The Home of the Braves

As we Atlantans get ready to say goodbye to Bobby Cox, it is hard to imagine the Braves without him. Cox’s leadership lead us to an unparalleled 14 consecutive division titles, advancing to the world series five times and winning in 1995! The Braves have seen many successful years in their long history but nothing compared to what we have experienced with Cox and Atlantans everywhere are hoping that “America’s Team” goes all the way for Cox’s last season.

The Braves actually started as the Boston Red Stocking in 1870 and are the longest continuously running team in Major League Baseball. Changing their names to “The Beaneater” in 1883, the team was trying to avoid being confused with the Cincinnati Reds, and tie their kinship to Boston. Obviously the name didn’t stick but finally in 1912 “The Braves” did. The Boston Braves had roller coaster seasons but none stood out more than what is known as the Miracle Season. The Braves were looking bleak by July 4, 1914 with a record of 26-40 by the end of a losing double header. Suddenly though July 6 something clicked and their luck began to change and a hot streak begun! By August 12 they had moved up to second place from last place on July 18. The miracles didn’t stop there. Even though they were considered the underdog at the world series they went in with their heads held high and swept the Philadelphia A’s at Fenway Park! The winning season was followed by inconsistency and Babe Ruth was acquired in hopes of a turnaround. While the plans didn’t quite pan out Babe Ruth did hit his record breaking home runs as a Brave and retired as one as well.

In 1953 The Braves moved to Milwaukee where they never had a losing record! How could they with power houses like Hank Aaron and Eddie Mathews, taking them all the way winning the World Series again in 1957. Mathews playing in all three cities The Braves were based in, and Aaron actually ended up beating Ruth’s home run record in Atlanta Stadium. After a long successful run in Milwaukee the Braves were looking for a broader television market leading them to our beautiful city in 1966!

That is exactly what they got in 1976 when Ted Turner bought The Braves! He is accredited with making them “America’s Team” by airing all the games up to the 2008 season on TBS. Bobby Cox’s first run with The Braves was managing the 1978 season but he was fired in 1981. While they had a winning season in 1982 there was a decline until Cox returned in 1986 as general manager and then 1991 as dug out manager, bringing us to today.

As you head over to Turner Field to enjoy the days ahead take in a piece of history. While the stadium may have changed and great players have come and gone, what always remains is the pride we Atlantans have in our Braves. With one World Series tucked neatly under our belts in Atlanta we at the Inn at the Peachtrees are looking forward to 2010 starting the next line of consecutive winning seasons!

Bouncing back!

It’s no secret the country is in a recession. In the cyclical economy we live in, it was inevitable. The positive of this is that the bounce back is inevitable as well. In the past what helped was a rise in consumer spending. The theory behind the trickledown effect was just that. Give big businesses money to spend and then slowly they will create jobs and pass the money along to the consumer and boost the economy. However in Atlanta there are still 5 applicants for every available job. The situation in Atlanta is much more positive than in other cities.

For the fifth month in a row the country did see a rise in consumer spending. The margin was minimal and was focused more on clothing and food and not larger items. The climb was slowed last month because of the unusual weather and snow storms in the north east but it is a great sign none the less! Still forecasters, the economic ones not the weather ones, are saying that the key to our bounce back is job creation and travel! Of course here at the Inn at the Peachtrees that is EXACTLY what we believe as well. So we are doing our part.

We would like to welcome the new face at our Front Desk, Crystal. As we get ready to embark in our renovation there are many more changes to come. We look forward to adding a full restaurant as well as renovating our banquet hall to accommodate larger gatherings and of course our rooms will be getting a facelift and we fully expect to double our staff by the end of summer. So come by and visit, that a spring break, and check out our progress when you are in next in Atlanta!

A Little Bit of Romance

Wednesday like every good Atlantans with a flexible work schedule I was out celebrating St Patrick’s Day in true Irish fashion. It was amazing to see how vibrant this city truly is. Q100 sponsored an event at Fado’s unofficial, official Iris pub of Atlanta. Bands started playing in the misty afternoon and but by 6:00pm the light afternoon crowd had turned into a large eclectic mix we call Atlantans. All three floors of Fado’s were packed and as I leaned over the railing of the third floor patio to watch the Irish dancers I was filled with pride for our city. It was so nice to see so many people of such unique backgrounds come together and celebrate a rich culture.

A bit later at Dunwoody Tavern I ran into a few transplants. After explain to them what I do for a living I was asked what a good idea for a date night in the city would be and I am ashamed to say I couldn’t answer him. Not because we don’t have anything to do in the city of course but because I was so overwhelmed with ideas that I couldn’t decide what to tell him. So for the next few weeks we are going to review date night ideas!

First dates should be memorable, romantic and fun. The Atlanta Botanical Gardens is a perfect start. They have the Towers of Flowers, an Orchid exhibit going on right now in addition to their beautiful permanent blooms. And of course it not just flowers; the garden has sculptures as well. On a beautiful spring day or evening there would be nothing more enchanting than a visit to the garden. While this would be a perfectly great date, I think we should go further for the more established couple. Dinner should follow!! Some amazing restaurants near the gardens include Mu Lan Chinese restaurant, Silk, Steel, Repast, and Baraonda. Each of these restaurants have an inviting yet romantic atmosphere, and depending on what you are in the mood to eat they would all be in keeping with the theme of the evening, romance. Keep in mind that we are not done yet. No passionate date is complete without chocolate!! Our end to the perfect evening is of course the Chocolate Bar! With an amazing assortment of desserts, drinks and of course the smell of chocolate encompassing you as you step in, your night will scream fairy tale. We here at the Inn at the Peachtrees wish you good luck in your romancing!

Luck of the Irish Passing Through

Well, rain was predicted all day this past Saturday, and with the luck of the Irish on the side of Atlanta it held off! We are all glad it did because what would Atlanta be without the annual St Patrick’s Day Parade? Atlanta’s strong Irish community and The Hibernian Benevolent Society puts on a marvelous show. As it is one of the oldest St Patrick’s Day Parades in the country we expect no less. This year was no different. The 127th annual parade started at the corner of Peachtree St and Ralph McGill, and the 1.1 mile long parade headed south through Underground Atlanta stopping at MLK Blvd.

The Hibernian Benevolent Society was started in 1858 by Father Thomas O’Reilly along with a few business men to help their fellow countrymen find work in the city. During the mid 19th century there was a surge of Irish moving to Atlanta to escape the slums and discrimination of New York and Boston. Atlanta was a frontier at the time, expanding the railways. With the help of The Hibernian Benevolent, Irish men found work and settled easily. Atlanta has a strong proud Irish heritage. One can easily see, with a tour of Oakland Cemetery, just how deep the Irish roots run in Atlanta.

St Patrick’s Day celebrations have been a part of this country for years and started as political protest against discrimination of the Irish. In Ireland the celebrations didn’t become national until 1996; however since then growing to over 1 million attendees last year with in the now 5 daylong celebration. St Patrick’s Day has been celebrated since the early 1600’s in Ireland as the one break between lent. Hence the reason for the drinking associated with it. St Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland was actually born in Brittan. He was then kidnapped by an Irish man and forced into slavery. It’s been said that god told him to escape, and return to Brittan to be ordained and then return to Ireland to do god’s work. He spent over 30 years in Ireland helping to free the Irish. The clover is what he used to explain the Holy Trinity and why it is imbedded into St Patrick’s Day celebrations. Since Irish soldiers on March 17th 1798 started wearing all green to represent the clover, green has been considered lucky on St Patrick’s Day. Before this St Patrick’s Day’s official color was blue.

We here at the Inn at the Peachtrees encourage you, Irish by birth or Irish for one day a year, to enjoy the festivities of St Patrick’s Day this year, as we will be.

Springing Forward!

There are going to be some very lucky little boys and girls this St Patrick’s Day thanks to the Fraternity boys at Georgia Tech. They recently raised over $75,000 for the St Baldrick’s Foundation. At Ri Ra’s Irish Pub there was a huge shaving party held where the brothers voluntarily went under the razor. The Fraternity to raise the most money will be getting a free toga party at the bar, so it was fund raising with a little bit of “Animal House” thrown in. And with their newly cleaned up looks these ambitious men can head down to the CNN center! CNN is auditioning for new talent, most likely looking to fill anchor positions for their morning show which is ranked number two behind FOX. There is talk of a huge change in the lineup at CNN. With some people leaving, their spots are to be filled with the next line of veterans, leaving room for some new blood . There is nothing we like better than to see a success story of this sort. So for all you aspiring anchor men and women out there why not start out on top?

The April showers have come about a month early in Atlanta but we aren’t worried because rationale tells us that if the rains come early, so will the flowers! So flowers we wait for. And this weekend we will be waiting “underground”. Underground Atlanta is throwing their big St Patrick’s Day Parade this Saturday! All of Atlanta will be there staying dry wearing all the green we can round up to be Irish for the day, or the week. Of course here in Atlanta we make an event of everything so St Patrick’s is no exception. Underground will have festivities all day. Visit Kenny’s Ally for great live music including U2 tribute bands. The lower fountain stage will have the best Irish dancers in Atlanta, and of course bring the kids for interactive activities and teach them where this fun filled holiday comes from. Inn at the Peachtrees looks forward to seeing you there!

NASCAR and Glam

It feels so much better to have fun when it’s for a good cause! Last night the place to be to watch the Academy Awards was at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center. While black tie was optional it was a marvelous looking crowd that enjoyed the Oscars in style and helped raise money for a very important organization. And what a night it was for Atlanta. We had many Atlanta natives attending the Academy Awards of course but Tyler Perry stood out from the crowd! Asked to be a presenter, Perry was funny and elegant all at the same time. We are honored to call him one of our own and look forward to a win or two in the future. The C.E.P.A.C hosted about 600 guests for a night of great food, drinks, and dancing, and of course the glitz and glamour of Oscar. It was the 9th annual Atlanta Red Carpet event and they raised money for The Center of Family Resources.

CFR has been helping low-income Atlanta families since 1960 with things such as employment, education, housing services, leadership development programs, mentoring opportunities, temporary financial, and food assistance. It is truly inspiring to see such selfless people still exist in our society and make such a difference. We here at the Inn at the Peachtrees salute you and all the work you do to better our city!

On the other end of the spectrum good old family fun was had at Atlanta Motor Speedway with NASCAR in town. What a perfect weekend for NASCAR. With the temperature reaching the 60’s things were heating up. Most notably with Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards we look forward to seeing how this little feud plays out and look forward to NASCAR and our friend the HardCore RaceFans returning to Atlanta and the Inn at the Peachtrees in September.

Extremes

Extremes.
Only in Atlanta can you go from 27 degree high to 57 degrees in 48 hours. That seems to be a theme that we are extending into the weekend. We seem to be going from one extreme to another. Our highs are reaching the 60’s, spring is definitely in the air, but the winter is lingering with the 26 degree lows. Atlantans are ready to come out of hibernation! So what will you be doing this weekend?
For those of you that are sad to see the cold go this weekend is the final weekend for Snow Mountain. Take the kids sledding and enjoy some hot chocolate and get ready for warms skies to come. Six flags over Georgia are opening this weekend, just as Snow Mountain comes to a close. Perfect for those of you ready to celebrate the sun!
This weekend we are hosting NASCAR at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. Inn at the Peachtrees would like to welcome Hardcore Racefans that have already started making their way to the city. We are in for an exceptional weekend. So whatever you decide to do this weekend make the most of it. Take in some sun. Enjoy it while you can, because Mother Nature is full of surprises!