Photo Friday: C-Town Tour

My son and daughter-in-law visited us last weekend. We always try to find something fun to do while they're here, but I’ve been running low on new ideas. My husband, who usually doesn’t want to go downtown (because he works there), surprised us all with his version of a walking tour of Cleveland for six hours on Saturday! Here are some highlights:

This is Public Square with the Soldiers and Sailors Monument in the middle. Fun fact: You can't tell from the ground, but the entire ‘square’ is in the shape of a butterfly.

One of the bas-relief sculptures of Abraham Lincoln inside the Soldiers and Sailors Monument. Along the four walls are the names of the 9,000 people from Cuyahoga County who served in the Civil War. There are also glass cases containing Civil War artifacts. 

This is East 4th Street, one of the most popular places to dine in the city. Sadly, much of it was destroyed in the riots last year and many of the establishments are still rebuilding. Chef Michael Symon had two restaurants here, but now there's just one (Mabel's BBQ). It's located close to Progressive Field where the Indians play, so it gets quite busy on game nights. It looks really pretty at night.

This beautiful building is the Arcade. It opened in 1890 and was the first indoor shopping center in America. It was modeled after a galleria in Milan. It is truly visually stunning. While there are still some shops and places to eat, it's mostly used as an event venue and is popular for wedding receptions.

I've included this photo especially for my friend, Ron.  The May Company was one of Cleveland's old department stores, along with Higbee's (featured in The Christmas Story movie). When this building opened in 1915, it was the third largest department store in the U.S. It has now been transformed into luxury apartments.

Originally Cleveland Trust Bank, this gorgeous rotunda now houses the downtown location of a local grocery store chain. Again, thanks to the riots, it was shut down for almost a year while they rebuilt. Many were scared that they would close permanently, but fortunately, that didn't happen.

Looking up at the ceiling of the rotunda.

Smaller in size, this is the 5th Street Arcade. It has a kitschy collection of unusual stores, like a pawn shop, soap maker, and a tea lab.

This is the barbershop located in the 5th Street Arcade. It looks like a museum, but really is a working barbershop.

No trip is complete without walking past the Free Stamp, the world's largest office stamp!

While on our walking tour, we hit three different breweries along the way: Southern Tier, Masthead, and Noble Beast. Note: Vanilla Whipp IPA is my favorite beer ever and you can tell I took a big gulp of the one on the right before my daughter-in-law snapped the picture.

One of the breweries has weird photos in the ladies room. I had to take a picture of one.

Another Cleveland landmark is The Schofield, which was built in 1902 as an office building. In the 1960's, it was refaced to look more modern. Then, in 2010, all that was removed and the original terracotta was exposed again, revealing its original magnificence. It's now a boutique hotel and residence.

We did not walk down to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but it sits right along Lake Erie. It was designed by I.M. Pei. And yes, this is our usual weather of doom and gloom.

Along the Hall of Fame sidewalk. Buy Me A Star On the Boulevard, It’s Californication

We ended the day at my husband's favorite downtown restaurant, Taza's Lebanese Grill. We feasted on a hummos platter, kibbie, and soujouk to start. Pictured is my entree, fatteh, which consists of chicken, chickpeas, fried pita chips, tahini yogurt garlic sauce, and pine nuts. So good!

I hope you enjoyed our tour!