1. Athens Is A City, Clarke Is A County And They're One And The Same
Nobody says "Athens-Clarke County," even though, officially speaking, that's what it's called. Everyone calls Athens "Athens," though it's a consolidated city-county form of government with one governing body.
2. Trees Can Own Themselves Here
There's a lot of quirkiness in Athens, but the Tree That Owns Itself might just take the cake. Locals love to mention it when they host out-of-town visitors, even if they can't tell you exactly where the self-owning tree is located.
3. No One Calls The School "The University Of Georgia" Or Its Mascot "The Bulldog"
The university is called UGA--say each letter--and the bulldog is named Uga, pronounced "ugh-ah."
4. And They Spell The Word Dog Differently
It's dawg, dawg. Every place of business with the word dog in its title spells it D-A-W-G. Same goes for every ad, yard sign and window painting you'll encounter. Seeing the word spelled correctly is a rare sight in Athens.
5. If You Don't Cheer For UGA, Keep It To Yourself
College football is a very, very big deal here. If you're not a Bulldog fan, prepare to suffer the consequences, especially if you cheer for the Florida Gators, the Auburn Tigers or the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, the team's three biggest rivals.
6. Vegetarians Absolutely Adore The Grit
It's not all barbecue, burgers and fried chicken in the Deep South. Athens is home to The Grit, arguably one of the best vegetarian restaurants in the South, if not the nation. Even carnivores wait for a table here--it's that good. Plenty of other options exist for veg-heads as well.
7. Saturdays In Fall Are Different From Every Other Day Of The Year
Even if you don't care one iota about college football, you'll have to plan your Saturdays in fall around it, especially when there's a UGA home game. After the game starts is a good time to go shopping for groceries, clothes, whatever--just make sure you're done before the game ends.
8. June Is Time For AthFest
In June, a few downtown streets are closed off to become the staging area for AthFest, a celebration of all things Athens. This is one of the biggest festival events in the Classic City, attracting families, hipsters, townies and lots of notable local and regional artists and musical acts.
9. Athens Has Bars Coming Out Its Ears
Especially downtown. The streets of downtown are lined with bars of all stripes, from cheap dives aimed at the college crowd to higher end pubs where professors and the after-work crowd go. The Globe is one of the best bars in town, featuring giant windows for people-watching and a rustic wooden interior.
10. Which Is Why Crafty Hop Heads Love It Here
Athens embraces the craft beer scene and has a number of local breweries, brewpubs and watering holes for beer lovers. Terrapin is the largest local brewery and its brews are found in most every bar and store in town. Copper Creek is a brewpub housed in a former music hall. Cutter's Pub and Trappeze Pub stock enough microbrews from around the globe to keep you taste-testing longer than it takes to get a degree from UGA.
11. Athens Is A Cinema Lovers Delight
Sure, there are multiplexes showing the latest mega blockbuster releases just like in any other town, but for cinefiles, Athens is like a slice of heaven. The theater at the student center on campus screens all manner of films from art house pomp to frat house circumstance. Downtown, you’ll find Flicker Bar, which is dedicated to local film and creative arts. A couple of blocks away there's Ciné, the crème de la crème of Athens movie houses.
12. The Music Scene Is Just As Awesome As It Was In The ‘80s
Aside from college football, Athens is most famous for the music scene that boomed in the 1980s, spawning R.E.M. among others. The scene doesn't get the national attention it once did, but it's only grown since the '80s. Great music venues of all sizes are found throughout the downtown area hosting national and local acts of varying genres.
13. And The Culinary Scene Has Caught Up With The Music Scene
Gone are the days when you could find only pizza and Mexican joints, all-night diners and bar food catering to college kids. In the 21st century, Athens' culinary scene has truly blossomed. The National and Five and Ten are two of many don't-miss dining experiences.
14. It's Uncool To Ask Rock Stars For Their Autographs
Anyone who spends enough time in Athens will bump into famous musicians from time to time, especially in and around the downtown area. The dead giveaway that you're a newb is when you spot Michael Stipe and ask for his autograph. Don't do that.
15. Downtown Has And Will Survive Anything
It seems there's always some grand plan for transforming downtown, as well as a protest movement against whatever those grand plans may be. Some people don't want to change it at all, others want to do something about the traffic and parking situation. And speaking of traffic…
16. Prepare To Be Bottlenecked
The major roadways leading into downtown and the Five Points neighborhood are like drag racing strips until everything gets backed up closer to town. If you drive through Five Points most anytime of day you'll wait through a few cycles of traffic signals before passing through. And speaking of cycles …
17. Or You Could Just Get A Bike And Avoid All That
You'll see lots of bikers here, in bike lanes, on greenways and sharing the roadways, chuckling to themselves as they pass all the people waiting for the light to change a couple of more times.
18. Athenians Read The Flagpole To Find Out What's Going On
Athens has a daily newspaper that costs money, but its free weekly, Flagpole, covers goings-on from city hall to the nightlife scene quite thoroughly and isn't afraid to have an opinion.
19. It's Not Just A College Town
You've likely heard that Athens is a college town. That's the way it's always reported in the media. But Athens is bigger than you think. There's a vibrant downtown with a campus right next door, but Athens sprawls ever outward into historic neighborhoods, modern suburbs and strip malls filled with folks who have no connection to the university.
20. People Love Their Front Porches
Porch life is a thing here. People in Athens spend a lot of time on porches. They hang out on porches, dine on porches and throw parties on porches--all year round, not just in summertime.
21. Athens Has A Botanical Garden So Beautiful, You’ll Want To Get Married There
The State Botanical Garden of Georgia is located in Athens, and it’s much more than just a collection of pretty ornamental gardens. The grounds are large enough to do some serious hiking through the woods and by the river where you may encounter some actual wildlife. It’s the type of place that inspires people to make marriage proposals and then come back later for the wedding ceremony.
22. When The World Ends, The Taco Stand And The Varsity Will Still Be Standing
Athens is home to a plethora of fast food joints that come and go with the wind, but two institutions in town that will be here long after I die are The Varsity and The Taco Stand. Both are go-to places for decent and affordable grub served up quick, no matter how long the lines are. 
