Tennessee - Georgia - Alabama

We are two weeks in and feel like we know a little bit more about what we are doing. We are getting the hang of van life and living in a small space. We have mostly been staying in Planet Fitness, Walmart, and Lowe’s parking lots. They’ve been working out well! Here is a snapshot of what we have been up to in our free time.

Tennessee

Our first night in Chattanooga, we stopped by Sugar’s Ribs. Not only was there an amazing view of the city, but the food was delicious!

The next night, we took the leftover ribs and put them into some leftover macaroni. That was our first feast in the van. It was delicious! Weird concoctions of food are one of the things we looked forward to when moving into the van.

After staying in the parking lot of Oddstory Brewing Co. and attending the Chatham Rabbits and Steep Canyon Ranger concert, we woke up on Saturday morning for brunch at Syrup and Eggs. It was only a couple blocks over from where we were parked. It was below freezing, but we still made the trek. It was worth it! The food was phenomenal, and the restaurant was so cute!

On our way out of Chattanooga, we stopped by Lookout Mountain, Tennessee. It was just the breath of fresh air we needed after spending so much time in the city. We went on a small hike to the most beautiful view! Afterwards, we drove down to the bottom of the mountain and parked at a park to cook a delicious breakfast! A dream morning!

While driving out of town, we passed an ice cream shop. I (SK) have a very high standard for ice cream. I love it, but it has to be JUSSTTT right for me to stop. We quickly pulled the van over to do some research. From the outside, it looked like Clumpies would check all the boxes, but we had to be sure. After a little google search, and instagram stalking, we decided Clumpies was worth the stop. The ice cream did not disappoint. It wasn’t quite a 10/10, but I would definitely go back! The vibes of the area alone give it a couple extra points. Clumpies was a wonderful ending to a Tennessee adventure.

Georgia

The first stop we made in Georgia was at Buc-ee's! I had never heard of Buc-ee's. T was so excited he couldn't sit still! It was very crowded, and a little overwhelming, but worth the stop!

That evening, we spent time in Woodstock, Georgia. We made some green beans with chicken and Trader Joe’s stuffed gnocchi. So good! Thankfully, T’s mom sent several jars of green beans with us on the road. His mom’s green beans always remind us of our second date. T invited me over for dinner. He had made a feast of green beans, cornbread and chicken thighs. I was swooning. I hate to cook, so I love having a personal chef! I thought he was being really romantic that night by cooking me dinner. Several years later, I realized that he cooked me dinner on our second date because he was in between jobs and didn’t have the money to take me out to eat. It worked out in his favor in the end. Now, he whips me up all kinds of meals.

The next night, we ended up in Kennesaw. We went to a local draft house that was delicious. They also happened to have my very favorite kind of pie and it was pi day!! We felt like we hit the jackpot!

After T finished his business meeting in Kennesaw, we headed to Rev Coffee in Smyrna. The vibes of the coffee shop were perfect! There was art all over the outside of the building. I spent the afternoon finalizing our route for the next few weeks. We have a tentative plan of where we are heading and when. If heading to Smyrna, we could not recommend Rev Coffee enough!

We received a decent amount of rain that evening. While cooking dinner, we discovered a leak on TC’s side of the bed. This leak is one we had seen before during the build, but thought we had fixed it. Every time it rained during the build, we went outside and checked over the entire van. We had not seen this leak in months. There was nothing we could do at the time, so we just put a towel down and made plans to seal the hole the next day.

As I was laying in bed, a drop of water hit my hand. Tears may have entered my eyes at this point. We discovered that the ceiling was leaking in TWO places. There was a huge spot of water on my side of the bed, and my pillow was soaked. The rain had ended for the evening, so thankfully it did not drip on my head all night. We had not seen this particular leak before, so we believe some of the solar panel cords may have come loose while we were driving. It was pretty disheartening. The next day, we stopped in a Home Depot parking lot and climbed up on the roof to add some sealant. At that point, we just had to wait for more rain to see if the sealant worked.

After our stay in Woodstock, we headed to Atlanta! We had dinner at The Varsity. I have very clear memories of eating at The Varsity when I was a child and couldn’t wait to go back as an adult! The food was delicious and so the atmosphere was so fun!

While in the city, we decided to park and take a stroll around the city. We of course had to stop by the Centennial Olympic Park. We got there just in time before they closed. The park was beautiful! We love to walk through cities without plans. We just follow our nose. Take turns based on which crosswalk sign is on walk, walk in the direction when something catches our eyes. It was a fun evening!

The next morning, while I was in Planet Fitness working out, T called me in a panic. The ceiling was leaking really bad. It looked like a waterfall and was covering the bed. Thankfully, only one side was leaking. We did patch up one of the holes. Unfortunately, we have no idea where the other leak is originating from. It is very frustrating. We quickly found the tarp in the back of the van and covered the roof. We decided to make the best of it. We folded up the mattress to protect it and cracked a beer. T said, “First waterfall we’ve seen and we didn’t even have to hike to it!” I personally prefer my waterfalls outside the van, but I guess he does have a point.

It continued to rain all day, but thankfully we had a concert that evening to distract us from the frustration. We headed to Little Five Points to bar hop before heading to Variety Playhouse to hear Yonder Mountain String Brand. Another amazing show! Two weekends in a row of great music! One of the main reasons we moved into a van was to chase the music. We are doing a great job so far!

On our way out of Atlanta the next day, we stopped by The Dwarf House. The Dwarf House is where Chick-Fil-A started. The food was delicious and it was so fun to see the beginnings.

We headed to Columbus, Georgia and received quite the surprise! Columbus is the cutest little town! We loved our time. We started our time by heading to the Lunchbox Museum. SUCH a cool place! Before we entered, we happened to run into the owner. He told us all about the museum and was the sweetest. He reminded us both of our grandfathers. You could tell he was passionate about his work. They recently put in an RC Cola Museum and a radio museum. They also had some old cars and a refurbished AirStream which T and I loved! We were so glad we stopped by.

We headed over to the main area of town for the evening. It was the coolest place! So many shops and restaurants right at the edge of the Chattahoochee River! And there is an amazing Riverwalk. Of course, the first thing we did was head to the water so I could put my toes in. The next day, the water was covering the island, so we got there just in time so we could get in the water. We were also able to watch some folks kayak the rapids which was really cool!

After spending some time at the water, we went to dinner at the Salt Cellar. The food was phenomenal! Wow! This was one of the best steaks I have had in a restaurant. They knocked it out of the park! T had the Shrimp and Grits which was also amazing. The grits were in fried patties. We started dinner with the chef’s choice appetizer which ended up being Oysters, Scallops, and fried lobster tail. This is the best meal we have had so far on the road! We were both very pleased.

The next morning, we walked to Alabama! The Chattahoochee River separates Alabama from Georgia. They have created a riverwalk that allows you to walk over to the other state. It was SO COOL! Phenix City, Alabama didn’t have much to offer, so we only stayed for a few minutes, but we loved being able to walk across and we got in 6 miles before brunch by which was great!

While walking around town, we ended up finding a cute little brunch spot that happened to have availability. We were excited to try it. The food was delicious! They had fancy pigs in a blanket on the menu. Pigs in a Blanket are one of the only things I “cook”, so I had to try them. They were in a raspberry jam that was amazing! We didn’t have the best experience, but I think they were just off their game that day. I would definitely go back and try it again. Our waitress was phenomenal, so that was good!

Columbus was the highlight of the trip so far! We did not expect to love the area so much! It was a mix of the coolest town area with beautiful views of a river. We will definitely be back!

After Georgia, T had a business meeting in Alabama, but it was right on the line. So we dipped back into Georgia for a quick stop at Omaha Brewing Company. It is in a really small town. The beer was delicious and we met Barley, the brewery mascot! I was in love! Barley was definitely another highlight of the trip! He reminds us of our fluffy FinnyGene that is back home. We also met the owners of the brewery who were so kind and welcoming!

After a night in Alabama, we are heading to Florida! Stay tuned for what adventures are coming next!