A Week in Columbus, Georgia

I had high hopes for some things we might be able to do in the evenings, but unfortunately we only made it to one of the places on my list - The Wild Animal Safari, which was a blast. I had hopes to drive into Atlanta to their new IKEA or be able to even visit downtown Columbus, but it was a no-go with my husband’s schedule. We did manage to eat out a bit and stayed at the Wingate Inn hotel. Read on and find out how it all was.

Quick Tips:

Your hotel will have listings of events and coupons. The Wingate had "free game" coupons for bowling at the Alley across the road (3-minute drive) as well as the menus for all the local places that deliver food/meals.

Best Way To Get Around:

We rented a car through Enterprise right from the airport. We landed in Atlanta and drove the 1.5 hours. You can fly into Columbus, but for us this was the least expensive route, not to mention it looks only as if Delta flies into the Columbus Regional Airport. I haven't seen any public transport anywhere, so it does look as if a car is a must have.

Note: Rumor has it that the airport in Columbus is not very reliable. Apparently if they don’t have a full flight, sometimes they cancel the flight. If you have a connector in Atlanta, you may not make it.

They state that they are "built for business," and I can see this being a nice place if your company puts you up for a week or so. They have some very nice amenities, including free in-room Internet access, and if you don’t have your own computer, there is a business center with Internet access as well as a fax, printer, and copy machine. They offer two complimentary newspapers, a local one and USA Today, every day. They offer an extended breakfast buffet that is consistent every morning and manned by several workers. They are happy to get you anything you need and ask you regularly if for any reason you look confused. There are hot and cold entrées, eggs, bacon, two kinds of sausage, gravy, and biscuits, and then there is every type of bread, muffin, or roll; hot cereal; cold cereal; yogurt; mixed fruit; fresh fruit; three kinds of juices; and tons of coffee and tea variety as well.

The room was pretty okay. There was enough room for the two of us. There was a four-drawer dresser and closet that weren't huge but had plenty of hangers and held all of our stuff. There is a desk (where I worked every day) and a sitting area with a chair and ottoman. The staff was extremely accommodating and the maid service was great. I met several of the ladies since I was working in the room every day (here's my shout-out to Michelle, Lisa, Stephanie, and the rest of the crew – you guys rock!!!). The only thing that was a little bother was that the floors are too thin. We could hear and feel the people above us nonstop, as if there were elephants above our heads. Then there was the fact that the windows don't open for fresh air.

The location is prime for the Wingate, as it sits amongst a series of small strip malls. The Target was walking distance, as are many restaurants and shops. There is a Publix supermarket, SteinMart, PetSmart, and smaller places, like Payless, Hallmark, GNC, etc. I went to the little nail salon for a quick polish change and they took me with no trouble. If you need a cell phone, a bank, or tanning, it’s all there. A movie theatre is only around the corner, and if you want to drive, there is a Walgreen’s, Applebee’s, and other places within a mile or two. It’s really a pretty good deal for $82 a day.

In all my years of knowing the Cracker Barrel existed, I had never actually step foot in one of them until now. I can't quite explain why or why not; it just never came up. Now, being placed in hotel just a few blocks away, it gave my husband and I a chance to take a look, walked around, and get a taste.

First we spent some time outside sitting on all of the rocking chairs. We tried them out, rocked a little bit, and discussed what we did or didn't like about the several versions. They have no trouble with their patrons rocking away the time waiting for a loved one who is shopping or paying the bill, or if there is a wait list to be seated in the restaurant. All the chairs were priced at $129. I’m not sure how good of a price that is without doing further "chair" research, but it struck me as a few dollars higher than I would want to spend.

Next we took a look around the store. They have a huge variety of goods, food snacks, toys/games, clothes, household items, gifts etc. They have themed items like classic cars and Coca Cola, John Deer, local university, and country apple things or the like. And there is a fairly decent collection of Christmas trimmings for your home and tree. Their prices seemed quite reasonable for most things. (I bought a travel pillow for $11.99; the same one was $14.99 across the street at Target.) It's fun to look around the store and take a walk in the past.

After the shopping, we decided to stay for dinner. I tried the chicken and dumplings and my husband chose the chicken tender diner. We took both the cornbread and biscuits, and I have to say that the biscuits are much better than the cornbread. I personally like sweet cornbread and found theirs to be very dry and plain in taste. The dumplings were okay, but there was much more dumpling than there was chicken, which disappointed me. The sides of carrots and apples were quite good, however. My husband enjoyed his tenders and like the baked beans, corn, and coleslaw he had. There was plenty of food and the bill was quite reasonable. I think our total was $18. For those who are watching their waists, they offer several healthy options on their menu as well. If you normally prefer a fancier environment, this may not be the place for you. This is definitely a relaxed, down-home atmosphere.

If you don't like animals and going to the zoo, this is not the place for you. If you love the zoo, you will love this park. I personally think that it's the coolest thing - I pet a giraffe, a real live huge moving mammal of a giraffe. It was stunning. This is not a cheap date either. First off, I would recommend renting one of their vans for $11 if they do not have a bus tour the day you go. Bus tours are free, but if not available, rent their zebra van. Oxen tend to bump and their horns are a little rough on the paint job of your vehicle. Second, make sure that you buy at least a large $2 bag of food for the animals. We practically ran out, and you feel bad not feeding them all. There were only two of us, but that bag ran out quick. Third, have a blast.

We started out slow, looking around, and met all sorts of deer, goats, and Bambi-type animals. There were two ostriches that followed us for a while. We saw boars and ducks of all sorts. They have lions and tigers caged, so you cannot feed them, but they are close enough. We saw one rhino sleeping, also caged, and apparently the camels were in for the day. We threw them some food, though. What became more amazing than anything were the oxen, giraffe and zebras that come right up to the van and have no problem sticking their heads right into the window. The first time that I turned around to find myself face-to-face with a giraffe was stunning. They warn you that they are animals, of course, and tell you that caution and care should be used, but we experienced docile creatures. I was able to pet the snout of the giraffe, oxen, horses, deer, etc. It was an awesome feeling.

Our tour lasted about an hour. Keep in mind that when planning your trip, they are open rain or shine. If you don’t like the day’s weather, don’t go that day, as there are no refunds. They sell the last ticket 1 hour before closing, and if you don’t make it all the way through, you can get your ticket stamped to come back the next day. Either take paper towels with you or buy a, "I got slobbered on," towel at the desk for $2.95. These animals love to be fed; slobber happens. See www.animalsafari.com.