Athens, Georgia

Athens, Georgia is . . . good music and food, a quiet life in a big small town, dodging college football fans and college students to live your day-to-day life.

It’s a strong community with character. Enjoy river-walk parks in the midst of the hustle and bustle.

What is Athens? It’s art; the city feels alive.

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Athens, Georgia Location

Athens is located in the incorporated county of Athens-Clarke County (ACC) and is a liberal haven in Georgia. Unfortunately, red surrounds us.

Athens, Georgia is located in the northeast of Georgia, about an hour from the last vestiges of Atlanta’s suburbs.

Not Part of Atlanta

Some say Atlanta’s urban sprawl has encroached enough to make Athens an increasing part of the Atlanta metro area. Residents of Athens will tell you that Athens has a distinctly separate identity from that of Atlanta. We are not part of Atlanta. We don’t want to be.

Parks and Recreation

Athens is to Pawnee as Oconee County is to Eagleton. If you get that reference, you’ll laugh.

The University of Georgia in Athens

The University of Georgia sits on about 1/3 of Athens-Clarke County’s taxable land, which makes ACC tax poor.

History of Tension

Athens and UGA have a history full of tension, to be honest, and sometimes it seems like the university is completely out of touch with the needs and culture of the community it has existed within for hundreds of years.

Linnentown

The university is also known for wiping out the entire community of Linnentown in the 1950s to make way for student housing.

Students Bring Money and Privilege

UGA students don’t just stay on campus. The college brings a large population of students to our community. These days much of downtown Athens is devoted to student life activities, with more and more high-end student housing being built.

Athens is WAY MORE THAN UGA

On the flip side, inebriated sports fans bring dollars to spend here, which is good for the businesses downtown that can stand being overrun by people trying to re-live their college youth.

Locals know that you time your outings carefully on game day Saturdays if you want to live a normal life during college football season. And locals definitely try to stay away from downtown on game nights.

The last time I was out after a game it was Goth Night at Ciné and we got yelled at as we left the cinema by rude and incredibly drunken college students. Childish, really.

Everyone who knows Athens knows there’s a side of town that is more for the older students, and the other side is for the underage students trying to get into the bars on their fake IDs. Tsk tsk, kiddies.

Local Music and Culture in Athens

Locals work hard to uphold the culture and character of Athens, and it’s strongly maintained through events such as the Wild Rumpus and Porchfest, and establishments like the 40 Watt, Ciné, and the Bottleworks.

Athens is Awesome

Living in Athens is awesome. The local music scene thrives here after spawning many nationally and internationally successful bands such as the B52s and REM. My favorite local band right now is Vision Video.

Normaltown is for Townies

Farther from downtown is Normaltown, which is where townies are more likely to hang out. There are, unsurprisingly, more bars to frequent, because Athens is a really alcohol-centric place, super noticeable to the sober amongst us (me). But I like Normaltown, it has a character all its own.

It’s right by the Health Sciences Campus too, a very pretty place to walk, and the houses in Normaltown, and in the nearby neighborhoods of Cobbham and Boulevard are my favorite houses to dream about owning someday (historic houses are my jam).

Come visit!

If you haven’t ever come to Athens you should. You’d find a lot to do, good food, sports if that’s your thing, GREAT local music if that’s your thing, and fun people who are

Posts about Athens

This category is dedicated to my posts about living around Athens, Georgia. If you’re a local, welcome. And if you’re visiting, hey there y’all!