Ohio: The Whole State

I have spent a lot of time in Ohio. Its the only other state I have actually lived in. I am, in general, pretty fond of the state, especially to the south. It is without a doubt worth a visit. Since I haven't put anything up in the last few days, I thought I would take a moment to mention some of my favorite things in the state, by location. I've talked about much of it before, but there is still a lot more to cover.

Cincinnati
I have really become a fan of the city. LaRosa's Pizza alone is worth the drive north. There are plenty of malls and shopping areas, and I have already covered Jungle Jim's and the Golden Lamb.

This is the starting point of Ohio and you know it as soon as you go over the bridge. Several Kentucky towns benefit from their nearness. I love Florence. I go up for ballgames all the time, and the mall there is a great place to kill some time. There is a Starbucks there that feels more like a small local place than a chain store. Yes, we've all seen the "Florence Ya'll" water tower a thousand times, but I still get a kick out of it.

How about Newport? The place is very happening. It always seems like a party atmosphere when I walk around down there. The aquarium can compete with any other around. Going to Newport would be a nice day trip for most in central or northern Kentucky.

For those into the weird, Bobby Mackey's is in Wilder Kentucky, it's still pretty much Cincinnati. I did drive by it once, when it was closed, and I got the creeps from the outside! Believe the hype on this one. The guys who run the Miamitown ghost tour have really established something too. I took their tour last Halloween and had trouble sleeping that night. It is the only ghost tour I have been on where I think I saw something. I turned to tell my friend Fako about what I thought I had witnessed, and she had seen the same shadow pass the same window! The guys that run this tour are a bit Lurch-like too. They have done their homework! I hope they continue doing their ghost walk.

Cincy would be a GREAT economical get-away for the family over a 3 or 4 day weekend. You can kill several hours in Jungle Jim's easily, be entertained, and not spend a dime. You could buy all sorts of unusual ethnic foods to try for $20 or so and make an affordable and unique light lunch out of it for the family.

Seeing the Reds or Bangles may be a little out of the budget for some large family's but seeing the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum next door could be just as satisfying. Adult tickets are around $10, and they have had free admission and specials at times in the past. For the sports fan on a tight budget, go see the Florence Freedom. You can get a good ticket for 5-10 bucks a person, you are MUCH closer to the action, and you will have a great time.

Last Halloween, we did a "spooky weekend" trip to the area. We stayed at the Golden Lamb, did the Miamitown Ghost Tour, and visited several locations in the spooky Ohio books. Cincinnati is a great place for those that enjoy getting spooked.

Akron
I worked in Akron for a little over a year. Go see an Aeros game. If you are there for awhile, drive over to Kent and check out the cool college vibe going on, or walk their downtown area. If you are in Akron longer than a few days leave.

Columbus
Columbus is a cool town, and I think, in some ways, many people outside of the area are not aware of how cool it is. There are really energetic music venues all around town. I saw my favorite band Equation more than once at the classy Thirsty Ear Tavern. This is a great venue that has pulled in some great acts (it was also the site of a brief onstage break up of Fairport Convention). I saw one of the best shows ever at Ludlow's: 10,000 Maniacs with Todd Snider opening.

Something really cool in Columbus is Easton. Easton is a massive in-door out-door type mall. I have seen other centers similar to it, but not nearly as nice. It is surrounded by other shopping areas and hotels. We have gotten a room at a near by hotel and hung out at Easton all weekend. Most hotels are about a 1-2 minute walk from the mall. It is big and well maintained. There is something for absolutely everyone here.

Oh, and Columbus has that fun German area! They have one super cool book store that seems to go on and on down there!

Cleveland
I must admit I have a love hate relationship with Cleveland. Check out the NASA visitor Center. It is small though. You have to be a science/space fan to really appreciate it.

Tower City Downtown is amazing. It is 3 stories of mall, under a couple buildings. Some of this area was used in the movie "Christmas Story" too. The house from the movie is near by too, for fans of the flick. Some of downtown Cleveland substituted for downtown New York in the 3rd Spider-Man movie. Fat Fish Blue is a fun Cajun lunch place/evening concert venue that I love right next to Tower City.

The Rock Hall is overrated.

Get away from downtown though, there are some cool areas on the east and west sides of Cleveland.

On the west side is probably the coolest coffee shop ever. Seriously. One thing I can say about Cleveland is there are MANY nice indy coffee shops. I can think of 3 or 4 that I really miss. The coolest one ever is Savor the Moment. It is cozy and family run. They have very nice lunches too. This is the kind of coffee shop you wish someone would open in your area. The people living near Rocky River drive are lucky, because someone did open it. The family that runs it is just a nice, sweet bunch. I'm not kidding, if you find yourself in Cleveland, go here. It is worth a little drive out of your way. Friendly places like this used to exist in the 50s, but even then they weren't this nice. Mostly only locals know about this place, which is sad. I wish it were franchised, but you can't franchise what they have going on here. Even if you order a large, caffeinated beverage here, and add a lot of sugar, you blood pressure will still go down it is so relaxing!
http://www.savor-the-moment.com/

On the corner of Lee and Van Aken is Kokopelli coffee. It's kind of between Shaker Heights and Beachwood (I think it's technically in Shaker Heights). Great coffee, GREAT veggie chili. Easily the best coffee place on the east side. This is another friendly indy place. There is a lot of foot traffic, and it might get crowded here, which is good, they deserve the business.

Visit Amish country. About half an our east of Cleveland (you can take Mayfield Rd all the way there) is Mesopotamia. The End of the Commons general store and other attractions are worth it. http://www.endofthecommons.com/

Squires Castle in the Mayfield Heights Metroparks area is a cool place. It's an abandoned stone building that was going to be the ground's keepers house to a castle that was never built. It is cool, and it is near a cool hiking area.

Visit the Coventry area if you find yourself in Cleveland. There are some cook book shops, restaurants, and one of the coolest novelty shops ever, Big Fun.

Mentor, outside of Cleveland has a fun mall, and the Lake County Captains baseball team is close (I have been to MANY Captains games, I love this team). For those who are interested in the creepy, this area is a goldmine. Go hunting for the Melon Heads. Read up on some of the religious history of the area. Visit Rider's Inn (It's a B & B) in this area too. It is spooky. Have a nice dinner or stay for the night. There is often live music and the owner is a bit of a local legend. She is always happy to set at your table and tell you some ghost stories about the place.

The rest of the state
There is still a lot more. Toledo has the Mud Hens, some other indy pro sports teams on the way, and a great art museum. They have a nice downtown area that can get hoppin'.
Dayton has the Dragons and the Air Force Museum. I will have to talk about the Air Force Museum more later, because I love it. Between Cincy and Dayton is the Touchdown Jesus statue. You will know it when you see it. If you have driven between those 2 cities you then have seen it.