Airports in India

Airports in India are largely organized like all airports worldwide. They have restaurants, cafés and shopping. In the meantime, this is usually works quite well. Domestic flights have extreme high growth rates. New airports are being built everywhere; yet domestic flight travel has only just begun in India. The market will continue to grow even more. Staff and guest are becoming more professional and more accustomed to flying every day.

Before Takeoff: Entrance Control in Front of the Airport and Restrictions

In front of India airports, there are always gatherings: many people just standing or sitting there. I have never seen it any different.

At the airport’s entrance, there are very strict controls. You have to show your ticket, your passport and you are only allowed to enter the building if your flight is scheduled for the next four hours. In Goa, we were on a midnight flight, on the course of the day; the waiting line has become very long. We had to stand in that line for 30 minutes just to be able to enter the airport.

In Mumbai we had to wait several hours in front of the building. We arrived at the national terminal, had to change terminals and it was too soon (more than four hours before departure) to enter the terminal. We had no choice but to wait in front of the airport. If you are lucky, you can go sit in a café but even that did not work for us, the café was closed.

If you have entered the terminal building once, there is no way out. There is no exit, all the entrance has a security guy standing there who does not let you out. Some smokers did not like this at all. You also cannot say goodbye to anyone outside the building who is not on a flight.

Luggage Check Before the Check-In and a Compulsory Hand Luggage Tag

Check-In Luggage (everything except hand luggage) is checked for the first time even before the Check-In. You need to go to your airlines luggage scan (looks like the hand luggage scan) where they scan you bags and put a kind of seal on it. In fact, it’s a plastic hook with the airline’s button around it. But you would definitely see if someone opened it, your luggage is sealed.

This is the only way they accept your luggage at the counter. Booking with a foreign credit card does not allow an online check-in. You have to show your credit card at the counter. During check-in you get another airline tag for your hand-luggage (similar to a name tag) that you definitely need to carry visibly at your hand-luggage.

Security Check and Hand-Luggage Check: Have Your Boarding Pass Ready

Hand-luggage check and security check has separate lines for men and women. There are two lines, the men’s line is usually longer the women’s line shorter. Women are taken in cabin where female employees do the check. These cabins are closed, no visibility from outside, including a curtain. Men are not in cabin. The security people stamp the boarding pass. Definitely have your boarding pass in your hand and not in your hand-luggage, you need it.

After a successful hand-luggage check, they also stamp your hand-luggage tag. That is why you absolutely need this tag: without it, there is no complete hand-luggage check.
Before entering the plane, there is another check for that stamped tag. Definitely make sure you don’t lose the tag on your bag.

During boarding, there is another regular boarding pass check, but it’s even possible that your boarding pass is checked a second time for example after landing. Make sure to keep your boarding pass as long as you are in the plane or at the airport (even after landing), every now and then someone wants to see it.

Everything takes a loooong time!

Flying always requires patience, everywhere and always. But definitely more in India! There is always another security check, another control point or a person who is there to check something (e.g. boarding pass, stamped hand-luggage tag). One example: the boarding pass is read by a machine. Less the 10 meters from there, another person is standing to check everyones boarding pass manually.

Always consider that while planning flights. Nothing is fast, you always need some more time. There can be another line, waiting for some check around every corner. No matter how many people waiting, nothing is done any faster. It’s always slow.

We had two very unexpected lines: one in Goa (in front of the airport) and one in Mumbai at immigration. We only had 3 people in front of us but had to wait in that line for more than one hour. I would never book a tight-scheduled connecting flight in India

Der Beitrag Airports and Flights in India erschien zuerst auf travelspotting.

Different Culture in India

India has a different culture, different rules than Germany. Quite often, these things are not the same everywhere or valid for the entire country. It’s important to adjust to that culture and accept the rules.

Information Overload: Take a Break

India is huge overload of information and overstimulation of all senses. There is a never-ending number of impressions, you get to see a kind of life totally different from everything you know in Europe or the US. Everyone has a different “melting point” but it’s definitely there. In India, at some time you do reach it, if that happens, take a break and relax. For example take an afternoon off in a Western café, a fancy restaurant or your hotel room. Time-outs are important in India, without it you reach a point of total exhaustion pretty soon. Definitely accept when you have reached your limit and take a break.

Limitations for Tourists: Clothing Rules for Men and Women

Women’s right and the kind of liberty we have in the West do not travel with you. You need to be aware of that. India is a land that is changing. Many Indian ladies and girls, in particular the younger ones who are more educated oppose these strict rules. That means, every now and then you will see locals wearing dresses, shorts, hotpants and tank tops. But that does not mean it’s ok for foreigners (mostly white people) to wear these clothes. Clothing rules are rather strict in India: clothes should be long, loose and not be too tight. How you do that is up to you. To me, it means: pants at least knee-length, no tops with showing neck cuts, t-shirts with sleeves that cover my shoulder, never visible bra straps. I would say a typical German summer outfit including a wrap skirt, a sleeveless shirt and shorts is a no-go. Just because it is warm in India does not mean you can walk around in your summery clothes. If you are feeling too warm, sandals help to fight the heat. Replace you sneakers with sandals and you feel much better and more relaxed in long pants.

Men can wear a lot but also they need to stay dressed and not walk around without a t-shirt. Also shorts are uncommon. Guys in India tend to be dressed rather fancy, quite often wearing cloth pants and a skirt. That is why you should not look to casual. Skirts and T-shirts always work (as long as they have sleeves), pants should be knee-length. Even men can wear sandals if it’s too warm. A typical holiday or swimming outfit is definitely inappropriate.

Yet, you should always be aware of the fact that too much exposed skin in India is perceived as entirely naked. Easiest solution for both genders is: T-shirt and Jeans. You are never wrong with that.

Some Advice and Suggestions for Women

During the day, you can in my mind, walk anywhere and only need to be more careful in the night.

We all have heard news about female tourists being raped in India and sexually assaulted. There is never 100% safety but you can do some things to minimize the risk.

a) I would never walk around in a bikini, not even at the beach. I only go to the water and back to the hotel. For Indian men, a woman in a bikini is almost naked. Even though this contradicts all feminist ideas we have here in Europe, too little clothing still counts as invitation and enabling certain behavior in India. For sunbathing and walking on the beach in a bikini, India is not the right country. I have written something about Goa, Goa is more liberal and things are easier there.

b) A basic rule is always to be careful with single men who try to talk to you. In India, it’s polite to only say hello to the husband when you meet a married couple and entirely ignore the wife (the opposite in Europe). A man who addresses a woman in public for no reason is, in Indian terms extremely rude and impolite and shows no respect. Or they just give it a try because they know it from American films and TV shows, and think that is the way to do it. Anyways: never respond to that! Don’ let them start a conversation, don’t get a lift from them, don’t give them your number and never go home with them. No matter how nice the offer sounds (“I take you home on my scooter.”) Never do it!

c) Do not drink in public, don’t be drunk in public and don’t party too hard. For that kind of holiday you should better go to Mallorca, India is not the right place for that (not even Goa!). If you really want to drink, do it in your hotel among friends, never in public. The best thing would be not to drink at all. A drunken woman is in invitation for most guys in India! They will try to take advantage of you. (I know, in Europe we consider a sentence like that extremely anti-feminist.)

d) If you are lost and want to ask for directions, ask your own gender. Women ask women and men ask men. That is always the best way to do it and nothing can go wrong.

What is Polite and What is Impolite?

Most cultural misunderstandings happen because of a different understanding of what is polite and impolite. In India, saying no counts as impolite. That mean you never hear a direct no, it always comes along very indirect, very much in the background. We are almost unable to understand it at all. One example “Can we talk on skype?” “The laptop is broken.”

I Germany, you ask once, get an answer and that is how things are. In India, facts change when you ask more than once, insist and ask again. For a German understanding that would be pushy or even stupid but it is normal in India. Ask, ask even vigorously to reach you aim.

Prices are Printed on Every Item

Prices for Coke and Water are printed on every bottle. If the bottle is cooled they can charge a little extra for cooling it (1 or 2 rupees). But that’s it. Whatever they might tell you, it’s not true. All products cost the same everywhere (except in a restaurant, they charge whatever the menu says). But everything else they tell you is untrue. Water bottles have a plastic seal, if that seal is missing, it’s tap water in the bottle (bottled water is called “Bisleri”)!

Contact between Men and Women

Contact in public between men and women is a different one. Kissing and showing affections is inappropriate and should not be done. You will see couples in India who do the exact opposite. But those are Indian couple who oppose their own rules. That does not count for Germans/Europeans/American/Whites. It’s better to restrain from any public affection.

Travelling as an unmarried couple? Make your life easier and simply tell everyone you are married. India highly respects family and marriage, much more than we do. Calling yourself married will make everything easier for you.

Moving Forward in India Take a Long Time: Rickshaws, Busses and Public Transportation

You always need to consider: distances in India are long, it takes a long time to get from one place to another. In particular overland journeys are exhausting and stretch a long time. There are always many slow vehicles on the road (rickshaws, trucks, but also bikes and wooden hand carts). Never underestimate how long it takes to reach. For longer tours, there are night busses (“Sleeper Busses”) that are quite good, rather cheap and help to kill the time.

Even big cities do not have public transportation like we know it from Europe or the US. There is some construction work going on for subways (called “Metro”) but there is no big working system that covers an entire city. You can always take the bus, rickshaw or cab (Uber!). But traffic is a huge mess. It simply takes a lot of time to move forward.

If you happen to have an airport nearby, you can book a flight. There are some cheap Indian airlines (Spicejet, Indigo, Air Asia, etc.). This is the best way to do longer distances. Flying has improved a lot and now works quite fine. More and more Indian airports are built and you can reach many places like that.

Taking Pictures of You

People do take pics of you. Sometimes they ask, sometimes they don’t. They like to take group pictures with you. You can always so no of course. I have never liked it; it made me feel very uncomfortable. I don’t want to be interesting only because of my skin color and I prefer not to take any group pics with strangers. But that decision is up to you.

Der Beitrag Travel Tips India erschien zuerst auf travelspotting.

Choosing a Place of Interest: Less is More

India is a huge country and you can really only move very slowly. The best thing is to pick a place you like and do everything you are interested in around that area. Traveling to too many different places is exhausting and quite often not even doable. One thing for sure: less is more. Choose one or two corners of the country, stay there and better come back some other time for further travelling elsewhere.

Booking: Leave Some Space, Even No Bookings at All Is Possible

We Germans like to make plans. I fact, we prefer to have everything planed and ready before we start for our holiday trip. But India is a good opportunity to be less rigid, less uptight and more easygoing. You can, at least partly travel with advance booking at all. It’s entirely normal to walk into any hotel, ask for a room and even let them show you the room first. You can then decide to stay or leave, that is fine for everyone. The only time this does not work is in very high (or peak) season, for example Goa around Christmas/New Year’s. Any other time, there is always vacancy; you always find a place to stay. I have found the best and cheapest hotels that way. I recommend only doing some booking when you arrive very early or very late, when you are too tired after arrival or when you really want to stay at a certain hotel.

Domestic Flights and Airports

You can book all domestic flights online, it’s very simple. Usually cost little money and are working quite alright (Spicejet, Indigo, Air Asia, Air India).

Airports in India are largely organizes like any other airport worldwide. They have restaurants, cafés and shopping. It’s all working but fine but there are some characteristics and special rules.

Online Booking: Makemytrip and Yatra

The big booking portals (booking.com, hrs.com) are of course always an option. But there are some Indian websites that are quite often cheaper and have more offers (makemytrip.com, yatra.com). I do all my booking on these two websites. I got some great discounts several times and can only say positive things about these two booking portals. Everything has always worked.

Driving a Car in India: Better Refrain From That

Driving yourself in India is for sure not a good idea. You quite simply cannot do it, it’s not possible. Traffic is too thick and to chaotic. Whoever likes to be independent can think about renting a driver and a car. Drivers are waiting at the airport for tourists to take them around for several days. It’s not quite cheap; you need to calculate around 120 Euro for 3 days. But it’s very convenient, less stressful because you don’t have to wait for the bus and the local driver can take you around, show you sights and landmarks. In the mountains of the North, I definitely recommend a driver; only locals can handle these kinds of streets.

Public Transportation: Rikschas and Busses

India is largely with no Subway or Underground Railroad system (cannot be compared to everything we have in Europe or the US). In some cities, a lot is happening (Pune, Delhi), in Delhi for example some construction work for a metro (an elevated railway) is done. Mumbai has trains for commuters from North to South. Yet, those are exceptions. Don’t expect to find local public transport.

Rickshaws are always an option for short distances. You should do that at least once while you are in India. The best thing is to fix a price in advance, try to find some agreement with the driver and you avoid trouble afterwards. Rickshaws in India are everywhere, sometime you even find a few bicycle rickshaws. But most are motorizes vehicles and drive around at least acceptable speed. Even though they make these loud engine roaring noises. In the night, the bus is safe. Single travelers should take the bus in the night.
Busses can be found everywhere and are very cheap. There are city busses but also cross-country busses. Busses have very different standards, the best ones have an Air Conditioning (“AC”), below that every kind of bus exists. In some cases, a bus can be very crowded, overly crowded. Sometimes people are standing in the door, on the bumper or sit on the roof. For long cross-country rides, there are Sleeper Busses that are quite convenient and not expensive at all.

Book Trains for Longer Distances in Advance

Trains go everywhere but are sometimes fully booked. Book your trains tickets in advance (see booking portal previous paragraph). Very long train rides (for example from Delhi to Mumbai in 20 hours, 1500 km) have never been my thing. I would prefer to fly. The smaller local trains are fun though. You can sit in the open door and look outside. That creates a feeling of freedom and liberty that you cannot have like that in Germany. But you still are not moving fast. The trains from Mumbai (North Mumbai to South Mumbai) are a commuter’s route and incredibly crowded. There are womens’ compartment and compartments for everyone.

Things You Will be Experiencing in India:

• It’s loud! All vehicles honk all the time. Indians are also rather loud. It’s not something to achieve to be quiet. Loud is joy of life, loud is good, loud is normal. I always need ear plugs for the night, to me the most important utensil in India.
• It’s dirty! Trash is everywhere, littering is common. No matter where you are, you just drop your litter and like that, dirt is everywhere.
• It’s hot! Anywhere off the mountains, India is hot. Indians go home on midday or stay in the shade. A long lunch break is common. But as compensation, everyone is awake early in the morning and late in the evening. Never underestimate how hot it is. That means, drink enough water, bring sun glasses and sun screen and walk slowly and patiently.
• Indians don’t wait in a line. They push and jostle past each other. Waiting patiently until it is your turn is uncommon and nobody does it. There are also separate lines and counters for ladies. At first, I thought that’s unnecessary. But that’s not the case. It’s very inconvenient to stand in a line tightly and squeezed in between several male Indians. Ladies lines are much better in that context.

If all of that sound too negative for you, it’s not. These are just some things you need to know. Reason to come to India can be found here.

Der Beitrag Booking an India Tour Yourself erschien zuerst auf travelspotting.

Non-Stop Flights vs. Multiple-Stop Flights

I live in the South of Germany. Stuttgart is usually the best and easiest solution for us. But I’m not a fan of taking a flight from Stuttgart to Frankfurt (the most important airport in Germany) and a larger plane from Frankfurt to the US, maybe even requiring a second stop in the US. I had similar offers from Munich (Stuttgart – Munich – New York- Miami for example). These connections can easily have a total travel time of 20 hours or more, never forget waiting time, time to make sure you don’t miss a flight etc. Doing that needs energy, persistence and time. Spending too much time waiting at airport is really not such a great thing to do.

Assets of a Connection from Stuttgart to Atlanta (Delta Airline)

Over many years of traveling and many different experiences, I turned out liking one thing: Stuttgart has a daily connection to Atlanta. This flight is operated by Delta Airlines.

On the plus side of this flight are:

• Getting a connecting flight from Atlanta is really easy. Atlanta Airport is huge. According to Wikipedia it has the highest number of passengers worldwide. You can go to any place in the US from here, even smaller airports. There are also many connections to Mexico, Canada, and Latin America. Delta Airlines in particular has many options but not exclusively Delta, many other airlines as well.
• The flight Stuttgart – Atlanta was started many years ago. It is a well-established connection. You don’t need to worry about the flight being canceled all of a sudden. There are still US soldiers in Stuttgart, their travels home are very likely part of the reason why that flight has been successful for so long.
• It’s a 9.5 hours flight. That’s long but kind of necessary to reach the US. But it’s not as long and painful and almost unbearable as a flight to Los Angeles (12 hours). In these terribly small, extremely uncomfortable Economy Class seats, 10 hours is kind of a maximum to me. After 10 hours time stands still and I barely manage to kill the last two hours. I’m always happy to stop in Atlanta.
• So far I have had only positive experiences when it comes to organization and routines in Atlanta airport. Atlanta has two terminals: national and international. A subway connects different parts of the terminal. The airport has several zones, named from A – F. All international flights leave from E and F. Having these separate six zones makes the crowds a bit smaller. Because you only spend time in your own zone, or only change from one zone to the other, everything is less full and less crowded than in many other airports. In spite of the fact that Atlanta airport is so huge, this is always a major asset. Every zone has a shopping area, restaurants, shops and cafés. People have possibilities to spread and that makes waiting times ok.
• Stuttgart Airport is a smaller airport with very few international flights. You don’t need to plan too much extra time (the time you plan to make sure you don’t miss the flight because of long waiting lines). Even the hand luggage security check is usually done quickly. You don’t need to be at the airport four hours before the flight.
• You arrive in the US with a big plane of course (Boeing 767) but not an airbus A 380. A few numbers: Boeing 737 has 375 seats, A-380 850. This immediately has consequences at the immigration counters. Immigration to the US always takes a long time and is rather difficult. With fewer co-travelers in the plane, you can save a significant amount of time and spend much less time waiting in the line. I never had to wait more than 30 minutes; other people in different flights told me stories about waiting for 2 hours or more.

Things that Might Bother You about That Stuttgart – Atlanta Connection

No, Delta Airlines is not paying me, neither is Atlanta Airport. I only describe my experiences. Of course, some things about this connection might bother you as well:

• Stuttgart is in the South of Germany. Maybe that is not so good for people in the North of the country. There is also a connection Düsseldorf – Atlanta. Maybe that is an option for you.
• Atlanta is huge; you should definitely plan enough time to change planes there. Travel agencies recommend 2 hours of buffer. I agree, I think that is about right. The most critical point is always immigration and how long that takes. Even walking distances (and distances you do by subway) are not that short, always plan enough time for that. On the plus side: Atlanta always has many connections to basically any US airport. You can always book the next flight and have enough time.
• Geographically, Atlanta only makes sense for some US cities. It’s not good for a trip from Germany to New York or Boston. But it worked well for Miami.
• Their planes are not super-new. On one flight I did not have my own screen at the seat, just overhead entertainment. But that was a while ago, in the last couple of years I always had my own screen.

Recommendations

I’m a fan of that Stuttgart (of even Düsseldorf) – Atlanta flight. I suggest taking it whenever you are heading to the South (Florida, South or North Carolina, Louisiana, Texas, etc.) or the West (California, Nevada) of the country. It does not make sense for East Coast Cities. A stop in Atlanta is also good for flights to Mexico or Latin America. Atlanta has so many connections anywhere, definitely always a good option. I would only choose Frankfurt if I get a very good non-stop connection to exactly where I want to go.

Website of Stuttgart Airport: http://www.stuttgart-airport.com/?cl=en

Atlanta: http://www.atl.com/

Der Beitrag Some Suggestions on How To Book A Flight To the USA erschien zuerst auf travelspotting.

Coca Cola Museum: World of Coca Cola Atlanta

The Coke Museum is in Atlanta’s Downtown, close to the Olympic Park. It’s not cheap, they charge 16 dollars. The square in front of the museum is called Pemberton Place, named after the inventor of Coca Cola. You enter in groups. In the first room, you have to wait a bit until the group is big enough. This room shows some Coca Cola decorations. A tour guides leads everyone to a second room full of kitsch and many Coca Cola Stories are told. Only after listening to this lecture, you get to move freely and independently in the museum.

A central room called “the lobby” connects various other rooms. There are exhibits about how the soda was developed (Pharmacist John Pemberton invented it), a cinema with an endless stream of Coke ads, an exhibit that shows how bottles are filled and an extra room than only deals with the question what Coke’s secret formula is (of course, not telling it). There is a Coca Cola Polar Bear in the lobby. That is where all children gather. Cheesy things about Coca Cola are everywhere, loads of old and new merchandise. So far, so good. Until this point, something you can do but don’t really need to. To me, the Tasting Room made it. It’s a room full of these typical Soda taping systems. You can try any soda worldwide, including sub-brands like Fanta, Sprite, etc. That is indeed something! You can drink as much as you want, the only limit is the amount of sweet sugary soda that you are able to process and digest.

These taping system are organized in groups of continents. All sodas from Africa were extremely sweet, too sweet for me. But quite interesting to try that. The German sodas were Mezzo-Mix (to non-German a mix of Coke and Fanta) and Bonaqua-Lemon. The Indian soda was Mazaa (a viscous Mango juice). Did you know that Mezzo-Mix is only available in Germany, made for the German market? I didn’t. I liked the tasting, I wanted to try at least a sip of everything. But that did not work, in the end it was a bit too much. It was only then when I realized how different these Coca Cola products are in every country.

At the exit you can take a sample glass bottle of Coke. You exit through a big gift shop with all kinds of Coca Cola stuff (clothes, key chains, statues, etc.). Nice to watch but a little expensive. None of us bought anything.

The Coca Cola Museum is good if you like these different sodas. Everything else is nice, of course done accurately and provides quite some information. But it can always be shortened to “Coca Cola is great”. After the third room, I was thinking: ok, I know it, Coke is great and has changed the world. On their website, Coke says you need 2 hours to do the museum. I think that is right, you don’t need more time. I don’t suggest not doing the museum but don’t expect too much for your 16 dollars.

Georgia Aquarium

Right opposite of the Coca Cola Museum is the Georgia Aquarium. More than 500 species can be seen here, big, small, mammals, reptiles and fish. The Aquarium has several rooms but only two are really outstanding: Ocean Voyager and Pacific Cold Water Quest.

Whale Sharks, Sea Turtles and Manta Rays: Ocean Voyager

Ocean Voyager is a huge aquarium full of fish, mammals in particular whale sharks and sea turtles. If you follow the regular route (easy, just follow the crowds) you walk through a glass tunnel and see animals right next to you and on top of you. Just wait a little bit and you will most likely see a turtle or a whale shark swimming by. Following the exhibit, you walk by several smaller and bigger windows. In the end, you reach a kind of exhibit room with huge panoramic windows. This is where s little performance is done. If you think about Sea World and their circus shows, you are wrong. That’s not what they do, it’s much more relaxed.

An employee clears the space in front of the window. That takes a while but when everyone is finally in the back, you see a clear window for the first time and can finally take a pic with no one on it. At this point you already see an incredible amount of different water animals. They give all kinds of information about these animals. In a second step, three divers dive into the aquarium. One diver has a mike and is audible in the room. He answers questions from the audience. The divers’ bubbles attract many animals, now you can see easily how many animals live in that water tank. Moreover, I only realized the sheer size of some fish in comparison to these divers. The animals don’t seem stressed of freaked out, there are no shows and performances.

Georgia Pacific Cold Water Quest: Penguins and Beluga Whales

I second thing I remember are the penguins. You can stand in front of their compound and see them through a glass window only a few yards away. But there is also a little additional trick: you can crawl in a small tunnel (kind of under the compound) and look through a cylinder. The cylinder is really only big enough for one head and has very thick plastic glass. You don’t disturb or upset the penguins but it still feels like a penguin is standing right next to your head.

The penguin compound is part of the Georgia Pacific Cold Water Quest which also has otters, beluga whales and more polar residents.

More Water Tanks

There is a second aquarium with many colorful fresh-water fish from tropical regions (including clown fish, seahorse, etc.). There is also a dolphin tank and just recently sea lions. Dolphins show little tricks but no circus show like sea world.

Controversies and Issues

When you are in general against keeping animals in captivity, you will say it’s not possible to keep these big water animals adequately and appropriate to their needs. Georgia Aquarium has had some problems with beluga whales dying. You can take this as a proof their life in captivity is not good.

We were there anyways and supported the Aquarium. I’m not feeling guilty because of that. They do at lot for their animals; the polar region for example is entirely closed to maintain a cold surrounding. These animals don’t sweat in Atlanta’s heat. The dolphins barely perform at all they just jump out of the water two or three times. Their trainers stay out of the water. The glass is very thick, knocking would not reach the animals (the windows are double windows with empty room in between them). The cylinder in the penguin area does not bother the animals; everyone still has enough distance to the animals. There is no circus, no tricks and no music. They talk a lot about environmental protection and conserving species.

The big panorama window shows how peaceful and resting in itself this underwater world is. The divers don’t disturb the animals, nature has divers as well and moreover water traffic. This world would remain invisible to most average people. Only divers can experience this world, but these aquariums reach more people and also children. If people cannot see this word, they cannot develop a conscience to protect it. We need aquariums for that. They can only try to keep these animals as good as possible; there is no perfect way to do it.

I know, many people have very different arguments and very different opinions and strongly oppose any way to keep animals in captivity. You need to decide yourself if Georgia Aquarium is the right thing for you. I was there and I’m glad I was.

Some Advice

We were there in winter, in low season, on a Monday morning. Even then, it was already crowded: many people, screaming children, and hullabaloo. If you cannot see anything in the windows, because there are so many people in front of you, it’s probably not that nice any more. If possible, go there early in the morning or in the evening, definitely not when everyone else is there. Another thing is: they charge 50 dollars per person. That’s really expensive, too expensive.

CNN Studio Tour

The CNN headquarters is only a few meters from Coca Cola and the Georgia Aquarium. You can do a tour to the world of news. The fee is 16 dollars and the tour goes one time through the building.

The CNN skyscraper is open to public right at the entrance you can book the CNN Studio Tour. Lonely Planet does not like this tour, they say don’t expect much. But I liked it! You take the longest free-standing escalator in the world (and it’s a really steep climb!). You see a replica of a TV studio. Here they show how news is made, how a teleprompter works and how the footage is made. They shortly play the director’s audio comments from the current show. The next thing you see is a weather map and you see how the weather forecast is made. You walk by a TV studio where a live show is about to start. I waited a bit and really saw the host who was doing a live broadcast. All the cameras and dollies usually remain invisible. The last thing is a gallery where you walk and see the newsroom which is the editors’ open plan office. All the editors sit at their tables, many of them have signs that say “CNN Tour tweet me”.

There are some special tours and VIP tours as well. But I cannot say anything about these. The tour was interesting and we could walk a bit in the CNN building. (Even though there is a security guy in every corner and at every door to make sure you don’t take the wrong way.).

Back in the lobby, you find the compulsory gift shop full of CNN stuff and a Food Court which is open to public. These food courts mean there are many different restaurants with takeaway food and beverages. When you travel in a group, these places are good to make sure everyone finds the right thing. Tables and Chairs in the middle of the room. CNN also has public toilets. These might come in handy after the Coca Cola tasting

Merriott Hotel and Westin Tower

Two things in Atlanta that are for free are the Marriott Hotel and the Westin Tower. The Marriott Hotel has a very impressive lobby, more like an atrium with very unusual architecture. Many scenes from “The Hunger Games” were shot here (when the protagonists are in the capital). If you are free from giddiness and don’t mind heights, you can take the elevator up. I don’t like heights but I did it anyways, quite exhausting I have to say. I have never felt that dizzy looking down. It has to be the very asymmetrical structure of the building.

The Westin Tower is remarkably higher. The Westin Hotel has a tower; its elevator is free of charge. There is a bar on top and you can drink something and enjoy the view. The dizzymaking Marriot Hotel does not even have half the size and looks really tiny from Westin Tower. I would always recommend Westin Tower; its 360 degrees view is absolutely stunning.

Right next to Westin Tower is the Peachtree Center, the bridges that connect the upstairs floors are easily visible. Underground Atlanta, a shopping center below ground, is here as well. Underground Atlanta has clubs, bars, shops and restaurants. We only walked there shortly. You can visit it, but you don’t need to.

Olympic Park

The Olympic Park in Atlanta’s Downtown is quite nice. In November, they already had their Christmas decorations everywhere. In the South, this seems to be very important at Christmas.

I also recommend a little walking tour in downtown to see all the skyscrapers.

How to Combine Things

The Coca Cola Museum, CNN and the Georgia Aquarium are very close. Right next to the Coca Cola Museum is a Center for Civil and Human Rights. We did not have enough time to do that, also we missed all the Martin Luther King Sights (but we did a very nice Museum about Freeing Slaves in Memphis, take a look here). You can walk to any of these places.
Downtown is not far. Westin Hotel, Marriott Hotel and Underground Atlanta are all in walking distance. We did all of this in 2 days; we spent the third day watching football (see Football in Atlanta).

If I ever come back to Atlanta, I would do the Center for Civil and Human Rights, King Center and the Martin Luther King birthplace. Both are a little outside, though.

Trivia

Many streets and center in Atlanta are called Peachtree. Georgia, the state, is called Peachtree State. You need to pay attention to not get confused with addresses and places.

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