Second Time Lucky

ATLANTA, GEORGIA.

PG didn't sleep very well overnight, maybe the excessive amount of cheese, maybe the stress and anxiety of possibly oversleeping. Added to that, he visited the bathroom during the night and cut his finger on the corner of a wall. It was only equivalent to a paper cut but it was difficult to stem.

We're awake before the alarm which is just as well because the alarm call never materialised. Breakfast doesn't start until 6:30 and our bus leaves at 6:40 so we eat at the airport using the vouchers from last night. We arrive 2.5 hours before the flight building in, what turns out to be unnecessary, scope for delays. Plain sailing through passport control.

Our seats are changed again meaning that RJ loses the window. Her neighbour later informs us that he's on his way back from Uganda. He married a local girl there who is one of eighteen siblings and already has three children of her own. It's only the second time that he has been out of the USA! His new wife and family will be joining him in the USA in the very near future.

The food and drink is acceptable for an aeroplane. RJ has white wine but I stick to water with the prospect of driving later. Three films help to pass the 9.25 hours away before we land on time at 13:15 East Coast Time.

Border Control was very easy. The airline staff had handed out the "Attestation Form" but the guard wasn't interested. We had to collect the hold bag and, to our surprise, it had beaten us through. A shuttle bus to the Domestic Terminal followed by the Sky Train and half an hour later we're in a terminal dedicated to car hire (although the Americans think we wanted a cab, initially!). A charming, burly assistant walks us through the self-service check-in procedure. It turns out that we've ordered a pick-up and it's a beast.

Unfortunately neither the satnav nor the phone work for directions so it's a case of old-school following direction signs for Marietta. We hit the interstate just as rush hour is getting underway. The road we're looking for is a major one s it's quite easy to find. Except that it isn't because we go to the Country Inn and Suites instead of the Country Hearth Inn and Suites!

The recipient at the wrong hotel is very helpful even going to the trouble of printing out sheets of paper for the parkrun and the museums. Her final words are that our Country Inn is run and normally the location for truckers. And, she's right! It has definitely seen better days and there's an incredible smell of pot around even though all rooms are non-smoking. Still, the bedding is clean! Our room is in the bottom left of the first picture, number 125.

We try to walk to some local fast-food restaurants but we struggle to cross the road. We give up and return for the car. We eat at Wendy's but it's a complete disaster. The girl forgets to put the taco's in the taco salad, RJ's enormous cup of coffee is cold and there are no milk cartons.

Back in the room, PG learns that the maps for the US and Chile require downloading. So, that is set in motion overnight.

We're both in bed by 8pm, exhausted!