Last night I took my Grandma for a ride in the car to look at some Christmas Lights. She was so happy to see all the different types. I don’t think that she was as judgmental as I was. Here are some of the best ones we saw around the Chicagoland area.
I have been a fan of The Vampire Diaries since the beginning of the series. Mystic Falls, / Covington Georgia has been on my list to visit for quite some time!
I stopped by the town once before on a road trip and thought it was delightful. I knew I needed to spend more time there so when I decided to move from Key West to Chicago with a route that took me past Atlanta it was a no brainer. Covington, Georgia was where I needed to make my first stop.
After driving all day I checked into my hotel, got a good nights sleep and woke up bright and early ready to explore. Before going to the town square I went to the local Waffle House to grab a quick bite to eat. To my surprise this really is a wonderful small town. Almost everyone who walked in was greeted by name. If I were looking for a quaint small town to visit or spend the rest of my life in this could be it. They have the best of both worlds. Small and friendly and close to Atlanta for any big city needs.
To my surprise as I drove into the town square I started to see a lot of film equipment and signs saying that they were filming in the area today. BONUS! YEA! I asked the first person I saw and they confirmed that they were in fact filming scenes for The Vampire Diaries, Season 7!
I had already signed up to take the Vampire Stalkers tour around town to various filming locations. We met at the local visitors center and got some info and instructions for our tour. I wish they would have told me that’s where we were meeting for the tour. I didn’t know this when I was trying to park my car. Had I known I would not have spent so much time with the early morning parking. I understand they have some limitations when it comes to crowd size but I wish they had a bigger van – bus so that more people could travel together. It would cut down on travel time and also give the people on the tour more face time with the guide. With that said Angie was wonderful and was always asking if we had any other questions. The tour was $55 and lasted a little over 3 hours. If you want more information about the tour please visit their website here. www.mysticfallstours.com
One of the coolest things was that we were able to visit the Lockwood Mansion which is a privately owned property and this tour is the only one that has access. The grounds and house are one of a kind. The owner was there and happy to answer any questions we had about the property. The house was built back in the 1840’s and still has that old world charm.
Along with the old world charm they have a wonderful property. The owners bought the property at 1.5 acres and now have over 5 acres. The small old stable house overlooking the backyard was my favorite place.
The visitors center is a great place to stop even without the tour. Did you know that the Dukes of Hazzard and Sweet Home Alabama were also filmed in Covington and the surrounding Newton County. It was very interesting to see how this city promotes the use of the town and the surrounding areas for filming.
I had the pleasure of going out with Captain Grif a few days ago from Endless Summer Charters. It was so much FUN I can’t wait to do it again. First we went to a fairly shallow spot to try and catch some sharks … Yes! I said SHARKS! Rebecca reeled one in and I was happy to be the official tour photographer. The 3 or 4 of them that were under the boat made me a little nervous.
Grif is a pro at getting the hook out of the sharks mouth. We then headed over to a spot called Boca Grande that had an old shipwreck sticking out of the water. Grif said he thinks it was a ship from WWII.
We changed up our bait a little bit and started fishing for some Jew fish aka Goliath Grouper … sadly all I caught were some tiny little guys that we couldn’t even eat for dinner. I think it was Rebecca’s fishing day since she also caught a Mutton Snapper that was at least 5 pounds. He came back with us for dinner and man was it fresh and yummy. I don’t think I have ever caught a fish, filleted it and then had it cooked within the same afternoon.
I can’t say that I am the most fond of fish. We have a few good stories but I prefer them on my plate already cut up and sometimes cooked. Something about the slime and them being alive. But none the less I love to eat them!
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