Just got back from Atlanta last Tuesday from the Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo, the largest nutrition conference in the country. It was held at the Georgia World Congress Center (Left). Had such a good time! I met new Today’s Dietitian readers and reunited with those I already knew from years past. One thing I noticed about the conference this year was that there were so many more nutrition professionals in attendance compared with last year when it was held in Houston. Thousands of people attend this conference each year from across the country. It seemed like there was another 1,000 in attendance. When I walked the exhibit hall, it was elbow to elbow people (Right).

I really enjoyed the dietetic practice group showcase exhibits. I had a chance to speak with the chairwomen from those groups who expressed interest in following up with me to discuss future story ideas for the magazine, which is always a treat.

Our October issue is the largest of the year, and our readers love it (Left). Because it was such a great issue, I was given four free tickets to see the Phillies Game from the president of my company. Remember, I wrote about that experience on this blog called Phillies Game VIP Style! If you’d like to view the digital edition of the October issue, click on the thumbnail to the left.

While at the conference, I spoke to two old friends of mine who I grew up with and who are now living in the Atlanta area. Unfortunately, I never saw them due to schedule conflicts, but I hope to see them in the future when I visit Atlanta again.

However, I reunited with one of my best friends from college. I hadn’t seen her or her daughter in about seven years. She met me at my hotel on Saturday, and of course we took pictures! I brought my really good camera with me (Nikon D5300), which I never do when I travel for business. I bought a stylish Kelly Moore camera bag, which looks like a regular handbag, and I carried it around with me throughout the entire conference with my camera in tow. My camera made my handbag very heavy, but this was well worth carrying around the extra weight. Below is a photo of us in the courtyard/pool area at the Hilton Atlanta. (No one took this photo. I simply placed my camera on a table/island that was in front of us and set the camera on a timer, and voila!) It was so warm outside that there were people actually swimming in the pool. In October?

Afterward, we searched for a restaurant in the area to have dinner. Now, mind you, we published an Atlanta Dining Guide in our September issue so I thought we’d be able to eat at one of the most critically acclaimed restaurants in the city. We called two of them and unfortunately we either needed reservations or the place was booked. So we drove aimlessly looking for a place to eat. We ended up eating at a Mexican restaurant, which was not in our dining guide. The food was pretty good, although my clothes smelled like the spices they used to season the food. My friend and I talked nonstop! We had a lot of catching up to do. It was so great seeing her.

Another memorable moment on this trip was the dinner I had with Constance Brown-Riggs and Marlisa Brown, two of the magazine’s editorial advisors. We went to Legal Seafoods, which was a few blocks from the convention center. It was great to get to know them better. We really had a good time. Constance has known Marlisa for 20 years, and they travel together to nutrition conferences. Here’s a photo I took of them in the restaurant.

This business trip was the best. I don’t remember having this much fun on a business trip ever. Usually I have a good time when I travel, but this trip was really special. Probably because I saw my friend and spoke to other friends, and I had a good time with colleagues in the nutrition profession during dinner and at the exhibits. Until my next entry, take care! See you around in cyberspace!