Things I liked about Birmingham, Alabama

Recently I took a trip below the Mason-Dixon line to Birmingham, Alabama.


Yes that's right, ALABAMA. ME. I WENT THERE!

Before I left the city people were very confused about why I would...well...leave the city.

'Wait Birmingham? Is that in England? You're going to England for the weekend?'

'No'

'I don't understand...'

'I'm going to Birmingham, ALABAMA for the weekend'

'Ohhhhh'

'Yeah'

'Why?'

'To visit my friend Ashlee from college'

'Why?'

'I hate you'

I will say, having been back a little over a week now, that I was pleasantly surprised by what 'the dirty south' had to offer me. I expected fried food and accents...but I actually got a whole lot more than that.

Things I liked about Birmingham, Alabama

1) Smiles. Hey New Yorkers, do you remember smiling? Remember how you used to do it before you moved here? Yeah, I do too. You know what though? People STILL smile. That's right! RIGHT NOW. SOMEONE IS SMILING! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?! CAN. YOU. BELIEVE. IT. ?!?! In Birmingham lots of people smiled. Some of these smiles were at me. Some of them were at other people. All of them were non-ironic and wonderful.


2) Waffle House. There is a chain in the south called Waffle House. In Birmingham there are approximately 13294839493248938 of these chains...give or take 1 or 2. For my first meal of the weekend Ashlee and I ate there...oh my god. I got a biscuit and gravy + a waffle + bacon + coffee for somewhere along the lines of $.1. Seriously. So cheap. So good.

3) Drivable. The city of Birmingham is VERY drivable. Now don't get me wrong. The NYC subway with its smell of urine and overcrowded cars and random delays is awesome...but there's something special about being in a car and being able to look outside while you're going from point A to point B. Add in congestion-free roads and readily available parking spots and you're basically in heaven traveling around 'The Pittsburgh of the South'.

4) Botanical Gardens. Ashlee and I hit up the Botanical gardens on Sunday afternoon. OH. EM. GEEZ. YO. These gardens were so pretty! Flowers everywhere in perfect blooms! Symmetrical bushes and floral arrangements (you know I LOVE symmetry, don't you?)...and it was free to get in. Yes, Free!


5) Cheap Beer. Though, to be fair, this is one of my favorite things about pretty much EVERY place besides NYC and DC.

6) Ashlee's cat. Well it was more of a love hate relationship. Sometimes Sabina tried to bite my feet. Other times she purred and sat on my lap...and then tried to bite my feet. I never knew where I stood with her but perhaps the intrigue is what kept me coming back for more?


7) Ashlee's apartment. IT WAS SO CUTE! Except...ahem...no pictures of me on the wall. I don't ask for much....diamonds, rubies...the occasional gold coin. Is it so much to ask for a picture of me to be on the wall??

8) ASHLEE! NUMERO OCHO! Don't be offended that you're only at number 8 on the list. I was going to put you higher...and actually...just make this entry completely about you but a) I don't think you read my blog and b) I didn't want other people (read: my new fan) to be jealous.

9) Fried food. Basically everything is fried in Birmingham. Here's a list of fried food that I ate while I was down there: fried green tomatos (AH!), fried okra (eh!), chicken fried steak (what?!), fried chicken sandwich (...)...and that was in two days. Imagine if I lived there? I'd be one of those people that can't leave their house because they won't fit through the doorway.

(pictured: some chick with fried green tomatos...hehe)

Do I need to say anything else? Book your tickets to Birmingham, Alabama ASAP. You can probably stay with Ashlee...but I should tell you that because of her crazy cat you should probably bring extra pairs of socks to protect your feet.