Factory Tour, Atlanta Style--4/16

This is our day to explore a tiny corner of Atlanta. We take Dale’s car, drive to Marta (the el of Atlanta), and get off at CNN. We ask directions of a Frenchman and walk across Olympic Park (checking out the playgrounds, one of which is quite remarkable—totally ‘paved’ with corkboard and featuring many innovative play devices) to the Aquarium. The Aquarium and Coke World sit across the street from Olympic Park in a large park, where the civil rights building is scheduled to be built. We get in the Aquarium at a double low price, once reduced for seniors, reduced again for being their between 10 and 11. The Aquarium is set up so that each of the exhibits ends up in the center. We decide to go counter clockwise so the first one is the tropical seas. We are barely inside when we ‘hit’ the jellies. Norb offers to come back for me tomorrow, but I finally manage to tear myself away. What a wonderful museum. The exhibits are exceptionally well done, the creatures beautifully ‘displayed’. In the largest pool of ocean creatures there are two whale sharks—huge, krill-eating sharks—that are the main attraction. But there are also so many other interesting creatures. You can walk under a portion of the exhibit and on one side is a 2-foot thick Plexiglas wall and you can sit on the steps and watch the animals as long as you wish. In addition, there are 3 beluga whales in one tank—alone, because they eat anything else that joins them. There are penguins and alligators and catfish from all parts of the world. We eat lunch (no fish on the menu) and stay until about 2 PM.

We go next door to Coke and enjoy the hours long commercial. The part I find most interesting the story of the development of the brand, from invention to its initial distribution to its worldwide network. The inventory of coke sold the formula to Asa Candler for $2,300. Asa Candler sold the right to bottle coke to two lawyers for $1. But made millions on selling the syrup to bottlers. The thing I find most disappointing is the tasting room. I had thought it was going to be different Coke formulations around the world, but it is really different Coke products from around the world. Perhaps Coke doesn’t put out different formulations in different countries.

It is almost 4 when we hit the CNN building and pay for yet another tour. We learn how the green screen works and how it has been replaced by the rear view projection monitor. I volunteer (with Norb’s prodding) to be the newscaster and get to use the teleprompter. The newscaster does actually hold the script, just in case the teleprompter goes out, but he/she is reading from the teleprompter. It has a very narrow screen so that the reader’s eyes don’t move side to side. The news can be put on air in as little as 5 minutes from the time it comes in. CNN International and CNN Espanol are totally separate, preparing all of their own news. The building was built as an indoor amusement park and they claim that the 7-story escalator is the longest, continuous escalator in the world.

We get Marta back to the car and, thank goodness, it is crowded. On the way in it was lightly populated so it is good to see so many people using it. We are up late again talking but finally I decide that I have to go to bed at 11:30.