Providence, RI

Do I have any ideas for a weekend in Providence, Rhode, Island?  Yes, I do.

It is the capital city of Rhode Island so I would recommend a stop in the State House.

I highly recommend a few hours at the Roger Williams Zoo, though you could spend most of a day there.

You may want to stroll around the campus of Brown University, next to the downtown.  (Brown University is one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American Revolution.) 

If you like art, don’t miss the adjacent Rhode Island School of Art and Design, a lovely art museum.  (To my mind, it is the best reason to head toward Brown University.)

Nearby is the first Baptist Church in the USA.

If you like history, you may want to consider a guided tour at the John Brown House Museum, the first mansion to be built in Providence, (1786-1788).  This museum is also near Brown University’s campus.

In the late 1990s, the City decided to uncover its river, the Woonasquatucket River, which had been covered over with parking lots for decades.  Now, except for wintertime, you can look at the City’s schedule of events for Fire Water (torches are lit on the river and light up the Riverwalk ), where you can stroll amidst performing artists and vendors and a good number of others enjoying the evening.  I hear that gondola rides and kayak rentals are also available on the river, but I haven’t tried them.

It you have lovely weather, you may want to walk along Benefit Street and admire this neighborhood’s historical architecture.

If you like shopping, you may want to browse the shops at the Arcade, an 1828 structure.

For evening entertainment, pick a restaurant on Thayer Street and perhaps see what is playing at the Aurora.

• George M. Cohan (Give My Regards to Broadway, You’re a Grand Old Flag…) was born in Providence.  Here is his 1942 obituary.
• You may recall, Providence was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams.
• See Facts and Trivia about Rhode Island.

TATTOO—Journeys on My Mind by Tina Marie L. Lamb is available at Amazon and BarnesandNoble and iBooks and Audible.

Buy it. Read it. Let me know what you think. –TMLL