CLEVELAND EXPEDITION!!

GOOD NEWS!!  If you are a fan of a favorite, vintage holiday movie, you do not have to wait until December to relive some of your favorite scenes!   Instead, plan a trip to Cleveland, Ohio, and tour the actual house shown in the movie, A Christmas Story  ( www.AChristmasStoryHouse.com ).  A photo of this famous facade is shown in the photo below:

And, thankfully, as the sign on the outside shows, it is open year round for tours and photos!  In fact, there is a lodging property nearby, where you can spend the night!  This is not a typical historic house tour where you are not allowed to touch anything.  Rather, they encourage you to sit in the chairs, lounge on the couch, and even get your photo made under the sink, if desired!  In a nod to the famous scene in the movie where the little boy hides under the sink, to escape his father's wrath, I crawled under the sink myself, for the photo op shown below:

Have your picture made with the famous "leg lamp" that has become an iconic symbol of this movie!  Replicas of this lamp are widely available now, and my daughter-in-law gave one of them to my son, (whose name, "Grover", is also the first name of character Grover Dill in the movie.)

And in their gift shop (shown below) you can purchase that famous leg lamp in its original size, or dozens of smaller versions that are available.  As you can see from the photo, there are plenty of the pink, bunny shoes and bunny pajamas to choose from, as well.  If running shoes are more of your speed than bunny house shoes, then you might be interested to know there is a running/walking event held every December, that uses props from the movie in their logo.  This year it will be December 7. 2019.  Check out their website to register or get more information ( www.AChristmasStoryRun.com )

If you want to see Cleveland from the water, book yourself a trip on the Nautica Queen.  It is shown here at its mooring location on the Cuyahoga River, which flows into Lake Erie 

The night our group took a cruise, the weather was warm and sunny when we started, so I wanted to check out the upper deck, to take advantage of its excellent height for taking photographs!

As we sailed out of the Cuyahoga River, and onto Lake Erie, our captain came over the loud speaker, and told us to be sure and notice one of the entries in the  Tall Ships Festival, that was beside us, full of waving passengers, and would-be sailors. 

The captain told us that we were seeing the Appledore IV and Appledore V, which were the only ships that were taking out paying passengers, for a cruise on Lake Erie.  I had been one of those paying passengers who had taken a cruise on a "pirate sailing ship", when attending the Tall Ships Festival in Portland, Oregon.  Likewise, I used Ticketmaster, to purchase tickets for a sailing ship event in Tacoma a while back, at their event called "Festival of Sail".  The moral of this story is, make the effort to get a ticket to actually go out on one of these sea-faring vessels, and it will give you a whole new appreciation for those early adventurers, who sailed across the ocean with no clue of what lay on the other side of the horizon!

The Appledore IV is owned and operated by BaySail, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization based in Bay City, Michigan.  They have offered more than 40,000 students an educational program aboard Appledore IV.  The Appledore V is also owned and operated by BaySail, and serves as an integral part of a youth sail training program "Windward Bound", which has five to ten day voyages where trainees are involved in every aspect of running the ship.

The Nautica Queen cruise I was on, was called a sunset dinner/sightseeing cruise, and the views at sunset did not disappoint!  The photo above shows the sun, as it slowly sinks into Lake Erie.

We saw plenty of interesting sights as we cruised the waters around Cleveland, and also were able to get a nice view of the Cleveland skyline at twilight. 

One the second day of this visit to Cleveland, our group went to the area of the city known as "Playhouse Square" (www.playhousesquare.org )  The gigantic "light fixture" shown in the photo above, has the reputation for being  America's largest outdoor chandelier, and I can tell you it is a magnificent sight to behold, with the sun illuminating those thousands of crystals, as it rises through the morning, in downtown Cleveland.  The chandelier was added in the last few years, to unify the various attractions that make up the theater district of town.

Our group toured several of the theaters, including the one where the new musical, Come From Away, was scheduled to be part of the 2018-2019 Key Bank Broadway Series, from July 9-28, 2019.  Seeing this merchandise booth in their lobby made me even more excited to see the actual play later that day!

  In the meantime, our group went down to the North Coast Harbor wharf, where the 2019 Cleveland Tall Ships Festival ( www.tallshipscle.com )was taking place.  This is a tri-annual event in Cleveland, so start making plans now, to go to the next one, which will be in 2022.  When I go back in 2022, I want to do an activity I observed while touring the ships----that is, individuals paddling around the ships on Stand-up Paddleboards ( SUP ), and kayaks.  I read that these are available for rent at Great Lakes Watersports, located at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River. 

Tall Ships Festival had not been to Cleveland since 2013, so they were excitedly telling folks they could expect to see 10 replica, and restored, traditionally-rigged, sailing ships, representing the U.S., Canada and New Zealand.

In a nod to festival presenter Tall Ships America's commitment to education and preservation, these awe-inspiring ships are partially staffed by young sailors between the ages of 13 and 25. 

A general admission festival ticket allowed attendees to climb aboard and tour the ships.

Once inside the controlled-access area of the harbor, visitors could enjoy the live music, food, drinks, and sailing-related gift vendors. 

From the Tall Ships Festival location, our group took the short walk along the water, to get to the famous Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  I have written about this Cleveland landmark, in a previous blog, so the reader can view the saga of me and the blue suede shoes, in the blog archives (September 12, 2008).  For other information on planning a visit here, check out their extensive website at www.rockhall.com  If you want to be inundated with photos of the place just look up #LONGLIVEROCK in your computer's search engine.  ( #LONGLIVEROCK ) 

This photo shows a tourist family, who is taking advantage of the opportunity to have a "garage band" recording session, using instrument and sound equipment, provided by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  If your group is interested in trying this, I would recommend going on a day with low visitation numbers, because on the Saturday I visited, there was a very long line of folks waiting to be part of the Studio A Garage Band experience!

Our group also fit in a quick visit to the Cleveland Museum of Art, shown in the photo to the left.  I was very impressed how the architects had used a glass roof to form a sunny atrium that united the "old" Museum of Art building on the right, to the new, and more modern architecture of their facility, on the left side of photo. 

After dark, the group I was in made it back to Playhouse Square, so that we were able to see what America's Largest Outdoor Chandelier looks like after dark.  It was even more stunning than when I had seen it in the morning, lit up only by the rays of the sun!

This is a photo of the playbill and ticket for the musical we saw on Saturday evening, July 13.  Notice the prices here are much more reasonable than Broadway theaters!!  This production was FANTASTIC!!  I especially found it touching because it used a Bible reference, Philippians 4:6, as an integral part of the story.  That verse says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God;"  If I say much more, it might be a "spoiler" for those who have not seen the play, so instead, let this be a "teaser" to make you put it on your "Must See" list!

The final day of our trip, our Destination Cleveland hostess took us on a walking tour of downtown Cleveland.  The statue and fountain shown in photo above are actually the "roof" of the Cleveland Convention Center.  The front of the Convention Center opens out to expansive views of Lake Erie.  Similar walking tours (Free of Charge!) are offered from May 14 through September 15.  Since city walking tours are sometimes called "Urban Hikes", it is not surprising that this service is called "Take A Hike", and folks can learn more at www.TakeAHikeCLE.com .

The vintage photo on the left shows an impressive structure that was a bank, during the Gilded Age of Cleveland.  Since then, the majestic looking edifice has been converted into a swanky grocery store, called Heinen's:

 This is a view of the first floor coffee shop, taken from the second story balcony.  When standing on the balcony, it also enables the visitor to get a good view of the architecture of the space:

This photo shows the viewer the intricacies of the inside dome:

For those who do not want to get dressed and go downtown, Heinen's also offers on-line grocery shopping, and you can find out more on their website at www.heinens.com .

Thanks to Heinen's Grocery Store, downtown Cleveland is not a "food desert" area!   (Food desert is a term nutritionists use, to refer to an urban area where it is difficult to find fresh produce to purchase for home use.)

The old name of the building is still visible in stone, but the new name of its occupant, is also prominently displayed on the outside.

Another former bank building that has been repurposed, is the Holiday Inn Express where our group stayed.  The rooms were very large, and had the original ( and beautiful! ) hardwood floors that were in the bank , when it served as an office location.  More information available at www.holidayinnexpress.com .

Another incredible bank building that has been repurposed as an elegant restaurant, Corn, is where our group visited to tour and have lunch.

We had the experience of passing through this incredible vault door, to get to the private dining area, designed for groups such as ours.  

I hope you can tell from what I have written that Cleveland is a destination that is outstanding in the variety and quality of experiences that a visitor can enjoy.  That is why I hope you will go there, so that you, like me, will "Come From Away" with "MILES OF SMILES"!!    Tricia

If you have never been to Cleveland, Ohio, you need to go!!  Likewise, if you have been to Cleveland in the past, but not recently, you need to go!!  I learned SO MUCH by talking to representatives from "Destination Cleveland".  Destination Cleveland ( destinationcle.org ) is a private, non-profit convention and visitors bureau whose mission is to drive economic impact and stimulate community vitality for Cleveland through memorable leisure, convention, and business travel experiences.  They publish a wonderful magazine , known as the Cleveland Official Visitors Guide ( www.ThisIsCleveland.com ), and have an extensive presence on twitter, facebook, instagram, youtube, pinterest, and trip advisor.  Their official hashtag is #ThisisCLE

COLUMBUS, OHIO EXPEDITION!

Columbus, Ohio, often "flies below the radar" when it comes to group travel.  But if you have not experienced Columbus, Ohio, in a few years, it is time to check out all their new attractions!  The website www.ExperienceColumbus.com will give you all the information you need to start planning your trip!

  You will see flowers of all kinds when you go to the Franklin Park Conservatory (www.fpconservatory.org ), and you can see a butterfly take its first flight ever!  Photo below shows the "blooms" part of the "Blooms and Butterflies" experience.

Getting to release a butterfly, born at the conservatory, for its first flight ever was a unique experience for me!

I always enjoy an opportunity to view glass works of art by Dale Chihuly, and the Franklin Park Conservatory had multiple examples:

The orange and yellow glass flowers of this installation, seemed to be suspended in space, near the roof of the conservatory!

The blue glass spires seem to be growing out of the ground, just like the live plants that surround them!

These pieces, or some very similar to these, were also recently on display at a Chihuly exhibit at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Our guide told us that one of the elements used to get the desired color in these green and yellow glass pieces---uranium---had to be sourced from Czechoslovakia, because artists are not allowed to purchase uranium in the United States.

The red and yellow glass art suspended from the ceiling and shown in this photo appears to just be another one of the natural plants!

At the Franklin Conservatory, a very fun experience we had, was making pasta from scratch---something I had never done before!  Our group was divided into teams of four people, and, after a demonstration by the conservatory's teaching chef, we were given the ingredients and tools we needed to make our own homemade noodles!  These were then cooked by the conservatory staff, and we enjoyed a dinner we made ourselves!

If you can recall all those state capitols you learned in elementary school, you will know that Columbus is the capitol of Ohio, and this is a photo of their state capitol building, taken from inside our motorcoach, as we parked in front of the capitol for a photo opportunity, and brief description of the building and statues outside.

I enjoyed the opportunity to go inside the St. Mary Catholic Church ( www.stmarygv.org ), and see the amazing restoration work that has been done there, since the building was struck by lightning several years ago.

Our guide told us about the history of the church, which is located in the "German Village" neighborhood of Columbus.  It was clear to all of us the deep and sincere emotions he experienced when the church was in a state of disarray after structural problems were discovered following the lightning strike.  It reminded me of the stories in the Old Testament book of Haggai, which recount a situation where people were adorning their personal residences with the finest of materials, while their house of worship was in shambles.  The excuse the people used is stated here:  Haggai 1:2 says, "The time has not come, the time that the LORD'S house should be rebuilt."   Then, the rebuke the prophet Haggai delivered in 1:4 says, "Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins??!!"  But the visitors to this church in Columbus can be thankful that the necessary funds were procured to make this once again, a vibrant and functional space in which to worship God.

The information on the importance of this church in the early development of the city, is spelled out in the bronze placard put up by the Ohio Bicentennial Commission.

A somewhat new attraction to Columbus is the Veterans Memorial Museum, shown in the photo to the left ( www.nationalvmm.org )

When one has strolled its exhibits to the very top, they can walk out onto the patio/amphitheater on top of the building, and get a nice view of the Columbus Skyline, as well as the greenspace/park, known as the Scioto Mile.  Scioto is the name of the river that runs through Columbus. 

These colorful flags adorn the lobby of the Veterans Memorial Museum, and are a reminder that one of the purposes of the facility is to preserve the oral histories and stories of individual men and women who have served in our military forces over the decades. 

I was very thankful to get to visit the Kelton House, and see a presentation by a re-enactor, known as Mrs. Kelton. (www.keltonhouse.com )

Mrs. Kelton told us the history of this stately mansion, and how it played an integral part in the Underground Railroad network, that helped runaway slaves make it to freedom in Canada. 

Another new-to-me experience our group had in Columbus, was at the Candle Lab ( thecandlelab.com ).  At this fun place, we were able to sample the dozens of different aromas, (shown on the wall of the room in this photo), and then choose the aroma that we wanted to use for the candle each of us would make ourselves.  I chose Coconut, and it provided a wonderful souvenir keepsake of my visit to Columbus!

One of the things that helps make Columbus such a vibrant city, is that it is the location of Ohio State University, whose sports teams have the nickname "Buckeyes" ( www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com ).  The group got to do a behind-the-scenes tour of their gigantic stadium, known as "The Horseshoe" because the original design of the stadium was in the shape of a horseshoe.  This photo was taken from the pressbox, where we were able to pretend to be radio/television announcers, giving a play by play account of the football game!

Our tour guide at the Ohio State Stadium was a gentleman who had been there for years, and knew a myriad of trivia facts about the Ohio State Buckeyes, that you will probably never read about in the record books!

This photo shows what the President's Box looks like, for those who are important enough to secure an invitation to watch the game in these climate controlled conditions. 

The first photo I showed of the press box was taken from the lower level, and this photo was taken from the next level up.  That tells you it will accommodate a great many media representatives!

The football stadium at Ohio State is the first one I have ever visited that had stained glass windows, at least two stories high!  In fact, they had not only one of these windows, but THREE!

No trip to Columbus, Ohio, would be complete, without a visit to the famous Columbus Zoo!  Our group had the added blessing of going to the Africa Event Center, for an activity called "Breakfast with the Giraffes" .  We were treated to a delicious buffet breakfast, and then given tickets that would get us into the area where we could hand feed a giraffe some giant leaves of romaine lettuce.  It was great fun, and a zoo staff member is on hand to get photos of you feeding the remarkable animals.

You can find out about more interactive opportunities at the zoo by visiting their website at www.columbuszoo.org

In addition to the giraffe experience, a   trainer also brought in some unique animals to allow us to get up close and personal , including petting them, if we so desired!  Of course, this provided ample photo opportunities, as you can see from the folks in the picture, who all have their cell phone cameras recording the moment, for posterity!

Zoo guests also have the opportunity to take a ride on a camel!  Although you cannot see it in this photo, the camel is "tethered" to a trainer, and is being led around a secure enclosure within the African area of the zoo. 

After our visit to the zoo was over, we all met back at the African Safari Event Center, where we could continue to view the animals on the savanna just out the doors, or simply chat/visit while enjoying cool drinks. 

I feel very fortunate to  have had this opportunity to see in person, all the experiences that await a tourist, in Columbus, Ohio.  A group tour is a fantastic way to get through the city, as the motorcoach driver can be the one who has to worry about finding a parking place, as opposed to what happens if an individual has to drive to an attraction, and then find a parking space.  This makes me a big fan of group tours!

I like to spend my money on experiences, and not so much on things.  That is one reason, I liked the name of the Columbus website to promote tourism to the city.  It is called EXPERIENCE Columbus, and that is exactly what our group did, with numerous HANDS ON EXPERIENCES in Columbus.  So make a visit there, and I hope, that you---like me, will come away with "MILES OF SMILES"!!    Tricia