One of the great things about living at Collingwood Apartment Homes in Alpharetta, Georgia, is being able to make a quick trip out to one of the city’s bustling farmers markets and load up on summer-fresh fruits and veggies—and flowers and more!

Pet-Friendly Community Fun

Repeatedly recognized in the local media as a “Best Saturday Morning Excursion,” the Downtown Alpharetta Farmers Market, in front of Alpharetta City Center, is open Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. until November. You can enjoy outdoor music and a cup of fresh-squeezed lemonade, as well as experience a lively sense of community while you browse the offerings from vendors like Chang Family Farm, David’s WOW Garden, Her Garden and Produce, and many others. The Idea Specialists™ really do appreciate how dog-friendly the market is, too.

Local Goodness

The Collingwood Apartment Homes Idea Specialists™ always have a great time at the Halcyon Farmers Market. Held every Tuesday from 4 to 7 p.m. at Halcyon Forsyth, it features local products grown or made within 60 miles of Alpharetta—everything from seafood and meats to honeys, jams, candles, and soaps. Oh, and fresh eggs, don’t forget the fresh eggs!

Summer Cooking Inspirations

Not sure what to do with all the healthy produce and other goodness you brought home with you?

Then maybe it’s time to take advantage of one of the classes offered by the Publix A

prons® Cooking School at the Alpharetta Commons store.  The Idea Specialists have already put the Saturday, July 23, 2022, Summer Cooking Inspirations 6 p.m. demonstration-style class on their calendar. And they plan to show up hungry—because the menu will include chilled lobster salad with sweet corn succotash and tarragon dressing, and roasted, bacon-wrapped jalapenos with mint chutney, not to mention a baked cherry clafoutis with maple-macerated cherries. The $60 course fee also covers the wines that accompany the evening’s dining deliciousness. You can learn more online about other style classes offered.

Chic Coastal-Style Dining At The Cape

Not in the mood to whip up something in the comfort of your well-appointed Collingwood Apartment Homes kitchen? Make a reservation at The Cape Restaurant & Beach Bar at Avalon and get ready to experience its chic coastal-style dining inspired by cuisine and wines from Cape Town, South Africa. The Idea Specialists™ highly recommend the whole red snapper house specialty, which is served fried and topped off with pickled pico de gallo alongside a sweet cilantro coconut sauce and a spicy peri-peri sauce. They plan to try the ostrich sliders next!

Say Salud To Mezcal Cocktails

If you’re not ready to say the party’s over when you get back, then mix up one of this summer’s hottest cool cocktails—the El Chapo, made with mezcal, tequila blanco, ginger liqueur, guava puree, and agave syrup—and enjoy it by the apartment community’s sparkling resort-style saltwater pool, or in the air-conditioned comfort of your home. Salud!

An International Experience Less Than 3 Hours Away

If thinking about South African-inspired food and Mexican cocktails has you in the mood for even more things international, then this might be a good time to make a visit to Birmingham, Alabama, the site of this year’s World Games.

From July 7-17, 2022, the “Magic City” will play host to 3,600 of the world’s best athletes in 30-plus unique, multi-disciplinary sports, from Boules to DanceSport with all manner of ball sports, martial arts, and more in between.

When you’re not watching competition at an elite level, you can avail yourself of the city’s diverse and delightful food scene and craft beers from local breweries, as well tour the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum. The Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau has made it easy to imagine your stay, offering suggested itineraries on its site.

The great thing about Birmingham is it’s not even three hours from Alpharetta by car via Interstate 20—just the ticket for a long day trip or a few nights away. And if you go for the World Games, you’ll be part of an historic event—the competition hasn’t been held in the United States since it was first held in Santa Clara, California, in 1981.

Can’t make the trip but still want to be a part of things? Merch is of course available to all at Shop World Games.