Atlanta Group Meeting--February 19 at 1:00 p.m.

Aw, dang it! I'm busy that day...;-) Send franchise fee to "Eileen".

Who will pass the fees on to me, to send to Frank. Eileen has proven to be untrustworthy with the franchise fee. I've "heard" that she buys wine with it. Lots of wine.... ;-)

I thought you would share about your Thailand trip! Not Europe, but somewhere I'd sure like to go someday.

Hi Karen!
We just returned yesterday! We'd be happy to share our experiences--travel in Thailand is very different compared to travel in Europe but amazing and fun! We especially liked the cheap accommodation/food costs and the 80-90 degree temps in January! See you on the 19th!

Unless Girl Scout cookies get in the way I should be there!

Sharon, How often do you guys have these meetings? I would love to join sometime but I won't be able to attend this Saturday and we're heading to Berlin and northern Germany March 10th. It's our last trip before our baby arrives this summer and sadly we won't be going back for at least 2 years. Karen in Brookhaven

Hi Karen, We've been meeting once a month on the third Saturday. Hope you can join us soon--we'd love to hear about upcoming trip!

Not to hijack your thread...but I will be returning from Barcelona, arriving at ATL about Mid Afternoon on a Saturday (march 5), with my connecting flight leaving the next day at 7:30 AM... would any of you Atlanta people have a recommendation on a reasonable but close to the airport hotel, but with something relatively close for a meal? Something with a shuttle to/from the airport would be great.

Hi Paul!
A fellow (former) Iowan here! I just Googled "Airport Hotel Guide Atlanta" and found a site that lists the usual options - Marriott, Holiday Inn, Hampton Inn, etc. I'd check out a couple on Trip Advisor to see if they have restaurants nearby, good reviews, etc. Unfortunately, there's not a lot to do or see near the Atlanta Airport. The public transportation system (MARTA) can get you from the airport to downtown if you wanted to find an interesting restaurant option in the evening (though downtown is not the most interesting part of Atlanta.) Staying near the airport for an early morning flight is probably your best bet! Have a great trip!

Are any of the Atlantans in the early planning stages for a particular trip? And would you be interested in borrowing our old books and maps? I keep my old RS books (and others) to use for the initial planning of my next trip. It is helpful to plan a rough itinerary because even if prices or hotels are out of date at least the major sites haven't moved! Once I get a handle on where I'm going I buy a new book to use for the final details. So we have a small library of Michelin maps, guide books, etc. on various European destinations. If you think you'd like to see any let me know which countries and I'll bring them on Saturday.

That's not a bad idea, Karen. Maybe people could post where they're heading if they need to do some initial research. I probably won't be there this Saturday, I'm hoping to catch everyone the next time. We're still in the planning stages for our Germany trip, mostly waiting to hear back on the kids' summer camp schedules.

I was wondering, do these "groups" have official names?

Hi Nigel - no official name for the groups that I know of! Hi Karen - good idea! Do you have a Sicily guidebook? I have many guidebooks too - if anyone would like to borrow, I'm happy to lend!

I KNEW it - Nigel is Tom!!! ;-) I WAS thinking of us getting a mascot for the Sacramento Group...someone named 'Row-Bear', or 'Gianni', or "Rolf", or... Karen - what a great idea!

Opps! Sorry Nigel and Tom! Hope Sacramento has a great meeting - at least we know it will be lots of fun!

Eileen, I told you not to spill the beans about my "special" guest! And I thought I could trust you!! ;-)

I plan to bring a guidebook and map for Sicily for Sharon to borrow. Any other requests?

...good point Tom! On a different note, I want to thank everyone who came to the Atlanta meeting today! It seems that everyone either has a trip planned or in the works. It's a great to share suggestions, itineraries, guidebooks, and maps with a really nice group of people! Hoping to see everyone at our next meeting on March 19!

Don't you want to do a swap Tom? I haven't been to Atlanta for decades, and it will be several months until I get to Germany.... .... or perhaps we are all like he who shall not .....

René and I are joining

Great! See you soon!

Sorry to disappoint. As much as Nigel and I may agree lately, we are, in fact, two separate people, whom to my knowledge, have never met. Just like Kent is not actually a pen name for Mr. Steves. As far as I know, only one person on this forum posted under mulitple names, and we know what happended to him...