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Cleveland FAM 2008

PERSONAL STORIES

Positively Cleveland

I think I found out the future of American cities: "The Cleveland Method".

Cleveland probably has all the factors of attraction that a large city usually offers: culture, art, business centers and key spots for tourists to visit, nevertheless some things are done differently there. A huge deal of attention is paid to the development of more public spaces, wider streets, investment in more Cultural institutions, museums and major financial businesses. In fact, bus service has been expanded in order to provide a better assistence for the user, therefore not only people can take a bus to go to a museum but also a private so-called "Lolly The Trolley" which sells a great variety of city tours and special holiday tours.

When it comes to lodging, several large and small hotels are gathered right downtown.The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) has an on-line map where names and facts about hotels located downtown and close to several exhibit halls are shown, making it easier for visitors to plan their trip. An interesting point that I was able to witness was the fact that hotels which are usually competing to organize conventions always team up when it comes to large conventions that require more effort and budget.

Lolly the Trolley

There is so much public art on every block that a guidebook would probably be too heavy to carry with... Civic, social and music history expos are in walking distance from every hotel. Museums and theaters are everywhere. A revealing fact about Cleveland is that living expenses aren't that expensive and living standars are pretty much the same as other major cities.

Among the attractions, the "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the "Football Hall of Fame" are located here. In order to spend the best time ever in those places, keep in mind yoour favourite music style, artist or sport player when visiting due to the impressive amount of material exposed here. In my case, I looked for the exhibits that had to do with the Brooklyn NY born Vince Lombardi. It just gives a theme to hang the visit on. While being there, I went for a short talk on the history of football helmets. Let me tell you the “old timers” with the leather helmets were unbelievably tough!

Cleveland Library

The Cleveland Public Library is downtown and contains a reading park with sculptures designed by Maya Lin (who designed the Vietnam Veterans’ memorial in Washington, DC) and Brooklyn NY resident, Tom Otterness. It also houses a Baseball History collection and Chess collection although the greatest exhibit may be the building itself. Take some time to wander around it.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Still not enough “cultcha”? Then how about the University Circle where the Cleveland Botanical Garden, Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Western Reserve Historical Society are located. I guess what I've been trying to say is that Cleveland should be considered when traveling for a long weekend, but you'll probably might never leave. The site for visitor’s information is: