Don’t say there’s nothing to do
Last weekend we decided to take advantage of the nice weather and affordable entertainment and traveled to German Village to see the Actor’s Theatre presentation of Robin Hood at Schiller Park.
We packed a cooler and headed downtown. Knowing that the Freeway is under construction (when isn’t it?), we decided to take the Neil Ave. exit off of I-670. As soon as we had committed ourselves to that exit we knew we had made a mistake. We forgot that the hugely popular Com Fest was in full swing. Once we fought our way through that mess we found ourselves in another traffic jam. It seems the Clippers were playing that night. We patiently worked our way through the sports enthusiasts when we found ourselves, once again, in another line of cars snaking its way to the Picnic with the Pops.
We finally reached our destination at Schiller Park only to find another huge crowd gathering on the knoll of the amphitheatre. Fortunately, there is always room for one more at an outdoor event with lawn seating.
Mayor Coleman should be proud. He has worked for years to bring more activities and people to downtown Columbus. He has suffered some criticism for spending money on various buildings, parks, and improvements; but all the work has not been in vain. The beautiful new Columbus Commons, now the permanent home of Picnic with the Pops, looked to be almost to capacity with approximately 8,000 attending that night.
Huntington Park, the new home of the Columbus Clippers, farm team for the Cleveland Indians, has won several awards. I’m not sure if it was a sell-out last Saturday night but my observation was that the event was well attended.
We weren’t able to drive past the new Scioto Riverfront Park but I’m sure there must have been many people strolling past the park and enjoying the beautiful gardens, fountains, swings and benches.
No matter your taste or background there was something for everyone that night. For the hippies, original hippies, and wanna’be hippies there was the Com Fest with all the rock music, tie dye T-shirts and miscellaneous stuff associated with that era you could absorb. Sports fans had the Clippers and for more sophisticated tastes there was Picnic with the Pops and Actor’s Theatre. A concert was happening at Promo West, CAPA’s summer movie series at the Ohio Theatre was presenting Hello Dolly, and many other people were enjoying a leisurely dinner at the various restaurants and on their patios.
This coming weekend there will be more of the same. Many venues will be finding various ways to celebrate the Fourth of July beginning with the traditional Red, White, and Boom celebration along the riverfront on July 3. The rejuvenated Ohio Village is planning an old-fashioned Independence Day celebration, CAPA’s summer movie series will have James Cagney’s Yankee Doodle Dandy and Picnic with the Pops will feature patriotic tunes including The Stars and Stripes Forever and The Battle Hymn of the Republic.
In addition to the downtown activities each local community usually has its own parade and fireworks so check local papers for the times. If you are looking for something out of the ordinary, there is the Doo Dah Parade in the Short North the afternoon of the fourth.
Columbus is a happening place, whether downtown or in your own community. There is entertainment for every taste and budget whether it is running through the fountains at Easton or the splash park at the Scioto Mile, downing brats and beer at a ball park, or dinner and theatre at many of our excellent restaurants and venues. If you live in the Columbus area never say, “There’s nothing to do.”
NOTE—for a detailed schedule of events see Upcoming Events at www.homekeynotes.com.
English: Man riding a monowheel in the 2011 Doo Dah Parade, Columbus, Ohio. Parade route viewed on W. 2nd Ave. in The Short North. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
http://capa.com/presentations/current-season-presentations/capa-summer-movie-series-2012
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