Vault: They were tourists in their own city

Summary

The Bert Show: Vault – "They Were Tourists in Their Own City"

Date: June 11, 2026
Hosts: Bert Show Cast (Jessica, Bluff, Co-hosts)
Theme: Rediscovering Atlanta through the eyes of a tourist

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Jessica and the crew recount a weekend spent as tourists in their own city, Atlanta. Along with Jessica’s visiting cousin, the team explored iconic Atlanta attractions including the CNN Center and the World of Coke. The conversation unpacks the often overlooked quirks, surprises, and criticisms that locals rarely notice, providing both humorous and candid observations. The hosts' playful banter and honest reviews illuminate the city’s charm—and its missed opportunities—to listeners near and far.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Exploring the CNN Center

Timestamps: 01:34 – 04:51

• First-time Visit after Years in Atlanta
  Jessica shares she’s lived in Atlanta since 2001 but just experienced the CNN Center tour for the first time.

  • “We took our first CNN center tour. … Went into the newsroom. Had never done that.” (01:35 – Jessica)

• First Impressions—Technical and Aesthetic Critiques
  Jessica provides three pointed (yet good-natured) criticisms of the tour:

  1. Broken Monitors Start the Tour
     • “You go up in groups of 10… you wait in a room… you’re actually watching CNN… four of the monitors weren’t working.” (01:47 – Jessica)
     • Co-hosts jump in with, “If you're a TV station, you probably should have your TVs working.” (02:28 – Co-host 1)
  2. A Dusty Ledge Overlooking the Newsroom
     • Visitors stand behind glass with “a ledge … really dusty. … Everyone around me in the tour was talking about how dirty it was.” (02:31 – Jessica)
     • “They need a cleaning task force.” (03:12 – Co-host 2)
  3. Untidy Exhibition Setup During Closing Video
     • “They show you a little video… the white drape stops about 2ft before the ground. Underneath … you see all the stands … all the wires and all the cabling… For 150 bucks you could go to Lowe’s… nobody would ever see any of that stuff.” (03:31 – Jessica)
     • “You were turning into your father.” (04:17 – Co-host 1, teasing Jessica about nitpicking)

• Pride in Atlanta’s Tourism
  The hosts agree that small upgrades could help CNN represent Atlanta better.

  • “This is one of the big attractions in our city!” (04:22 – Co-host 2)

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At the World of Coke

Timestamps: 04:58 – 07:13

• General Impressions
  Jessica and co-hosts review the new World of Coke, noting both nostalgia and repetitive memorabilia.

  • “I mean, I can only see so much Coca Cola memorabilia, right?” (05:04 – Jessica)
  • “There’s a room full of just products… my parents fully bought into the whole Coke Santa thing … brought back childhood memories for me.” (05:13 – Co-host 1)

• Cleanliness and Functionality
  Jessica notes, “[W]as clean in there, I’ll give them that. And the TV monitors all seem to work.” (05:35)

• The Legendary Tasting Room
  The highlight is the tasting room with Coke products from around the world.

  • “That tasting room… that’s always cool. Like, calling people, oh my God, taste this one. It’s awful.” (05:59 – Jessica)
  • Debate over favorite (or least favorite) international flavors:
    • “It’s always the Asian soft drinks… There’s just a different taste that you grow up with.” (06:06 – Co-host 1)
    • “I didn’t like the African ones… way too sweet to me.” (06:18 – Jessica)

• Cultural Revelations

  • “It shows the different cultures have different tastes. So it is… very educational.” (06:39 – Co-host 1)

• Memorable Souvenirs
  Visitors are given a Coke bottle made on-site, universally enjoyed:

  • “Everybody pops it open on the way out and you’re like, oh my God, this is the greatest tasting stuff ever.” (06:58 – Jessica)

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Other Atlanta Attractions: What’s Left?

Timestamps: 07:13 – 08:45

• MLK Center
  Skipped due to expected MLK Day crowds, but appreciated from previous visits.

  • “The only reason we didn’t go is because it was MLK weekend and we knew it would be packed.” (07:17 – Jessica)
  • On the eternal flame: “That whole eternal flame down there is cool to me. The fact that they always keep it going. I’m like, how do they do that?” (07:26 – Co-host 2)

• Other Recommendations
  Brainstorming continues on what to show guests:

  • College campuses: “If we go to a different town, then I think the college campuses are cool.” (08:28 – Co-host 1)
  • High Museum (da Vinci exhibit): “It’s really good. I’ve been through it.” (08:39 – Co-host 2)
  • Stone Mountain/Snow Mountain, The Varsity, and the upcoming “spinning” restaurant at the top of the Westin Peachtree.

• A Wistful Note

  • “I just want more tourist attractions. I want Disney World.” (08:04 – Jessica)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “If you’re a TV station, you probably should have your TVs working.” – Co-host 1 (02:28)
• “The ledge was really dusty. … I hope nobody in there has allergies.” – Jessica (02:31)
• “You were turning into your father.” – Co-host 1 (04:17, teasing Jessica)
• “That tasting room… that’s always cool. Like, calling people, oh my God, taste this one. It’s awful.” – Jessica (05:59)
• “It shows the different cultures have different tastes. … very educational.” – Co-host 1 (06:39)
• “I just want more tourist attractions. I want Disney World.” – Jessica (08:04)

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Additional Highlights and Discussion Flow

• The episode captures plenty of playful teasing, honest critiques, and nostalgia around Atlanta’s attractions.
• Throughout, hosts express both pride and frustration with their city’s offerings—relatable for any local showing off their hometown.
• The conversation is peppered with practical tips for locals: try the High Museum, time your MLK Center visit, and don’t overlook the fun of campus tours even if you’re not a student.
• Jessica’s cousin's visit serves as a fun macro for listeners to reflect on their own home city’s hidden gems and overlooked flaws.
• The lighthearted conclusion leaves listeners with ideas for their own “staycation” and a reminder that even familiar places can surprise.

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For those who missed the episode:
You’ll come away with both a list of Atlanta’s must-see spots and a few of the city’s quirks, all filtered through the Bert Show’s hilarious, honest, and authentic lens—plus some great ideas for your next hometown adventure.

Transcript

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[Jessica]

a free to play social casino void where prohibited. Visit spinquest.com for more details. The Burt show this past weekend, Jessica and I went out and played tourist.

[Co-host 1]

Right?

[Jessica]

I've been here. Yeah, we've been here since 2001. We took our first CNN center tour.

[Co-host 2]

Really?

[Jessica]

Yep. Went into the newsroom. Had never done that. And you know, you get the newsroom and headline news and see where Robin Mead does her show and where they.

[Co-host 2]

What'd you think?

[Jessica]

That was cool. Actually, you know what? Little real talk, they escort you into a room. Okay. I had three. There were three issues that I thought of with the CNN tour and I just think that they should be. I'm just gonna say them because I think they should be pointed out, but they're not complaints, but when they usher you in, you go up an elevator and you go up in groups of 10 because there's only one or two elevators that take you up. And then you wait in a room that has a flat screen in front of it and you are actually watching cnn. And the flat screen is made up of monitors that are paneled together. And like four of the monitors weren't working.

[Co-host 2]

Oh, that's not good.

[Jessica]

So that's how the tour started. Yeah.

[Co-host 1]

If you're a TV station, you probably should have your TVs working.

[Co-host 2]

And if you want to get this fixed.

[Jessica]

Yeah, so that was the first thing. Then the second thing is in the actual CNN newsroom when you're taking the tour, you're in a glass. You're looking down onto the newsroom, and the anchor desk is in the corner and the weather station's to your left. And there's everybody's desks, all the assignment editors and the writers and the researchers, all that's all right there. Right. But you're behind glass and there's a ledge right in front of you. And this is gonna sound so nitpicky, but the ledge was really dusty. And everyone around me in the tour was talking about how dirty it was, like, oh, I hope nobody in there has allergies. God, look at all the dirt up there. Blah, blah, blah. So that was the second thing.

[Co-host 2]

They need a cleaning task force.

[Jessica]

Right.

[Co-host 2]

They've been cutting back in areas they shouldn't.

[Jessica]

And then the third one is at the last. What's that?

[Co-host 2]

Nothing, I was just saying about, you know, she's clearing her first impressions and reception areas and things like that.

[Jessica]

Oh, yeah, like dark corners.

[Co-host 2]

Dark corners, yeah.

[Co-host 1]

Cages. Not a good first impression.

[Jessica]

Right. Lights off. So the. And then the third thing is. And then the final step is they show you a little video where it's all the anchors, the CNN anchors talking about it. And it's shown and it's done really cool with like this white drape hanging down. And they show the film on the white and stuff. But the problem is the white drape stops about 2ft before the ground. And underneath the white drape, you see all the stands that are holding up the projectors and the screens that are behind it and all the wires and all the cabling. And I thought, you know, for 150 bucks you could go to Lowe's, nail a couple of two by fours together, paint a board black, put it there, nobody would ever see any of that stuff.

[Co-host 1]

Oh, my God, you're Talking about the

[Jessica]

stands and the cords and those three things. For whatever reason, I'm like, God, this tour is so great. But there's just the little details.

[Co-host 1]

You were turning into your father.

[Jessica]

I know. I was like, the little details.

[Co-host 2]

I'm like, it could have looked more polished.

[Jessica]

Yes.

[Co-host 2]

And you would have been more proud to say, this is one of the big attractions in our city.

[Jessica]

Exactly.

[Co-host 2]

Got it.

[Jessica]

And it really bugged me when everybody was talking about the dust. So, no offense, cnn. I'm not criticizing everybody who was on the tour. Jessica's cousin's in from out of town, which is why we took the tour in the first place. Got it. So we're showing him Atlanta sites. And he was impressed. Jessica was impressed. I liked stuff like that. I was impressed. But when I heard everybody talking about the dust bunnies, I was like, come on, cnn. Represent.

[Co-host 2]

Step it up.

[Jessica]

Get a vacuum, Get a ladder. Get up there. You know, dustbusters.

[Co-host 2]

What other touristy things do you do?

[Jessica]

Then we went to the new world of Coke.

[Co-host 2]

How was it? I haven't been there. I haven't been there either.

[Co-host 1]

I thought it was cool. What are you about to say?

[Jessica]

I like the tasting room. I mean, I can only see so much Coca Cola memorabilia, right? So that.

[Co-host 1]

Did you grow up with it or.

[Jessica]

No, with Coke, Drinking Coke?

[Co-host 1]

No, with the memorabilia and stuff. Because the one thing about the world of Coke that I loved is the fact that there's so many. Because there's a room full of just products. So, you know, I guess it depends on where you grew up. But we had all those products, the platters, the bottles, the. You know, my parents fully bought into the whole Coke Santa thing. And so there was a lot of. It brought back childhood memories for me. So I thought it was really neat.

[Jessica]

I thought it was cool. I just think it had a. I mean, it was clean in there, I'll give him that. And the TV monitors all seem to work. But I just think, for me, like, if my parents were there, they would love it. Cause they would go through it step by step, and they would remember advertisements or whatever. I kind of went through, like, one little thing, and I thought it was cool. I do think it's neat that the formula for Coca Cola is still a secret.

[Co-host 2]

Yeah, definitely.

[Jessica]

And then that tasting room is, you know, I mean, that's always cool. Like, calling people, oh, my God, taste this one. It's awful.

[Co-host 1]

I'm just so sorry. And I'm sorry to our Asian listening audience, but I. It's always the Asian soft drinks I just. There's a. There's just a different taste that you grow up with.

[Jessica]

I didn't like the African ones.

[Co-host 1]

The African ones don't like it. Oh, I just can't.

[Co-host 2]

Terrible.

[Co-host 1]

Yes, to me.

[Jessica]

See, I like the Asian ones. They had a green apple one or an apple one. That was great. But the Africa continent kiosk was way too sweet to me.

[Co-host 2]

Are these all Cokes or are these all sodas?

[Co-host 1]

These are all Coke products. So they're all sodas.

[Co-host 2]

Coke products that are all around the world and they're different and there's a

[Jessica]

whole big room and you get a

[Co-host 1]

Coke, which is fascinating to me because it shows the different cultures have different tastes. So it is. I mean, it is very educational.

[Jessica]

And just so you know what a creature of habit everyone in the world is, when you leave, they hand you a little like 8 ounce bottle of Coke in the glass bottle that was

[Co-host 1]

made there at the facility while you were taking your tour.

[Jessica]

Yeah, like an official Coke.

[Co-host 2]

That's cool.

[Jessica]

And so everybody pops it open on the way out and you're like, oh, my God, this is the greatest tasting stuff ever.

[Co-host 1]

Oh, in the bottle? The glass bottle, yeah.

[Jessica]

Cause you've just had a whole bunch of stuff that's just like bizarre and random and weird. But we did the world of Coke and we did the CNN center and then kind of ran out of things.

[Co-host 1]

Did you go to Martin Luther King Center?

[Jessica]

No, only.

[Co-host 1]

But you've been there, though.

[Jessica]

I've been there before. And the only reason we didn't go is because it was MLK weekend and we knew. And we knew it would be packed. So that's.

[Co-host 2]

That whole eternal flame down there is cool to me. The fact that they always keep it going. I'm like, how do they do that?

[Jessica]

Well, he's still in town and we have more stuff to do, so the MLK one is good. That'll be.

[Co-host 1]

You mean your cousin?

[Jessica]

Yeah. Oh, not. I'm okay. Yeah, my cousin is.

[Co-host 1]

Well, yeah. Connor.

[Jessica]

Yeah. Jessica's cousin's still in town. So we're looking for a couple more things to do.

[Co-host 2]

So definitely go down there.

[Jessica]

I might try to see if the Thrasher. If the Thrashers are playing tomorrow.

[Co-host 2]

Nights are playing on Friday. They are about Aquarium and tonight.

[Jessica]

No, he's from Hawaii.

[Co-host 2]

Oh, well, no, he's not really quite kind of underwhelming. What about Stone Mountain? You can go tubing because Snow Mountain, the Varsity. What do you have? What do you have?

[Jessica]

It's. I mean, it's neat to see. I Just want more tourist attractions. I want Disney World.

[Co-host 2]

Hold on. What else do we have?

[Co-host 1]

But I think it's hard.

[Co-host 2]

Aren't they reopening the thing at the top of the Weston Peachtree?

[Jessica]

It's not open yet. I don't think it's spinning yet.

[Co-host 2]

But they're supposed to be reopening like soon. Like this week or something. Are they like really, really soon, if not already?

[Jessica]

Yeah.

[Co-host 1]

See, I always think it's neat.

[Co-host 2]

Like.

[Co-host 1]

What's that one called? I think college campuses are tourist attractions too.

[Jessica]

I was thinking we did drive them through tech.

[Co-host 1]

Yeah, we. If we go to a different town, then I think the college campuses are cool.

[Co-host 2]

High museum that we actually thought of

[Jessica]

that because they have the da Vinci exhibit.

[Co-host 2]

It's really good. I've been through it.

[Jessica]

Oh, you have?

[Co-host 2]

Yeah, it was really good.

[Jessica]

That'd be cool. When'd you go to that?

[Co-host 2]

I went to that on a really fun date.

[Jessica]

Oh, that's cool.

[Co-host 2]

I did.

[Co-host 1]

Yeah.

[Jessica]

That's awesome.

[Co-host 1]

Because dating is a verb.

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