Downtown Atlanta...

On our first full day (Friday 6th February) in Atlanta we drove to the downtown area where we visited a number of attractions: the World of Coca-Cola, the Centennial Olympic Park, and the CNN Center.

The World of Coca-Cola was what I had on my list of things to do, since I do enjoy a refreshing Coca-Cola every now and then. One of my memories that occurred on many occasions while in Sierra Leone was that of being in the street markets of Freetown and buying a small glass bottle of Coca-Cola as we walked back to the ship after a productive afternoon of browsing. The World of Coca-Cola was an amazing historical journey through the history of this global brand. Coca-Cola was developed in 1886 by Atlanta pharmacist, John S. Pemberton. One of the highlights was also being able to taste many different Coke products from around the globe.

After the World of Coca-Cola we walked through the Centennial Olympic Park - Atlanta hosted the 1996 summer Olympics. The 1996 Olympics were the first games that South Africa participated in as a democratic country, and it was the first Olympic games that I can remember quite well. One of my memories was that of South African swimmer Penny Heyns winning two gold medals and breaking records in the swimming pool. It was thus special to visit this place.

We then went into the food court of the CNN Center, where we had a late lunch at Chick-fil-A. We then beat a hasty retreat from the downtown area to escape the Friday afternoon rush hour traffic! It was a wonderful day in Atlanta!

 Sign near the World of Coca-Cola.

 The World of Coca-Cola!

 Giant bottle opener!

 Large Coke bottles at the entrance.

 This one is from South Africa. :)

 Entering the museum.

 Coca-Cola delivery bicycle.

 The foyer.

 More cool Coke bottles from around the globe.

 Miniature delivery truck.

 Candace tries her hand at mixing the perfect formula.

 Evolution of the Coke bottle.

 Candace and I portrayed in bubbles. :)

 At the Coke bar.

 Chevrolet delivery van.

 Evolution of the Coke can.

 Olympic torch relay.

 Cricket bat!

 Various international Coke products.

 One of the other highlights was seeing the Coca-Cola production line. This is the packaging robot!

 Factory control station.

 Map of Africa with Coca-Cola bottlers.

Coca-Cola in pop culture.

 Postcards that contain Coca-Cola signage.

 Candace designing her own bottle.

 Candace's bottle.

 On the Pop Culture couch.

 Heading to the tasting section of the World of Coca-Cola.

The African drinks station.

 The African selection.

Coca-Cola Freestyle is a new thing where you can mix different flavours to create your own drink. It's starting to appear at restaurants in the USA. :)

 View to the Georgia Aquarium as we leave the World of Coca-Cola.

The Center for Civil and Human Rights.

 Centennial Olympic Park.

 Statue of Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic movement.

 The famous white rings painted on the ground.

 Atlanta skyline as we walk towards the CNN Center.

 Note the South African flag under the "C" of CNN. :)

It's massive inside the CNN Center!