Midnight in Georgia

            The white and yellow cab pulled up to the curb. Cabs scare me, but this driver, Allingo, was friendly. “Georgia Tech” I politely requested, trusting he knew how to get there because I certainly did not. I asked him how long it the ride would take, “Just under twenty minutes,” he replied. The night was still young and it was a perfect evening to walk around and explore the Georgia Institute of Technology. The twenty-minute drive went by in a flash. Allingo was not only a cab driver but also a tour guide equipped with the best points of interest and stories of all kinds.

Cab View

As he regaled us with stories of his family as well as the drunken passengers he has had over his years as a cab driver he was sure to point out all of the most important places in Atlanta. “On your right, we have the most important place along this route: The Krispy Kreme.”

The thought of the 24-hour donut store made my mouth

water. We soon got into college territory and

young people flooded the sidewalks. Some equipped to go

study in the library, others dressed up and

headed for frat row.

            I stepped out of the cab into this unfamiliar territory, one that had a curb and sidewalk much less manicured than the one at my Emory University dorm. The parking lot was empty, giving me chills. Another girl stood there waiting for someone, equally as lost as I was but we did not say a word. I started to walk towards the football stadium, hoping I could find Nic, my friend from high school who was destined to be my tour guide for the night. (virtual tour) 

Georgia Tech 

Emory University

            The campus wasn’t pretty, nor was it very clean; the buildings were old and ugly. There were holes in the sidewalk and trash littered the streets showing that the administration did not pay much attention to appearances. Georgia Tech was like a house in the projects compared to a mansion.

            Nic was waiting on the sidewalk next to the football stadium. I ran to him with open arms; seeing a familiar face from home for the first time made my eyes light up and left an indelible smile on my face for the rest of the night. We walked around for a while, he gave me a tour of the entire campus from top to bottom. There were not many girls on this campus; mostly boys wearing athletic shorts and a t-shirts roamed the streets. The buildings all looked the same, making me question how one could tell the difference between them all. Nic was excited to show me how he had organized his room and though I was excited to see it, I had no idea what to expect. I was brought through a creaky door to be led straight up a staircase that could hardly fit two people and down a hall with the most eerie lighting I had ever seen. scary sound effect

            After a quick tour of the campus, we were starving. Our final destination of the night was the Waffle House. This was the only place within a significant distance that was populated; the restaurant was packed with college students looking for a tasty midnight snack. People sat outside eating waffles because there was not enough room in the actual building to eat comfortably. The girls and boys laughed, talked, giggled and screamed. It was loud, almost too loud for midnight (crowd laughing). The smell of syrup and eggs was overwhelming; reminding me how hungry I was.  People pushed and shoved just to get to the counter to order. I let Nic be in charge of ordering as the pace was too fast and I was too small to get recognized at the counter. I took a seat at a window table and stared outside as I was waiting for our food. The night was slowly progressing and not much was going on. The only people in sight were at this restaurant, shouldn’t colleges be packed with energetic people on Friday nights? We left Waffle House and continued on our journey through the dark campus. One dirty brick after another, I was reminded how fortunate I am to go to Emory, a beautiful and spectacular place.