Monroe Dr Northeast, Virginia-Highland

Monroe Drive extends north from Ponce de Leon Avenue to Interstate 85 (also known locally as the Northeast Expressway). At the south end, you'll find a gas station where you're guaranteed to be asked for change. A mile north of there, Monroe Drive is a swinging hotspot for hippies and the yuppies who pretend to be hippies. You'll find an independent cinema, a Trader Joe's grocery store, a few places to get dinner and drinks (Mellow Mushroom, F. R. O. G. S. Cantina, etc.), and a Rita's Italian Ice with some of the friendliest employees I've met in Atlanta.

If you head west from here, on 10th, you'll find yourself at 10th and Piedmont, the heart of Gay Atlanta. Heading north on Monroe, however, the hipsterism fades into a utilitarian, working-class shopping center, a Red Cross blood donor center (which is undergoing renovations so massive they spill out onto the street, making construction an issue for drivers), and a brief corridor leading up to Interstate 85.