Osu
Columbus, O-H-I-O! (Travel BugSchool Girl)
Compared to its counterparts in Ohio, Columbus doesn’t get half of the recognition it deserves (and might even be getting dragged down). While Cleveland, Toledo, Akron, and Canton rank amongst the most miserable places to live in the USA, Columbus represents a lot of what those cities are not. And finding it may not require one looking much further than the state’s flagship university, Ohio State University, which is centrally located within Columbus and largely sets the tone of the city.
Ohio State is an absolutely massive university of about 52,500 students on its main campus in Columbus. That’s larger than the biggest city in West Virginia! Of course, these students need something to do when they’re not hitting the books, and their campus and city certainly bring forth a number of interesting and unique opportunities, a few highlights of which we’ll discover here!
Ohio Stadium. Ohio State is possibly best known nationally for its outstanding football program and to go along with that outstanding football program is Ohio Stadium, where everyone’s welcome unless you’re wearing or espousing anything positively portraying the University of Michigan. When completed in 1922, this stadium was the largest poured concrete structure in the world. Today it’s still impressive as the sixth-largest non-racing stadium in the world.
Orton Hall. After satisfying your inner athlete, you’ve got to feed your inner nerd. On campus, Orton Hall is built of 40 different types of building stone, all of which are found in Ohio! On the outside walls of the building the stones are laid in stratigraphic order according to their relative positions in Ohio's bedrock. Yup, this is nerdy stuff, but you’ll only find this at Ohio State!
Franklin Park Conservatory. This is truly a top-notch conservatory, featuring plant life from virtually every climate system globally. They also have a comprehensive collection of colorful and unique glass sculptures by Dale Chihuly cohabitating with the plants to really create a unique visual experience. Columbus winters are no joke, and a well-heated, warm, and colorful conservatory is not something you can ever go wrong with!
Not only is Columbus home to Ohio State, but it is also the capital of Ohio. Like most state capitals, the Ohio Statehouse is an impressive structure. Group, self-guided, and audio tours are available free of charge in this magnificent facility. Compared to the cities to its east and even to its south, Columbus is a relatively young in its development into a big city. The present Statehouse opened in 1861 and it truly serves as a window into Ohio’s diverse and fascinating past!
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places is German Village, a neighborhood just south of downtown Columbus that is rich in history. German Village is particularly scenic featuring some particularly outstanding parks, including Schiller Park, which often offers outdoor performances of classic theater productions throughout the summer. And of course, you’ll have to get your fix of schnitzel at Schmidt’s Sausage Haus!
Columbus also has some top-notch shopping! It boasts two premiere shopping complexes, Easton and Polaris. Both of these complexes can boast some of the finest shopping in the state (I know some places around Cincinnati might want to argue this). Either of these shopping malls could have been plucked right out of the affluent suburbs of Orange County, California.
Art and culture is also not lacking by any means in Columbus! There are monthly gallery hops in the ever-trendy Short North District, near Ohio State (where you can also indulge in some delicious Jeni’s Ice Cream!). Periodically, gallery hops are also held in other areas of the city, but the Short North never fails to be a good time!
So while Ohio might sound like a depressing or even just a boring state, it’s got a real gem for a state capital and is a great “college city”. So whether you’re thinking about applying to Ohio State or looking for a little road trip, Columbus is a great place to visit.
Photo credits: Ohio Stadium Rotunda - OZinOH (flickr); Franklin Park Conservatory - Tom Cox (flickr); Short North at Night - Nick Koogler (flickr, website)
Tags: ohio state capital, shopping, franklin park conservatory, culture, ohio, short north, osu, ohio stadium, columbus, ohio state