After three weeks, I am wrapping up our visit to Cleveland and Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Our family has learned a ton of cool things about Cleveland and camping.
Ohio is the kind of state that has you noticing things. Here are some cool facts about Ohio:
State Bird – Cardinal (1933)
State Flower – Red Carnation (1904)
State Insect – Ladybug (1975)
State Beverage – Tomato Juice (1965)
Do you notice a theme? Does Ohio have you seeing red? If you’re from Ohio, you probably bleed red for Ohio Sate University too, especially during football season. Oh, and let’s not forget that the 2016 Republic National Convention will be held in Cleveland. (If you’re not familiar with the U.S. political party system, Republican dominant states are known to be red states, and Democratic dominant states are considered blue states.)
Before our trip, I made a lot of assumptions about Cleveland. I thought Cleveland was mainly an industrial town, much like Detroit’s car industry. In fact, The Drew Carey Show was based in Cleveland and that was the extent of my knowledge of the city, but Cleveland has undergone tremendous revitalization efforts under Mayors George Voinovich and Michael R. White. Travel and Leisure and several other entities included Cleveland as part of its most livable top city lists on U.S. and international lists. The city makes the arts and sciences accessible to the community, promotes ethnic and cultural diversity, serves fine and casual dining, maintains a national park treasure, and has acclaimed health institutions and offers affordable housing to continue the city’s thriving growth.
It is also evident in the city’s updated baseball stadium, Progressive Field. In 1995 Cleveland hosted the World Series match up between the Cleveland Indians and the Atlanta Braves. A 2008 Sports Illustrated reader poll ranked the stadium as one of the top ranking baseball fields. Let’s not also forget about Fast Energy Stadium, Cleveland’s multi-use stadium and home of the Cleveland Browns football team.
If you’d missed any of my posts about Cleveland’s fantastic museum and cultural food scene or our first experience camping at Cuyahoga Valley National Park, check out these photos and click on the links below.
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1. TRAVEL: Cleveland Museum of Art
2. TRAVEL: Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland
3. TRAVEL: Cleveland’s Steamship William G. Mather
4. TRAVEL: Cleveland’s West Side Market
5. TRAVEL: Chagrin Falls, Home of Calvin and Hobbes & Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream
6. TRAVEL: Cuyahoga Valley National Park
7. Six Different Styles of Camping
A huge thanks goes out to our friends, Rachael and John, for giving us excellent recommendations to see Cleveland. If we had more time, and if our kids were older, we might have checked out a baseball game and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Next time, Cleveland, next time.
Up next? Our recent beach travel trips around the Midwest. Until next time…
From my hometown to yours,
Betty
