Centennial Olympic Park, one of the most enduring legacies of the 1996 Olympic Games, is a living monument to the city's memories--both good and bad--of that seminal event. Conceived as a town square, it represents the heart of the Olympic effort, the site where everyone flocked to celebrate the games. And when the games resumed after the bombing in the park that claimed two lives, it was where people gathered to try to revive the Olympic spirit.

A 21-acre swath of green space and bricks, the park was carved out of a blighted downtown area. It was closed after the games, redesigned for permanent use, then reopened in 1998. Once again the universal gathering place it was intended to be, it's an oasis of rolling lawns crisscrossed by brick pathways and punctuated by artwork, rock gardens, pools, and fountains. There are usually a few free events each month--festivals, artists' markets, concerts, and other performances. Call for a complete listing of happenings.

If you're visiting the park on your own, and not coming for a specific event, your first stop should be the visitor center on International Boulevard, in the southwest corner of the park, across from the CNN Center. Here, you'll find information about the park, and if you bought a $35 commemorative brick, someone will help you locate it among the nearly 500,000 engraved bricks that were used to pave the plaza and walkways. Even if you didn't buy a brick, it's fun to wander around and read the names and messages (some pretty intriguing) engraved on them. You'll find names from around the world.

The best part of the park is the fountain in the shape of five interlocking Olympic Rings. It's the central focus of a vast paved plaza bordered by 23 flags honoring all the host countries of the modern Games. If you're here in summer, you and the kids can frolic in the fountain (wear shirts and shoes, please), a good way to cool off in the sizzling Southern heat. Don't be shy. Just about everybody in Atlanta has done this at one time or another. If getting drenched is not your thing, you can still enjoy one of the concerts put on by the fountains. Seven songs are programmed to play during timed sequential water and light displays. The water jets, which normally shoot 12 feet into the air, can reach 35 feet during special effects.

Located along the east border are the Quilt Plazas, five plazas of contrasting bricks that tell the story of the Centennial Olympic Games. The best "quilt" is also the most moving. Titled the Quilt of Remembrance, it pays homage to the bombing victims and contains colored marble from five continents. Be sure to read the inscriptions on its borders.