The Ultimate Walking Dead Fan Vacation

DAY 5: Last chance to look around

We came back into Senoia earlier than we had on any of the other days of our trip, knowing that we only had a few hours before we would be heading back towards our respective homes. It was just a little before 9:00 am on Monday, which in Senoia is a very slow day. There are several small shops and even one restaurant that are open all weekend but closed on Monday, and at least one on Tuesday as well. We drove up the hill and were one of the first cars to park along Main Street. Without all the cars driving through or tourists wandering around, it looked more like Woodbury than ever.

The Walking Dead Café

The only place in town that I wanted to go but hadn’t yet gotten to was The Walking Dead Café. You can enter through the Walking Dead store and go down their back stairs, through the museum and into the café, or go into the café through the separate front or back entrances to the building. On this sleepy morning, The Walking Dead Store wasn’t open yet. In the café, we were the only ones there, so I could shamelessly photograph just about everything – not that I wouldn’t have otherwise, of course.

One of my favorite things about The Walking Dead Café was the chalkboard on the wall by the register where they had drawn illustrations of each cast member’s orders, labeled with their character’s name. (I did clarify with one of the baristas that what was listed were the actors’ actual orders, not what they thought the characters would drink) My other favorite thing was a chalkboard drawing of the famous wings from the back of Daryl’s sleeveless leather vest. Of course, I was also a fan of the fact that they serve Starbucks coffee, but also sell their own Walking Dead themed merchandise. It was very cozy there, but we couldn’t hang around too long. Sadly, it was almost time to go home.

Last look at Senoia

Shelby and I walked “the loop,” as we now called it, in front of Alexandria again – down Gin Road in front of the set, over the railroad tracks and back down Travis Street, which is slightly elevated but the view of the set from there is mostly blocked by large trees. By that point we’d done it at least twenty times, but it never ceased to be fun. Just the fact that we could walk by and look at the set of The Walking Dead simply didn’t get old for me, even if we couldn’t see anything special happening. A few more random pictures, including one of some purple flowers growing from the side of the very building where the scenes in the Governor’s torture chamber had been filmed, and one last selfie of the two of us in front of Alexandria, and it was time to go. My ultimate Walking Dead vacation was over.

I loved Senoia from the time we got there, and only partially because it was so heavily associated with The Walking Dead. OK, so it was a big part of why I loved it… but I also loved the charm of the town, the architecture of the buildings, the friendliness of the people, and the relaxed atmosphere. Of course, the fact that it’s the home base of my favorite TV show didn’t hurt, either. I loved it because it was somewhere that I spent time with friends who I don’t get to see nearly enough, and because I was there on vacation, and therefore free of the responsibilities of my “real life” – of work, of being a mom, of housework and bills and everything that makes reality less fun than vacation. It was an amazing five days, and I can’t wait to do it again! After all, believe it or not there are at least two or three things that we didn’t get to do, and by the time I go back, there will probably be more locations to see. In the meantime, it makes a damn good story.