<p>so i'm from CA and came out to visit georgia tech this weekend to do their connect with tech thing. i casually browsed the campus today and really didn't see all that much going on at all (except some car show). EVERYTHING was empty, there wasn't even a place to eat. is this just because its the weekend/spring break? my main concern is that i won't be able to fly back to CA that much if i attend and i'm going to have to provide for my own entertainment. i walked around the surrounding city and seems all i could find close was the cnn studio/aquarium/coke factory/six flags (few miles away).</p>
<p>i guess my basic question is are there a lot of on campus events during the year and during the breaks is there anyone to chill with or does everyone just jump ship?</p>
<p>thanks for any replies in advance.</p>
<p>edit: on a side note, how's the computer science department at tech, i'm interested in it.</p>
<p>I have the same dilemma. I went to the First Robotics Tournament there and Atlanta was completely dead. Even the Airport, which is supposed to be the busiest, was not as full as Newark or JFK (I'm from Jersey). It wasn't a weekend or holiday or anything. Just kind of days in a regular week. Although the City is built pretty nice and there are stores and stuff, it just seems that nobody is there. Also, everything closed at like 7PM. Not cool. That's the only thing scaring me about Tech, is that it's an empty city. I don't like those.</p>
<p>Maybe because I'm more familiar with NYC, I'm expecting more, but come on, I've seen smaller cities like Austin/San Diego/Minneapolis that have more action. It's warm, you have big arenas and stuff and a nice city with big venues, but why is nobody there??????</p>
<p>By the way, I went to the Auto Show and it sucked.</p>
<p>There is plentyyy of stuff to do here. Don't worry about that.</p>
<p>That being said, finding time to do that stuff is another issue entirely.</p>
<p>There are actually lots of places to eat on and around campus. On campus alone I can think of Junior's, Jacket's, Pandini's, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Chik-fil-A, and some others. Immediately off campus I can think of Lucky Buddha, City Cafe, Moe's, Ray's, Tin Drum, Wingnuts, Burger Joe's, and lots and lots of others.</p>
<p>In addition, you chose a pretty bad time to come to Tech. Tech is usually bustling with events scattered all throughout campus from time to time (Skiles, Student Center). You just so happened to catch Tech at a time during test week (the week prior to after the car show that you speak of was test week for most).</p>
<p>In addition, if you are in to the club scene, clubs around the Atlanta area have started throwing some 18+ club parties...such as Opera, Pure, Vinyl etc...</p>
<p>But is Atlanta itself like vibrant? I am getting confused between Downtown and Midtown. Around the CNN center and stuff it was totally dead. And where the Georgia Dome was, forget about it.</p>
<p>Some people complain of "deadness" because they don't see people walking around. Let's address that first: Atlanta is a heavily car-dependent city!! More so than Los Angeles, even. So, there are some parts that look like no one is there, when really they're all driving around, and other parts of the city that are a bit more pedestrian oriented (Downtown, L5P, parts of Midtown, etc.).</p>
<p>Also, if you were in the Downtown area (around CNN/Olympic Park), be advised there was a tornado in the area that damaged much of the area, and everything is just starting to open up around that area. Usually, it's BUSTLING with people.</p>
<p>Also, there are local niches; don't rely on the tourist loop when choosing a city. Chances are, you aren't going to do any of those things, as you won't have time. You'll want to do passive activities with your workload. One night, go out with some locals (if you know any) and do something. There is a lot of **** to do: clubs, 5-star restaurants (or cheap hole-in-the-wall joints that still taste fabulous), just hanging out in the park and playing in the fountains (well, when there isn't a drought), local venues, concerts, conventions(we're renowned for the sheer number of conventions we have, more than any other city supposedly; if you're into something, you can find a group of people gathering to celebrate that thing together), etc.. Also, if you like sex, we're known for having more strip clubs per capita than Las Vegas, and having sex shops everywhere (thought I'd throw that tidbit out there ;) ), but you can't buy liquor on Sunday...</p>
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was not as full as Newark or JFK (I'm from Jersey)
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<p>That's because we're good at shifting people around really fast ;)</p>
<p>Drive on our congested freeways sometime, and you'll notice that although you're bumper-to-bumper, you're somehow going 55 MPH. It's a strange phenomenon that we're good at.</p>
<p>Atlanta is one of the fastest-growing cities in the US. It is not by any means "dead". :)</p>
<p>Plus, downtown is probably a little quieter than usual at the moment due to continuing cleanup from the tornado mess a couple weeks ago. That sort of thing takes a little while to tidy up.</p>
<p>No alki on Sunday sucks, and there's usually not anything going on during the week. During the weekends there a lot of band parties and such at different fraternities. If you want a lot of parties/stuff to do...I suggest going Greek :)
Phi Delt booked the Ying Yang Twins to play their house tonight and on Thursday Ok Go played over on west campus. But like I said...during the week and usually during breaks there's not **** going on.</p>
<p>For people who visited Tech...how are the dorms and campus...Is it full of greenery...I like greenery in a campus...and do you get indian food at Tech</p>
<p>I went to tech and lived in ATL for 13 yrs prior to attending. The problem with tech is that it really isn't in walking distance of anything fun. If you want to go out drinking you have to drive to midtown or buckhead (most of the close places 18+ are lame). Downtown has the cnn center and the dome etc but I don't consider these places to go too frequently. More for concerts/autoshow/sporting type events. The campus itself is a nice small community that has expanded over the 75/85 highway. I graduated in 04 so I didn't really get to experience the upgrades. They tore down this steel-mill close to the school and erected a large plaza full of entertainment over the past few years. I hear they have a lot of shops and places to eat, so that might spice stuff up. If you have any friends at UGA you'll get a taste of their nightlife. Tons and tons of bars w/i walking distance...only problem is that Athens is in the middle of nowhere.</p>
<p>The freshmen dorms sucks just like they do everywhere else. As you move up in class you can apply for the 2 room suites (u still sharing a room with someone and finally getting a bathroom for the suite) and eventually on campus apartments (if you don't go off campus). I lived in the 8th street apartments and had my own room in 4 man apartment. They were left over from the 96 Olympics and were part of the Olympic village where the athletes lived. So as you can imagine they were very nice. Also, the campus has some green areas but if you’re expecting Stanford you’re in for a big surprise.</p>