ATLANTA - ATTRACTIONS

Atlanta has a lot of unique things to see, and we were excited to avoid the usual museums and other typical stuff. But after two days, we were disappointed with some of these famous sights. We have included our thoughts on these places that may not live up to their billing so that you can make better decisions on how to spend your time here.

1. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site - Yet another great site belonging to the National Park Service - this historic site includes a visitor center with displays dedicated to the life of MLK as well as movies about the civil rights movement; the Freedom Center which houses small rooms dedicated to the Kings, Rosa Parks, and Gandhi; King's birth home, his gravesite, and the Ebenezer Baptish Church where King was the third generation of his family to preach. 

Tours of the birth home are available, but they fill up quickly so if you want to see it, get there early. The church is currently closed due to renovations, but should be open again shortly. Take the time to read all of the displays in the visitor center, the detail is impressive and anybody will come away knowing just what King went through in his quest for equality. 

Birthplace of Martin Luther King, Jr.

2. Braves Hall of Fame - You can visit the Hall of Fame for $3, or for $7 take the Turner Field tour as well. The tour itself is typical of ballpark tours, but the Hall of Fame is the best Hall of Fame devoted to one team. The Braves franchise has been in continuous existence for over 130 years, the longest streak in baseball. There is an awful lot of history on this team, but the best part is Hank Aaron, who clubbed his 715th homer for the Braves in 1974. The bat and ball from this record-breaking roundtripper are on display and should warrant reverence from any baseball fan. Another highlight is a 1950s Pullman car which has been refurbished to show how players traveled back before airplanes became the norm. The room is not big, but it is well laid out and you can follow the franchise from Boston to Milwaukee to Atlanta, ending with the Hall of Fame which only contains 6 players right now but will no doubt increase its membership in the years to come.

715th home run ball

3. Cyclorama - A history museum with a twist. Atlanta was the site of one of the turning points of the Civil War and this museum explains the entire Atlanta campaign led by William Tecumseh Sherman. The best part is the actual cyclorama, an oil painting (the largest in the world) that surrounds a seating platform. A diorama is also located in front of the painting, adding to the detail. The platform rotates while details about the painting are pointed out by a recording. Cycloramas were popular before moving pictures, but now there are only a few left in the world. At $5, it is a unique experience that should please any history buff.

4. World of Coca-Cola - Pay money to be inundated with Coke advertising through the years. Interesting if you are a Coke addict as you can follow the development of the drink from 1886, where it averaged 9 drinks a day sold, until now, where it is one of the world's most recognized brands. At $6, a bit expensive to me, and the free drinks at the end aren't that tasty either, but worth a shot if you are interested in the history of advertising.

5. Georgia State Capitol - Atlanta is also the capital of Georgia and the state capitol is a nice building with a gold dome and a museum on the 4th floor. Right behind the Coke museum, this free attraction is more interesting and less biased, and gives you a good history of Georgian politics.

6. CNN Studio Tour - At $8, we expected something entertaining and informative. We received neither - rather a 40 minute hike through CNN's studios with a couple of rooms that try to explain what goes on behind the scenes. The highlight: watching CNN anchor Leon Harris prepare for broadcast. They tried to tell us that the people on the floor were news gatherers and producers, etc, but it looked like a normal office to me. You can try the VIP tour for $25, with that you can actually walk on the newsroom floor.

If you want to do something different, get seats at Talkback Live, a show that is on every day at 3:00 in the lobby of the CNN Center. Seating is free and begins at 2:00.