I love seeing places other than where I live as much as the next person, but I must say I sort of hate the active traveling bit of it all. My mom’s birthday was this past weekend so we booked flights to meet in Atlanta for celebrations.
Originally we booked a stay at Marriott Marquis and were completely dissatisfied. I ordered bourbon flavored chicken wings that were so disgusting I couldn’t eat them. Our towels were horrible and smelled strongly of mildew. The stench was so potent, there’s no way the person who folded them didn’t notice, even if they lost their sense of smell due to Covid. Additionally, Starbucks was closed at 1:10pm on a Friday afternoon. With that being the last straw, we promptly moved to a different hotel.
Before we checked in at the Grand Hyatt in Buckhead, Atlanta, GA, we met up with a family friend for lunch. We attempted to try getting seats at Old Lady Gang restaurant but neither of us had the patience for a 2 hour wait. I found another place for us to eat that wasn’t far from the new hotel called Mission and Market. The vibe was really nice and our server Jessica was super chill and attentive. Our food and drinks completed the reset we so desperately needed.
At the Grand Hyatt, our room overlooked a beautiful Zen Garden with waterfalls and the pool. This time our towels and room were satisfactory. I have no complaints about any of the staff members, hotel or food and drink services! Shout out to Shenaa at the bar, Larry at the Cassis restaurant and Officer K. Walls. If you ever visit the area I strongly advise you to book your stay with them.
We managed to save a little money on car services. The hotel provides a shuttle anywhere within 2 miles of the hotel. We felt like celebrities as a brand new black SUV escorted us to Lenox Mall. I don’t know about you but I’ve never walked through metal detectors to enter a mall. There was so much security that we had to ask if the area was safe. Turns out there had been a few violent altercations like fights and a murder within the last couple of weeks. Yup, you read that right. We quickly did our shopping and called Joe, our shuttle driver, to let him know we were ready to be picked up. He was AMAZING! I highly recommend you request him to escort you anywhere nearby the hotel.
Next, we freshened up to find a bar and have a small bite to eat and some well-made drinks at Blue Martini. The theme was Christmas in July. There are 3 different bars to sit and have drinks, a stage for live music, and a smoking section for hookah and cigars on the patio as well as a very nice bathroom with an attendant. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. We called Joe again to pick us back up and return us to the hotel at the end of the night. He even provided us a breakfast voucher for the next morning, informed us breakfast would be on him and to be there before 10:45am.
The next morning, my mom woke me up at 10:34am and said we were about to miss breakfast. Cutting it close, right! We managed to clean ourselves up enough to be considered presentable and scurried down to Cassis. We made it just in time to grab a little smoked salmon, bacon and a bagel. Afterwards we headed back to our room to get dressed for the pool.
We stopped at the hotel bar again for a drink while we waited for the pool to clear out a bit. We met a cool guy from Tennessee who bought a round of shots in honor of the birthday lady and we all quickly became friends. We even made plans to hang out at the pool and met up to return to Blue Martini for our last night of fun.
There were many functions happening with beautifully dressed people. I had my camera so I asked to take a few photos of them. Photographing people is a bit intimidating for me so I practiced getting out of my comfort zone while also getting a few practice shots.
By the end of the night we were all ready to head back to the hotel and call it a night. Before we all parted ways we expressed how nice it was to have met each other and promised to keep in touch. The next morning, my mom and I quickly gathered ourselves, checked out and called a car service to take us to the airport. We had a lovely conversation with our top-rated driver Joy who transported us safely. Homebound and tired, we said our goodbyes and wished each other safe flights home.
All in all, it was a wonderful trip that I’d love to take again. Take it from me, there is no reason to spend your hard earned money on an experience you don’t love. Pay for experience and make business earn your money.
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Kaptured by Keni Photography 