Day One In Cleveland Was Packed Full Of Activity!

Robby and I woke up early (4 a.m.) to head to the Chicago airport heading for Cleveland on Saturday.  That had been two days this week we had been up at extreme hours of the morning.  But today was different...I would be seeing my daughter in her new home for the first time; I was pretty excited!

As soon as we threw our luggage in her car, Caitlin laid out her immediate plans for the day.  She wanted to get tickets to a tour of The Great Lakes Brewing Company, a local micro brewery.  Apparently the tour was a big sell out each Saturday so we needed to get out tickets early.  The brewery was in the Ohio City, Market Square's Historic District.  There were local vendors there, along with a live band playing and many outdoor bistros.  It was a beautiful day to be outside, the weather was so pleasant, it felt like an autumn day to Robby and me!

While we were waiting for our tour to begin, we walked across the street to the West Side Market.  This place, in an old brick building,  was featured on The Food Network.  It is open several days a week and houses vendors from all sorts of food markets.  If I lived here, it is DEFINITELY the place you would find me shopping for my food purchases...

                                           There are vendors who only have pork products...

                                                                          Chicken...

                                                                        Shellfish...

                                                                             Cheese...

                                                                                Beef...

          Fresh baked breads (which was my first purchase! A loaf of Erie Sour Dough Bread.)

                                                                            Olives...

                                                                      Fresh pasta...

                                                                                Fish...

All of the fresh produce could be found in another separate building...

Can you tell how impressed I was with this market?!

After shopping at the market, we decided to eat a little lunch at one of the outdoor bistros.  I had this wonderful ravioli, stuffed with butternut squash...

Next was the tour of The Great Lakes Brewing Company...

As soon as the tour was over, Robby and I told Caitlin we HAD to go back to her apartment and get a little nap in before Kevin got off from work and we would be heading out to dinner.  For some reason, my allergies had kicked up and my eyes and nose were watering terribly.  All I needed was a Benadryl and a little nap and I felt sure this "Gypsy" would be ready to roll again.  And so when we arrived at Caitlin's apartment, Robby fell across the guest bed and was immediately asleep, while Caitlin and I took separate ends of the couch and fell asleep watching television.  We woke up when Kevin came home and left shortly for round two!

Caitlin and Kevin actually live in an outside area of Cleveland called Avon Lake.  It is a really nice little area with lots of shopping and eating nearby.  We shopped around a bit and then ate dinner at a nice little area called Crocker Park...

There is a center, grassy area in the middle of all the shops and eateries where people can sit and read or just relax.

There is also a water play area for children at one end of the grassy area; children were in their swim suits splashing around!


After dinner we returned home.  It had been a wonderful first day with Caitlin.  We had done a lot on this day, but that was only because we knew that we didn't have much time here.  And if I sat still long enough, I knew that fact would make me sad, therefore I was happy to fill EVERY moment with activity.  There would be more adventures to come on Sunday...