This Weekend in Georgia

There's no more beautiful time in Georgia than glorious fall, and here are some things going on over this Columbus Day Weekend in Georgia:

Tybee Island Pirate Fest
October 8 - 10, 2009
Tybee Island, Georgia
Ahoy, mates, swashbucklers of all ages will be converging on Tybee Island to participate in the 5th Annual Tybee Island Pirate Fest on October 9th and 10th! Don your most colorful pirate costume, and gather your crew of marauding buccaneers. Featuring a Pirate Victory Parade, fireworks, live entertainment with 10 bands including the Marshall Tucker Band! There will also be costume contests, loads of children’s activities and the Thieves Market filled with treasures, grog, and grub! Admission to the oceanfront festival grounds is $10 per person for a weekend pass, children 12 and under are free. For more information, call the Tybee Island Visitor Center at 800-868-2322 or visit http://www.tybeepiratefest.com. Arrrrrrr!!!

Georgia Mountain Fall Festival
October 9 - 17, 2009
Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds, Hiawassee, Georgia

The Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds in Hiawassee is hosting an annual, unique attraction, the Georgia Mountain Fall Festival from October 9-17. The event features 9 days of exciting musical performances, educational demonstrations, a flower show, Georgia's Official State Fiddler's Convention, and new for 2009 The Great Bear Show. Experience the oldest and longest running animal educational show in the country. Here's their website for more information!

Brunswick Rockin' Stewbilee
October 9 - 10, 2009 Mary Ross Waterfront Park, Brunswick, Georgia
Come enjoy an authentic taste of the Georgia coast with the 5th Annual Brunswick Rockin' Stewbilee! This full day event promises to be fun for the entire family. The festivities will begin early Saturday morning with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Southeast Georgia 5K Freedom Run and continue with the popular Pooch Parade, Brunswick stew tastings, the Classic Car Show, and full day of free concerts. It's all happening at Mary Ross Waterfront Park and the streets of downtown Brunswick. For more information on the Stewbilee, visit the website. Georgia Traveler's Gerald Bryant and Phil Proctor visited the Stewbilee and tasted some amazing stew in our first season. Check it out here!

And those are just a few of the ways you can get out there and enjoy Georgia! For more ideas, visit the Explore Georgia website operated by our production partners at the Georgia Department of Economic Development.

This Week: Old Dixie Highway and Coasting Along the Atlantic

On this week’s episode of Georgia Traveler, we explore U.S. 41 from Macon to Cordele. The nation’s first planned highway, U.S. 41 is often referred to as the “Old Dixie Highway”. The team gets great travel advice at the Visitors Information Center in Macon and David sets off for fried green tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café in Juliette. Phil celebrates the state fruit at the Peach Festival in Fort Valley while Keely shoots skeet on her getaway to Henderson Village in Perry. Everyone joins in the outdoor activity of golfing at Lake Blackshear in Cordele and David dives into the local legend of the Grit in Warwick.

Georgia Traveler 209 - Old Dixie Highway airs Friday, August 28, 2009 at 9 PM, Saturday, August 29, 2009 at 7 PM and Wednesday, September 2, 2009 at 7:30 PM on GPB.

Also this week:

We're "Coasting Along the Atlantic", exploring U.S. 17 from Savannah to Darien. The team gets great travel advice at the Visitors' Information Center just outside Savannah and sets off. Phil finds fantastic food at the famous Lady and Sons while David discovers local legends and haunting fun on Savannah’s Ghosts and Gravestones tour. Keely tries a new outdoor activity on Tybee Island with the help of the High Tide Surf Shop and later joins Phil on a getaway to the community of Hog Hammock on Sapelo Island. Our last stop: family fun at the Blessing of the Fleet Festival in Darien.

Georgia Traveler 201 - Coasting Along the Atlantic airs Wednesday, September 2, 2009 at 7:00 PM on GPB.

For more information, check out our website at:
http://www.gpb.org/georgiatraveler/

Georgia Traveler is produced in partnership with the Georgia Department of Economic Development. Check out the new Georgia Tourism website at http://www.exploregeorgia.org/

Georgia Public Broadcasting is Television, Radio and Education: your PBS station serving all of Georgia; your source for great music and NPR news; and Georgia's source for top-quality multiple media educational products and services.

Watch Georgia Public Broadcasting on these nine stations across Georgia: Atlanta - WGTV/8; Albany - WABW/14, Augusta - WCES/20, Chatsworth - WNGH/18, Columbus - WJSP/28, Dawson - WACS/25, Macon - WMUM/29, Savannah - WVAN/9, Waycross - WXGA/8.

This Week: Coasting Along the Atlantic

On this week's episode of Georgia Traveler, we're "Coasting Along the Atlantic", exploring U.S. 17 from Savannah to Darien. The team gets great travel advice at the Visitors' Information Center just outside Savannah and sets off. Phil finds fantastic food at the famous Lady and Sons while David discovers local legends and haunting fun on Savannah’s Ghosts and Gravestones tour. Keely tries a new outdoor activity on Tybee Island with the help of the High Tide Surf Shop and later joins Phil on a getaway to the community of Hog Hammock on Sapelo Island. Our last stop: family fun at the Blessing of the Fleet Festival in Darien.

Georgia Traveler 201: Coasting Along the Atlantic airs this Friday, July 3 at 9 PM, Saturday, July 4 at 7 PM, and Wednesday, July 8 at 7:30 PM on GPB.

For more information, check out our website at: http://www.gpb.org/georgiatraveler/

Georgia Traveler is produced in partnership with the Georgia Department of Economic Development and the Georgia Tourism Foundation.

Georgia Public Broadcasting is Television, Radio and Education: your PBS station serving all of Georgia; your source for great music and NPR news; and Georgia's source for top-quality multiple media educational products and services.

Watch Georgia Public Broadcasting on these nine stations across Georgia: Atlanta - WGTV-DT/8; Albany - WABW-DT/14, Augusta - WCES-DT/20, Chatsworth - WNGH-DT/18, Columbus - WJSP-DT/28, Dawson - WACS-DT/25, Macon - WMUM-DT/29, Savannah - WVAN-DT/9, Waycross - WXGA-DT/8.

This Weekend in Georgia

It's the third weekend of May and there are many things to do and see in the Empire State of the South!


Now, this first one isn't really a tourism event, but, we wanted to be sure that you knew about the Macon- Middle Georgia Job Fair and Career Expo. For more information, check out this website. On Sunday, May 17 from 1-5 p.m. at the Macon Centreplex located at 200 Coliseum Dr. over 100 employers and exhibitors will partner with the Georgia Department of Labor to assist job seekers. If you can't physically go to Macon to visit the Expo event, we invite you to watch a live television broadcast on GPB Television and simulcast on partnership stations WMAZ/Channel 13 in Macon and WALB/ Channel 10 in Albany. That's Job Fair 2009 this Sunday, May 17 from 2-4 PM. You can also watch online and chat live with Job Specialists from the Department of Labor on the GPB website at www.gpb.org/jobfair.


On Friday, May 15 the annual Tybee Island Beach Bum Parade might surprise the unsuspecting visitor. Like most parades, there are floats pulled behind cars and trucks. Unlike most parades, however, the floats, often trailers or boats, are filled with water-throwing paraphernalia. Spectators, lined up along the parade route on Butler Avenue, are armed with buckets, squirt guns and hoses. What results is an all-out water war for fun loving beach bums of all ages. For more information, check out their website.



Saturday, May 16 is the day for the Traditional Singing Convention in Blairsville. The event, which will be held at 2 PM at the Historic Court House will feature Shape Note Singing. Organizers tell us that the key is audience participation. Different singing masters, or leaders, will choose a song from one of the shaped-note songbooks and lead the congregation in the singing. The music is like any music except each note has a particular shape, and the music is performed by reading and singing the notes. Those in attendance who cannot read the shaped notes simply listen and enjoy the music. To learn more about the Convention, check out their website. To learn more about Shape Note Singing and see our own Phil Proctor in action at the Chattahoochee Sacred Harp Convention, click here to watch the Georgia Traveler segment!


And those are just a few of the great ways to explore Georgia this weekend. For more information, check out the Explore Georgia website operated by Georgia Traveler's production partners at the Georgia Department of Economic Development.

This Weekend in Georgia

Like all weekends in Georgia, there are some great opportunities out there in our State. Check out these events:

Robert Burns Scottish Weekend, Friday-Sunday, February 20-22, 2009

Old Clayton Inn in Clayton, GA

Organizers tell us that this traditional program starts Friday with a Scottish Ceilidh Musical program beginning at 7pm and ending about 10pm or later with singing, performing musical instruments, reciting poetry, and food and drinks will be available for guests. On Saturday after a big breakfast together, field trips will be taken to the Scottish Tartans Museum in Franklin, NC, as well as other places like Highlands, Tallulah Falls, the John Campbell Folk School, and other places of interest. Upon returning to the Inn, guests will have a tasting of single malt Scotch whisky at 4pm followed by a traditional Burns Supper, Haggis Ceremony, and traditional toasts for all guests. On Sunday after breakfast, many guests will attend church services at Wiley Presbyterian and other churchs followed by the buffet lunch at the Old Clayton Inn and additional field trips in the area. Guests may stay over Sunday evening if they want at no additional charge. For more information, check out the Old Clayton Inn Website.

Mardi Gras on Tybee Island, Saturday-Sunday, February 21-22, 2009

Tybee Island, GA

Our friends down at "Savannah's Beach" are celebrating their first ever Mardi Gras Tybee! Festivities scheduled to take place on South Beach include a parade, costume contest, live entertainment, ball and more! For more info visit http://www.tybeefest.com/

Tutankhamun: The Golden King & the Great Pharaohs

Ongoing exhibit at the Atlanta Civic Center

The Michael C. Carlos Museum of Emory University presents Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs at the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center. Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs features over 130 extraordinary objects including many from the reign of Tutankhamun, as well as treasures from the the most significant pharaohs who ruled the Nile throughout 2,000 years of history. This exhibition places Tutankhamun in the context of ancient Egyptian culture and focuses on the splendor of the Egyptian pharaohs, the significance of kingship to the ancient Egyptian people, and the intricate and symbolic ceremonies related to life and death in the palace. Viewers will get a sense of how life and art evolved over many generations in ancient Egypt. For more information, check out the website.

And those are just a few of this weekend's highlights. For more information, check out the new http://www.exploregeorgia.org/ website!

This Weekend in Georgia

This weekend after you've cleared away the wrapping paper and consigned the turkey and dressing to the left-over bin of the refrigerator, plan a holiday trip to the Davenport House in Savannah, and their Holiday Evening Tours by Candlelight. The event features watching the house lit for the evening, short bread and cider in the garden, music of the early 19th Century, and lessons on the history of Christmas in the 19th Century Davenport House. Available dates are Friday, December 26 to Tuesday, December 30. Tours begin from 6 to 8:30 PM. For reservations or more information, call 912-236-8097, or visit davenporthousemuseum.org.



For those of you on extended weekends for the holidays, there's no better way to celebrate the New Year than the annual Peach Drop at Underground Atlanta. Festivities begin at 11 AM on New Year's Eve, December 31, and include a moonwalk, basketball throw, and face painting. Live music will be featured as the year draws to a close, and at the stroke of midnight, watch the giant peach descend from the heights! Click here for a map to Underground Atlanta.



If you're looking for a different way to ring in the New Year, check out the New Year's Eve Fireworks from Tybee Pier, Tybee Island. Visitors are encouraged to watch the show from one of the many nearby restuarants or the beach. Don't miss one of the most exciting events of the year! For details call 912-786-5444 or 800-868-2322.

And those are just a few of this weekend's highlights. For more information, check out the new http://www.exploregeorgia.org/ website!

The folks at Georgia Traveler hope you've had a wonderful holiday season. We'd like to remind you that when traveling over the holidays, please remember to drive safely. We want everyone around for the next holiday season!