Cleveland Rocks.
Cleveland really does rock. This city not only pleasantly surprised me with loads to do in a short time but I was also lucky enough to catch it during the small chunk of the year it has perfect weather. Seriously, I keep hearing how the rest of the year is a lot more bleak. Driving downtown from the west, I came upon the skyline. Bridges were stacked in front of one another and started to come into the foreground on my right, high rises shot up as the view expanded into the full cityscape. Below them, brick buildings revealed their street openings like tunnels ready to be explored, and I'd come to find out later that night that Terminal Tower lights up like a rainbow. The empty and, albeit a bit sad, Cleveland Browns stadium sat on the water to my left next to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. One of which I was eager to pay a visit, can you guess which one? The world's largest chandelier hangs above a three way intersection in Playhouse Square, Cleveland's theater district, attracting kitsch seekers from across the country. The world's largest rubber stamp is not too far away either, towering over people at a whopping forty nine feet and reads "free," a nod to the Civil War. When I asked my couch surfing host, Suraj, about how he enjoyed living in Cleveland, among other things, he mentioned how it got way better after Lebron came back. I guess I never realized how big of a deal that move was. I should have figured it out on my own when I passed by the fourth building size ad for Nike doting Believeland's numero uno.
Every christmas my family does the same thing, as I'm sure most do. Depending on where Thatcher and I are, we either rent a movie and take in Chinese food or go to the movies and go out for Chinese food. Regardless of location, I like to start it off right with 24 Hours of A Christmas Story on ABC Family. No, I don't watch the whole 24 hours, it's usually on mute in the background after the first two times. As one of my all time favorite holiday movies, when I realized the house where the movie was filmed was in Cleveland, I made it my first stop. I bought my ticket and perused the gift shop wondering why there was a leg lamp sold in every form except patches and walked back out front to check out the house. The cute, two story, yellow abode with turquoise trim looked retro but well kept and the leg lamp was turned on and prominent in the front room window. It looks like the fourth of July! I thought as I took a picture with the iconic lamp that one day, mark my words, will be displayed in my own window. Fun fact, the original leg lamp doesn't exist. The film was made on a very tight budget so after the third take of the mom "dropping" it, they couldn't afford to make another one to keep. I smiled giddily and caressed the leg just like Ralphie, never forgetting that the major award was "fra-gee-lay" so I'd better be careful. We toured, took pictures, and I even managed to not shoot my eye out. If you haven't seen this movie, I honestly have no idea what you've been doing since 1983, but you should take two hours and catch up. I triple dog dare you.
It should surprise no one to hear that since San Francisco's break-in I'm still paranoid about Bertha. She's too full to unpack in every city and too full to completely city-ize her, although I do a damn good job at getting close. So, I did my research when I looked up couch surfing hosts and was lucky enough to stay with Suraj in Lakewood. The residential neighborhood of Cleveland made up of smaller homes and apartment buildings is bookended by two parks and on the border of Edgewater. I drove through this small, affluent neighborhood with rather large and charming homes of all styles wondering to myself, does he live here?! Staying with Suraj was so easy. From the moment I got there we clicked and it was obvious I had found my new couch surfing best friend. Lucky for me, he had lots of free time outside of work to hang out. Originally from India, some things are definitely lost in translation. I tried to explain who Jimmy Buffet was and the definition of "it's 5 o'clock somewhere" over a competitive game of darts while he showed me what I was missing in the world of Bollywood. We went to the night out at the natural history museum and walked among the dinosaurs with a local beer, danced like complete fools at one of the bars in East Flats, and walked through Edgewater Park at sunset to admire the city lights a few miles up the shoreline of Lake Erie. Like I said, I did a lot in my short time in Cleveland.
Hanging out at night left me plenty of solo time during the day to explore Cuyahoga Valley National Park just outside of Cleveland. If you're surprised by that statement, I was too. It's thought of as a metro park due to its proximity to the city, although it's more rural than urban and resembles a lot of the state parks I've seen lately. A scenic railroad runs through the area and fall trees and hidden waterfalls are scattered throughout old historic homes and residential neighborhoods. The bike path was one I would have loved to get lost on for hours had I had the right equipment. The Ledges hike at the south end of the park was worth seeing and one I recommend. Leaf piles not quite big enough for jumping in were highlighted by the sun and I thought that was all there was to see until I came upon what looked like a large crack in the ground. I was looking into a gorge of sorts, like someone took a rectangular cookie cutter to the earth, and I was eager to find a way to get into it. I came around the bend and discovered a sliver in a massive rock wall. My curiosity peaked, I squeezed my way through and low and behold, I had found it. The mossy walls towered above me as I audibly "wow-ed" and scoped out the spot where I had just stood minutes before, looking down. One small opening lead to another as the rooms decorated in boulders became wider and mossier until the last doorway took me right back to main trail. I glanced back down it to see what I had missed and realized I hadn't really. I took another look at the entry to the hidden gorge amazed that had I not been paying attention or on the lookout for adventure, I may have missed it.
One big stop on everyone's Cleveland tour is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I debated going at the time but looking back, it was definitely worth it. "Long Live Rock" in big, bold, red letters greeted me outside the entrance, old tour buses and red potted plants to match were scattered around the front of the pyramid shaped building. The tiled glass windows, especially from the floors higher up, have an amazing view of the city less than a mile away. Despite its size, the lobby is sunlit and inviting. I couldn't help but look to see the open balconies and climbing escalators filling the space above me, and three uniquely decorated cars hanging from the ceiling above the cafe. The self guided tour took me through the new inductees, Tupac being one of them, and ended with a compilation of Dick Clark's American Bandstand. I reread about the greats I've learned all about over the past nine months, noting where details were left out and wanting very badly to subtly brag to someone about the facts I knew that maybe they did not. I reined it in and instead admired the detailed concert posters from the Summer of Love and laughed at some of the crazy outfits worn by George Clinton and Cee Lo Green, now hanging behind glass. I could go on and on about all the bands, their guitars, and fun facts, but that would run on for days and I won't do that to you. I will say though, that the best part about the Hall of Fame was walking through and being able to say that I have been to almost all the places mentioned. Nashville, Memphis, Graceland, Paisley Park, Hitsville; it was the culmination of my musical tour of America.
Two big thank you's and I will let you all go;
Thank you Cleveland for being on my top ten city list now and making me feel so welcome.
Thank you Cleveland Browns for passing on Carson Wentz when you had the chance, you fools.
That is all.
Let's Go Birds!
- G.
The Photo:
Edgewater Park at night.
Cleveland, Ohio.
10/19/17.
