We are both suckers for those list such as, Best Places To Retire. Athens, GA is one of those on several of those lists. It’s a college town and students give it lots of energy. They have a large stadium for college games. And we did enjoy the International Street Fair which had acrobats and traditional Chinese music.
There were a number of bars and we enjoyed some local brews at Creature Comforts.
We met a couple there visiting from New York. When we asked to borrow a few chairs from their table, the man joked, “So you do not want to sit with us?” That is the last thing you want to say to two people traveling alone in a van. “Sure we would love to join you” His wife was not amused. After a couple of beers they moved on to prepare for a wedding they were attending that evening.
We headed a few blocks away to meet with the Tree That Owns Itself. Some eccentric old guy (maybe that’s redundant) stipulated in his will that the tree and 8′ around it would posses it self. In 1942, a storm toppled that tree. Neighbors probably thought they could reclaim their street but the busy bodies of the Garden Club planted an acorn from the original tree. Now the “Son of the Tree That Owns Itself” stands blocking half of the road. It makes driving down South Finley Street difficult and caused the neighbor to post a “Private Property” sign for his driveway.
We parked at Dudley Park and planned a bike ride on the Oconee and Firefly Trails. However we discovered these trails were disconnected and more aspirational than actual. Even new sections were missing bridges to connect the sections of trail.
One of the downsides to being a college town was that a number of the bars were closed on a Saturday afternoon. Apparently most of their clientele does not think about drinking until very late in the day. Music was a night time affair – much to late for us. And that left us with the feeling that this college town might not be the best match for us.