The most amazing thing about leading tours are days like the one I had with Stan from Australia! Stan was in town for the BioTechnology Convention and my experience with him makes me so happy I decided to lead tours of Atlanta! Stan had a private bike tour and requested some very specific stops. He asked for the Martin Luther King Historic District, Piedmont Park, Stephan’s Vintage clothing store in Little Five Points, the Fox Theater and the High Museum of Art. The Super Loop (15 miles) our Downtown to Midtown tour included all of these stops, and a few other great places too.
Before his tour Monday morning, Stan walked down from the Omni Hotel to Ria’s Blue Bird next to Grant Park for breakfast. He invited me to join him there. Over oatmeal and omelettes, he started telling me about the Royal Peacock.
The Royal Peacock is located in Atlanta’s Sweet Auburn historic district, and was once one of the city’s premier African American music venues early in the twentieth century. Originally named The Top Hat Club, when it opened in 1938, the Royal Peacock Club hosted local and national talent. You could see entertainers like Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong, B.B. King, the Four Tops, Ray Charles, James Brown, Sam Cook, Little Richard, Aretha Franklin, The Supremes, Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Ike and Tina and Atlanta’s own Gladys Knight, all at the Royal Peacock. Stan is a musician, plays in a band back home in Austrialia and loves the blues. He spoke of the Royal Peacock in this amazing romantic way… He said, “I just walked up to the building and stood there in awe. I just imagined Sam Cook and James Brown coming out front on the sidewalk between sets for a smoke!”
Our tours included Little Five Points because it is just SO COOL! But we usually don’t stop in Stefan’s, one of the best vintage clothing stores in Atlanta. Stan was looking for something “70′s with ruffles”, something for him to wear when he performs.
Have you ever heard the saying “the thing that makes a person interesting, is that they are interested”? Well that’s Stan. He took pictures non-stop, asked lots of questions, took his own turns on some roadways because he spotted something he wanted to see (I lost control of my tour a few times) … and kept me smiling the entire time! Stan, thanks for making my day! Come back soon!
