We began with Ashley pensively in her room (that could have used a little straightening up or even just filming from a different angle), telling us that on the hometown dates we'll get to see the "real, genuine them," referring to the remaining guys. She hailed a cab after leaving her apartment (cutting costs, ABC?) and was on her way for her next step of her "journey."
The first date was with Constantine. Ashley and Connie visited his Georgia restaurant, Giorgio's. They bonded over pizza making while all his employees huddled together (we were graced with multiple shots of this) and fawned over how cute and sweet Ash and Con are together.
Time to meet the fam! I sense some Big Fat Greek Wedding references in the future if Ashley picks Connie and ABC undoubtedly airs the wedding (who am I kidding? The only Bachelorette relationship that has walked down the aisle is Trista's, circa 2003).
Connie's family was super warm and Ashley even declared that she was moving in (does this mean he lives there?). The clincher was the surprise at the end - when Connie's extended family joined the party and showed Ashley their Greek dancing moves! This brought me back to my Katsopolis roots and of course, Papouli (instead of flour, the uncle was showering them with money - guess that accounts for inflation!).
these aren't Connie's co-workers but wouldn't it be fun if they were? image courtesy of sidereel.com
Connie's family was super warm and Ashley even declared that she was moving in (does this mean he lives there?). The clincher was the surprise at the end - when Connie's extended family joined the party and showed Ashley their Greek dancing moves! This brought me back to my Katsopolis roots and of course, Papouli (instead of flour, the uncle was showering them with money - guess that accounts for inflation!).
image courtesy of youtube.com
Ames took Ashley on a picnic, only hoping to win her over with his Hallmark-esque "It's the best when the ordinary is the extraordinary," but unfortunately for him, the ordinary was only ordinary for her.
Ben-F.-the-wine-guy's date in Sonoma was sweet but pretty boring. His sister, Julia, signed him up for the Bachelorette, but seemed skeptical about the whole process. Julia also looked like she was reading off of index cards the entire time she spoke with Ashley. One Bachelorette-franchise positive to this date was that Ben "opened up" (I'm sure there was also a "connection" comment in there from Ash), and this earned him one of the coveted roses at the end.
image courtesy of nj.com
image courtesy of nj.com
JP's family kindly welcomed Ashley but warned both members of the happy couple that Ash better not break this guy's heart. JP skillfully answered the are-you-in-love question from his mom by saying "There are a lot of signs that point to it." Based on the previews for next week, the signs might end up being "Caution" and "Stop."
How I Met JP's Growing Pains? image courtesy of boston.com
When Ashley kicked Ames off, Ames looked like a lost puppy, and he either winked at the camera or had a nervous twitch in his eye. I also appreciated the handshake between the two of them - I think that alone solidified her decision. Poor Ames: "I was hoping to share a lifetime of adventures with this beautiful woman and now I'm back to sharing a lifetime of adventures with...myself, which is less enticing."
Ashley's "journey" is wrapping up - who's excited for the overnights where the boys have to act fauxprised when Ash reads them Chris's fantasy suite card?
