Pool Fun!

Need we say more?

Go Bucks!

Wow! What a student union complete with chandeliers! It was a fun walk through Ohio State seeing the old and the very new--and all large--buildings.  We played aerobie on the Oval, laughed at duck antics at Mirror Lake, and chatted about college life. North campus has really changed! Curl Drive isn't even there anymore! How the heck do college kids get dropped off and picked up at the dorms?? Does the university provide dollies?!

We strolled down High St and ate lunch at Moy's Chinese restaurant. The owner was so much fun! She gave Adelaide a tutorial in using chopsticks and then gave each of the kids their own set.  Dessert was a stop at Buckeye Donuts. So happy to see it still in business! Our last stop was SBX. I was amazed to see it still going although sad to see Long's all boarded up. The talk up and down High St from all the merchants was how Ohio State has purchased all the stores (bars) on High St and the various rumors of what was coming in (Target, hotel, parking garage). SBX staff reported they have 2-3 years to find a new home. I was also amazed at the dramatic change in the south part of High St. At one time that was the seedy end but now it seems quite trendy and makes the north part seem run down.

Lots of good memories. I was happy to return after many years! And yes, I left campus with apparel although no sweatshirts because I still have my originals!!

bw-3

On our way back from the Serpent Mound, we began discussing dinner options. I thought it would be fun to take a walk down memory lane and sought out BW-3's which was a hop, skip, and jump from my college dorm (and we all felt like hopping, skipping, and jumping there on Tuesday 10 cent wing night!). My Google results kept showing up Buffalo Wild Wings though--slightly down the street from the original location. From there I had the dawning realization that the restaurant I have been to in Peabody, MA is an offshoot of our little Tuesday night hole in the wall. I was so sad!  Then I was happy that the owners were so successful. Then I was sad again. Because the Buffalo Wild Wing chain is nothing, NOTHING compared to the awesome little place it was with the yummiest wings to which I compare all others.  And all you OSU friends...Why has no one let me in on this?? This is almost tragic. I would prefer to have learned they had gone out of business.

Anyway, we dined there. I ordered 10 medium with chips ( they had cheese. Really?). The sauce tasted the same--tasty. However, the wings were fair and the atmosphere was like any other of their restaurants.  Obnoxious with all the screens and too loud.  When I asked for memorabilia there was only one young server who could point it out to me:  the buffalo head, the outside sign, and a sign I could barely remember which I think hung inside. Sigh.

And double sigh...across the street right next to good ol' Taylor Tower are these humongous new dorms. I can hardly believe there was space for them there. Tomorrow we visit campus. I am afraid I may be doing a lot of sighing.

Although UDF is still across the street and you can still buy laffy taffy there!

Serpent Mound

This afternoon we road-tripped to Peebles, Ohio in the southwestern part of the state where we visited the Great Serpent Mound. It is an effigy mound which means it was built in the shape of an animal.  Many effigy mounds and burial mounds  were destroyed as settlers cleared land for farming but there are several prime examples of both of these types in Ohio.

On our way to the Serpent Mound , we read up on it and the more we read the more conflicting viewpoints we encountered concerning the age and the builders. From the most recent information, it seems that it was constructed by the Adena culture (same as the Miamisburg Mound) but was reconstructed or repaired by a later indigenous culture.  It is 1,348 feet long and stands 3-4 feet tall.  It is built on a bluff overlooking a creek and strangely was the site of a meteor landing long before the area was inhabited. The builders would not have seen any evidence of this but perhaps the soil and stone ended up having some property good for building. Just conjecture on our part.  The grounds had a viewing tower which made it much easier to see the whole shape of the serpent.  Additionally there was a nice walkway around it.  Apparently there is still ongoing research being done and it would have been fascinating to learn more about recent work but we arrived after the museum had closed.

The Serpent Mound is being considered as a UNESCO World Heritage site!! As you may remember from previous posts, we seem strangely attracted to these sites.  Do we get extra points for seeing one before it is official?!

The surrounding area was very rural with many, many farms between rolling hills.  It reminded me of the area I grew up in northeastern Ohio but minus the cows! Do they stop raising cows in southern Ohio?  The kids got a kick out of southern Ohio drawl which is also so different from the north. But that heavy, humid air has been just the same!

If you have any interest in reading up about this mound, you may want to try these two sites. The Wikipedia site is pretty thorough. The other site provides info about the most recent dating.  Oh and by the way-- there is Boston connection here! Isn't that crazy?! An archeologist from Harvard, Frederic Ward Putnam, did early studies here and brought it to the attention to the Ladies of Boston who secured the land and deeded it to the Peabody Museum of Harvard. It was transferred to the Ohio Historical Society in 1900. Who knew!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serpent_Mound

http://ancientearthworksproject.org/1/post/2014/07/new-radiocarbon-dates-suggest-serpent-mound-is-more-than-2000-years-old.html

Miamisburg Mound

John had business in town so we joined him to see this mound which is reported to be one of the largest conical mounds in the eastern United States.  It is around 65 feet tall and 800 feet in circumference. It was constructed by the Adena culture who lived in the area from 800 B.C. to 100 A.D.  It was partially excavated in 1869 and a skeleton was found eight feet down covered with bark. Further down there was evidence of ash and stonework.  The interpretative plaques show photos that show it was tree-covered at one point. Presently it seems as if there is an annual controlled burn to keep the vegetation in control.  http://www.miamisburg.org/miamisburg_mound_park.htm

On to the Great Serpent Mound!

The Great Lakes Science Center

We tried out the Cleveland science museum today. It is in a great location on the waterfront. Isaac and Mama did an in-depth exploration of the space exhibit then built a model of a carbon nanotube which ended up being as tall as Isaac! Nicholas and Adelaide spent most of their time trying out the interactive exhibits. The boys also played a game of checkers on a huge, outdoor checkerboard. These giant colorful critters were on the lawn I'm front of the museum. We saw an assortment of meerkats, snails, and wolves in a variety of colors and arrangements.

James Garfield Memorial

Trivia Time!  What number president  was Garfield?

Also at Lakeview Cemetery we stopped in at the Garfield Memorial. It is an impressive building with spiral steps to a balcony overlooking Lake Erie and Cleveland. Nicholas was surprised to see how close we were to the lake. The middle section hosts a statue of Garfield surrounded by beautiful Tiffany stained glass windows. The president and his wife are laid to rest in a crypt at the bottom in two coffins side by side. This cemetery was a successful and interesting stop for everyone.

The Real Weeping Angel

Today we stopped by Lakeview Cemetery in Cleveland. A person from the main office was kind enough to lead us to the graves of our ancestors (those friendly Ohio folks). Afterwards he showed us the Haserot angel.  The angel actually weeps due to the bronze make-up of the sculpture. The torch the angel is holding is upside down symbolizing "life extinguished.". We stumbled upon this at the web site Atlas Obscura which is a treasure trove of interesting and quirky destinations. http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-haserot-angel

Mike's Pastry

And other fun Staycation destinations in Boston!  We might not have traveled anywhere exotic over April break but we had a fun-filled, jam-packed 27 hours in Beantown.  We did a few of the touristy things like strolling around Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall and riding the Swan Boats. The most memorable though will be our Duck Boat tour! It was entertaining and a little informative and we had fun quacking at pedestrians, police officers, and other duck boats. But the highlight was at the tail end--literally!! The ladder on the back end of poor Penelope Pru (the name of our duck boat) got jammed and we couldn't get off! After some time spent pushing, pulling, and clanging the staff rolled out a wheelchair lift and hand cranked the Notte's to safety. We were greeted by the photographer who presented our photos to us compliments of the duck due to our troubles. No sooner did he hand them to us when Pru's ladder came down. Wonder if the other riders were compensated as nicely?

We also got off the beaten path--something we always enjoy. We stopped by the Mapparium in the Mary Eddy Library (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mapparium).  It is a 30 foot amazing stained glass globe. It was designed to be an emblem for the international focus of the Christian Science Publishing Society. It was completed in 1935 and has not been updated so the countries reflect that time. Being that large, the viewer could notice details and distances that might be noticed on a desktop globe, but not necessarily processed. For instance, Chile's coast is really raggedy the further south you go. The northern part of Russia is REALLY north and Cape Horn is pretty far south and not that far from Antarctica! The Mapparium also has some surprising acoustics. If you have a secret to tell, don't whisper it here.  The spherical walls reflect back sound forming a whispering gallery. You could stand at one end and whisper sweet nothings to your loved one at the other end and they (as well as the many strangers standing nearby) would hear it loud and clear!  While in the area, we also visited 6 Clearway St. From the outside window and front door entry it looks like any other convenience store. But walk to that Snapple vending machine in the back and the doors part allowing you to enter the hidden shoe store, Bodega. There is no other entrance! We didn't buy a single thing or stay very long for that matter. But it felt satisfying to be "in the know."

We also were adventurous with our meals. We took a T trip to Cambridge to find the highly regarded Ethiopian restaurant, Asmara. We sat at a mesob, a woven table in which a platter of food is placed. All the items were stew-like and are eaten with injera which is a flat sour dough bread. The opinions were mixed about the serving style and the spiciness of the food, but all in all it was great exposure to something new. We also had Dim Sum in Chinatown. That was another great experience. There was some unease at the beginning since none of our servers spoke English and we had to point and nod. However, the good food and willingness of our servers to please soon put everyone at ease.

Boston is such a great city! How fortunate we are to be able to zip right in. Some of us are already planning our next excursions!

Papa Travels Solo!

Wishing we could have jumped in the luggage!  John is in Australia for a couple of weeks.  Here is the first view of Brisbane.  Melbourne and Sydney are on his itinerary.  Hopefully he will dispatch some of our sneaky cards so we can track them to far-flung places!  http://sneakycards.com/