From the Bay to the A

Well we are back in Bay after spending a week in the A.  I think this is one of the more relaxing trips to the A I have had in probably 2-3 years.  Most of the trips over the past few years have been with an agenda of some sort (weddings, wedding planning, etc.).  The agenda for this trip was simple: kick with fam and friends.  I can't believe how much the A has changed in the 5 years I have been gone.  I almost feel like the charm and the soul of the city that I loved so much is being sucked out slowly.  Don't get me wrong I still love the city, but it's different. 

It makes me sad to drive through neighborhoods that exuded a local feel and now have an enormous shopping mall with Target and Ross in them.  For example, I used to love going to Little Five Points when I lived in the A because it reminded me of the Haight in San Francisco.  It was a small area of 2 dozen stores and restaurants all of which were strange and quirky in their own way.  Now if you drive about 5 min past that little 'hood you find a shopping center that is filled with at least 3 haircut salons (3!), Ross, Barnes and Noble, and Target.  A friend who works at Barnes and Noble even confessed that she knows they are putting a lot of small bookstores out of business.  I understand that with development comes the need for more retail, but it is scary how soulless these retail plazas are.  I never imagined there would be a day when I could stand in a plaza in Little Five and not feel any different from being in Alpharetta (compare: stand in the Haight but feel like you are in Danville).  This style of building without character transcends just shopping plazas into even homes.  I lost track of the housing/condo developments we drove by where every single unit looked the same from the outside.  I apologize if anyone reading this has a home in one of those subdivisions, but I tend to appreciate it more when there is something to distinguish my home from the next on the outside.  Now the only way to have a unique home is to, god forbid, not buy a brand new home.  I would venture to guess that there is definitely a housing surplus in Atlanta, because I couldn't drive 5 min without seeing a new development.  I wonder how many of these developments will move forward and how many are on ice. 

The looks weren't the only thing different I saw in the A.  Maybe I'm the one who has changed, but at least one of my favorite joints failed me.  Back in the day I used to go to a burrito shop, Willy's, for great burritos.  We stopped in one day for lunch and I was very excited to have their burrito agaiin.  As I remembered the ingredients were extremely fresh, but there was definitely something missing: flavor.  I'm told that their quality has gone down, but I think that my experience was compounded by the fact that we get some awesome burritos in the Bay.  I'm not even going to attempt to put the Bay to the comparison on the soul food, because the A would win hands down. 

One thing that hasn't changed is my favorite burger and brew spot: the Vortex.  Their menu hasn't changed and nothing beats going there for a burger and a pint of Sweetwater 420.  I could drink 420 all day every day I was in the A, but alas that was not the case.  However, there is a Sweetwater drafthouse at the airport, which after some convincing from the HyWy I visited for a quick pint prior to our flight. 

At the end of the day I found that the A has changed.  I have changed.  However, some things still remain the same and it is still a great city.