The first thing I noticed when I stepped off of the shuttle from the impromptu parking lot (the original one was already filled to the max!) was the overwhelming smell. Funnel cakes. I could practically taste the delectable soft cloud in my mouth. Over the length of 10 seconds I stood in the entrance gawking at the beauty that is the Georgia State Fair, about a dozen bumped into me. That was when I realized the amount of people present. At least a thousand. I took a deep breath and prepared myself not to have any personal space.

There was a beautiful breeze playing in the air, making everyone’s hair look tad bit wind-whipped. Everyone at the fair had a content look on their face.

The sounds that bounced around the fair were that of enjoyment. Screams coming from the terrifying rides; laughter coming from the ski- like lift that stretched the never-ending length of the fairground; sizzle from the deep frying of many things (because what food at the fair isn’t deep fried?); and last but not least, comfortable chatter drifting throughout every crevice in the area - needless to say, talking on the phone was almost impossible.

The taste of the state fair was something you can’t compare to anything else, or label in any other way than AMERICAN! I had the pleasure of trying four of the most unique foods at the fair. Because we were eating some unconventional foods, we decided to start our feast off in an unconventional way. In endless line for the rollercoaster, my fabulous mother went and bought my accomplice (a longtime friend from my days in elementary school) and I a Boston Cream funnel cake. For those that have not had a funnel cake before, it is an essential to have at any fair. That said, a funnel cake is made of a frying batter where they take a circular pan and put it in boiling grease. The cook then takes the batter and drizzles it in the grease in one continuous strand…almost like a thick fried piece of spaghetti. Once it is golden brown, it is usually taken out and put on a paper plate and then coated with powdered sugar. After that there are many toppings perfect for the crispy on the outside and soft on the inside jumble of batter. For ours, the Boston Cream in the center was oozing out of the confines of the funnel cake. We quickly tackled this mound of deliciousness - and managed to keep it down on the roller coaster.

Smothered and Covered.

Our second adventure in fried goodness was the waffle dog. Those of you who question the deliciousness of this, I question YOU. This heart attack on a stick consists of a hot dog dipped in waffle batter. It is cooked in a waffle iron until it becomes golden brown perfection, and is then coated in thick syrup. Yum. That was quickly inhaled.

Heart attack on a stick.

The third delicacy was called a bird dog. Two chicken strips (fried, of course) in a hoagie roll, coated in nacho cheese, with bacon bits sprinkled over top. To put it simply, it was delicious. The combination might not sound appealing at first, but I can honestly say that once I took the first bite, I was in love.

Deep fried with cheese.

To finish off our trés élégant dinner, we decided upon deep fried Kool-Aid. They mixed the cherry flavor with frying batter and dropped them in the beyond hot grease. When the small balls of fried heaven were done, the venders sprinkled a thick layer of powdered sugar over the top. As I bit into them, I could feel my taste buds being singed off my tongue. After I got over the pain (no pain, no gain), I could taste the cherry flavored soft airy cloud slide down my throat. And to finish it off, there was red Kool-Aid seeping from the dough. Quite a culinary adventure!

Deep. Fried. Kool. Aid. Say no more.

All in all, that day was one for the books. I got to try four heart-stopping foods, as well as have some near death experiences (well, not really) on some of the rides there. The evening ended too soon. The good thing is, there is always next year. Maybe they will have even crazier foods!

Sicily Kolbeck is a member of the Youth Travel Blogging Mentorship Program

All photos courtesy and copyright Sicily Kolbeck