Teen Village First Session Trip – Atlanta
July 08, 2012
Posted by Jennifer Finch
Every session, Teen Village has an opportunity designed especially for them; a two night and three day trip. First session, Atlanta was their chosen destination. 2012 TV Atlanta Trip departed Monday 2nd July at 8am. The sway of the coach lulled many to sleep, however others, wound tight with anticipation, chatted and mingled for the 3 hour drive to the MLK National Historic Site. The MLK National Historic Site is a place dedicated to Martin Luther King, Jr., where you can go and hear his story, visit the home of his birth, and see where he played as a child. Teen Village took time to contemplate as they walked in his footsteps, and heard his voice in the church where he moved hearts and minds. It was an opportunity to marvel at how he was an instrument for social change.
After a sobering yet inspirational visit, a change of pace was planned; Six flags! Roller coasters and Acrophobia – the ride…where you can face your fears on a terrifying 20-story tower that ascends riders to the top, only to face gravity and free-fall straight down, all while standing up. If this wasn’t enough, when you reach the top, your seat is tilted 15 degrees so you have no choice but to look straight down. YIKES! So after an exhaustingly full day, Teen Village rolled back to the Comfort Inn at about 11pm. With four campers per room, there was little convincing needed for sleep, every one was very tired yet looking forward to what was still to come.
Campers were rousted up and out early to make their way to the The William Breman Jewish Heritage & Holocaust Museum. It is describe as a museum that “explores the universal themes of respect for difference, responsible citizenship, human dignity, and community building through the lens of the Jewish experience”.
At the Museum,Teen Village had the opportunity to hear from, and meet personally, with Helen Weingarten, a holocaust survivor. On departure, the campers had a hot and contemplative walk to The Georgia Aquarium. The Georgia Aquarium; the world’s largest aquarium with more than 8.5-million-US-gallon (32,000 m3) of marine and fresh water housing more than 120,000 animals of 500 different species. The aquarium’s notable specimens include four young whale sharks, four beluga whales, eleven Bottlenose dolphins, three Great hammerhead sharks, and four manta rays. The aquarium worked up a thirst and what better stop next but the World of Coco Cola.
The World of Coca-Cola, is a permanent exhibition featuring the history of The Coca-Cola Company and its well-known advertising as well as a host of entertainment areas and attractions. Not to mention loads of free sampling!
July 3rd happened to be Teen Village first session camper Carley Fischers’ 15th birthday. What a great way to spend her day! As coincidence would have it, the traffic that Barack Obama’s visit to Atlanta caused, allowed for an impromptu visit to The Varsity, the world’s largest drive-in restaurant. The Varsity sits on more than two acres and can accommodate 600 cars and over eight hundred people inside. On days of Georgia Tech football games up to 30,000 people visit The Varsity. It sells more than two miles of hotdogs daily, a ton of onion rings, 2500 pounds of fresh cut potatoes, 5000 homemade fried pies, and 300 gallons of chili, all of which are made from scratch daily. The downtown Varsity is also the world’s largest single outlet for Coca-Cola.This is where the now famous cry of The Varsity started “What’ll Ya Have”….
Full of hot dogs and onion rings, our campers day was yet to end and that night they attended a Braves Baseball game where the Braves well and truly beat the Arizona Razor Backs. Arriving late at the Hotel, once again, sleep was not hard to find.
Up early for the last few exciting events and a visit to CNN Atlanta, offering a once-in-a-lifetime view of the global headquarters of CNN. From here, the girl’s favorite place to be; the Mall of Georgia where a last quick shopping spree was had, working up an appetite for a quick Burger King pit stop on the way home. Teen Village arrived home Wednesday with the dusk, tired but full of great new experiences and stories to tell.
