunshine while watching planes land.
After we ate we walked into a small park that's even closer to the end of the LAX runway. The planes are coming in above us were just higher than the tree tops!
The afternoon started out completely sunny but, as coastal fog rolled in, both the temperature and the ceiling dropped.
There were lots of other people watching planes come in. We chatted with a couple of them, including one guy from Georgia who was tracking planes on his cell phone. He could tell us what would be coming in next.
This guy, Michael, told us he comes here a couple of times a week after work to watch the planes come in. He knew which type and carrier each plane was at incredible distances, without using any kind of tracking app.
We stuck around long enough to watch two Airbus 380 planes coming in. The A380 is the largest passenger airliner in the world, and only certain runways are adequate for these planes to land on. The first A380 came in while the visibility was still good enough that we could see it coming in. The second one, however, startled us all because, all of a sudden, it was just overhead. We'd heard some noise but couldn't see it because the clouds were so low, and then it was just there!
We spent the night near LAX, then got up early the next morning to continue our journey east. We flew from Los Angeles to Atlanta, Georgia, and then drove on to Athens. By the time we arrived it was late at night, but we were able to hug my parents, sister, and brother-in-law. The last time my whole family was together was when they surprised us in Kuala Lumpur for Christmas.
Jack had already gone to bed by the time we arrived, but he was thrilled to see the boys the next morning. Our boys were very happy to see him, too.
We spent our first full day in Athens getting hair cuts, getting some new clothes, and getting ready for Tim's graduation from the University of Georgia the following day. It was a whirlwind of to dos, but we got them all done and, on graduation day, we were all ready to celebrate Tim's 5 years of hard work earning his PhD in business.
Graduation was held in the basketball stadium at the university, and we all cheered as Dr. Hubbard received his diploma and his doctoral hood.
We got a nice photo of our own family, and we're looking quite a bit spiffier than we did for most of the past 10 months!
This kid looks like he could be in business school himself. So handsome!
After the graduation ceremony we had a nice dinner at a Persian restaurant that is a favorite of Caitlin's and Tim's. The next day, they hosted a wonderful brunch for family and friends, and we continued to celebrate their family's accomplishments and upcoming move to South Bend, Indiana, where Tim will be a professor at Notre Dame.
We also enjoyed hanging out at Caitlin's and Tim's home, reading to Jack and taking silly photos of Doctor Hubbard (รก la Martin Luther style).
The next day was Colin's 8th birthday, so we decorated similarly to what we did for Emmett's 11th birthday in Australia.
He was very surprised and happy.
Colin had requested a visit to an amusement park for his birthday, so my whole family spent the day riding roller coasters at Six Flags Over Georgia, just outside Atlanta.
Bob and I got our first taste of US gas prices...after years of paying close to $7/gallon in the Netherlands (and similar prices when we rented a camper in Australia and drove through New Zealand), we were astonished to pay less than $15 US for almost 7 gallons (26 liters) of gas. WOW!
When our day at Six Flags ended, my parents headed back to Florida, Caitlin, Tim, and Jack headed back to Athens, and we headed on to Bob's aunt's and uncle's house outside Atlanta. His Aunt Kathy had thoughtfully made Colin a beautiful birthday cake, so he was able to both start and end his day with delicious treats.
Kathy and Bob live adjacent to Stone Mountain Park, and the next day we walked through some of the park grounds to learn about the history of Stone Mountain and enjoy the beautiful, natural surroundings. Stone Mountain is an enormous granite mountain that was formed 300-350 million years ago as a result of magma welling up from within the Earth's crust. Over the years, the granite has been quarried and distributed all over the US and abroad.
The surrounding park was lush and peaceful, and we enjoyed walking some of Bob's and Kathy's favorite trails.
Kathy asked us what we thought this was...it reminded us of the ancient Sri Lankan stone urinals, but we're pretty sure those haven't been replicated in Georgia. We never quite figured out what this spot was.
One side of Stone Mountain contains the largest bas-relief carving in the world, one that commemorates three Confederate leaders-- Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson.
There's a lot of discussion in the South right now about removing Confederate monuments, and this carving is the biggest of them all. For now, it appears that Stone Mountain is staying as is.
We walked through the open spaces and read some thoughtful quotes that were inscribed in stone in the ground. I particularly liked this one.
We took a gondola up to the top of Stone Mountain, where we had a beautiful panoramic view of the area.
With hawks and other birds of prey soaring on air currents, we could see downtown Atlanta in the distance.
We went into downtown Atlanta the next day to visit two very different museums: The National Center for Civil and Human Rights and the World of Coca Cola. The first was dedicated to the US Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s and the worldwide struggle for human rights. The exhibits were well-done and full of moving images and videos, particularly of brave Americans who risked their dignity, and often, their lives, to advance equality for all, regardless of skin color.
Just across the park was the World of Coca-Cola, dedicated to the history and brand image of the world's most famous soft drink. Coca-Cola was invented in the Atlanta area in the 1890s, and the company headquarters are still located there today.
Walking in we were immediately served a Coca-Cola, which thrilled the boys. Like their media consumption, their soda consumption is also pretty well regulated, but how could you not drink a Coke while at the World of Coca-Cola?
There was a lot of Coke memorabilia, including advertisements from around the world and through the years.
There was an exhibit on how the secret formula for Coca-Cola was controlled and guarded through the years. The exhibit ended in front of the vault that contains the only written recipe for the Coke syrup. The vault has a hand scanner, a keypad, and three keys to open it, and only 3 people have access to it.
The best part of the whole experience, for our family, was the Tasting Room. Since the boys had been tasting Fantas around the world for the past 10 months, the opportunity to taste even more global beverages was quite exciting to them.
I thought perhaps we'd see something we'd already found in Asia or Europe, but nope--these were all completely new to us. It was quite the sugary drink overload, but fun to taste different flavors and combinations from around the world.
According to Emmett, Fanta Exotic is one of the rarest Fantas of them all.....but it was here in Atlanta!
After a layover in LA, traveling across the US, family celebrations, and visiting Atlanta-area sights, our first week back in the USA quickly came to an end. It was time to head south to my hometown, where we'd be putting up our backpacks for a while. Our visit with Kathy and Bob was a nice end to our time in Georgia--and the boys are hopeful that someday our couch will be as high tech as theirs is!
