The best thing about travelling is finding really great places to stop along the way, and when at last, reaching the destination, having a cosy place to rest your head (with fresh flowers that lovely friends gave me, which I had to bring on the trip so I could enjoy them). This is what I was able to experience on recent adventures to the mountains.
The drive is a long one. About 7.5 hours if the traffic is kind, and the traffic is never fully kind, especially around Atlanta. so, my theory is that if I have to drive 7.5 hours in one day, I have to make a few stops that are fun (like a bookstore) and that revive my weariness (like a coffee shop for caffeine!). Sure, this may add some time to the total travel time, but it is worth it.
For coffee shops, the essential criteria for stopping include amazing coffee and a diverse local scene. I like to see a little bit of what is going on in the neighborhood where the shop is. Since I was driving my car on this trip, I had the ability to find the places to stop. On the way through Atlanta, both ways, I drove my Mum and I to Octane Coffee. There are three different locations around Atlanta, and we were able to visit two of them.
I love to experience these ultra hip coffee shops that I don't feel cool enough to be in. It is really fun to see how each coffee shop does things differently. Of course Atlanta has a diverse scene with a mix of college and young career folk. There is also, obviously, a huge creative movement with these coffee shops. Each place has an industrial feel, because they were in a revitalized factory, complete with tall ceilings, brick walls, big windows, and steel beams. Warmed up with wood tones, hipster tattooed creative people, and the scent of coffee, I could certainly hang out for a while. And that's what we did. Sure, I could get my cappuccino to go, but I like to sit and enjoy my coffee from a real ceramic cup (or a glass, as Octane does for their latte).
How do you take on long drives?
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