Bumming Around Town

I have some time off, so we’re bumming around the Greater Cincinnati area seeing things we normally cannot.

Newport On The Levee – We checked out the new development here and makeover it received. They did a great job. The common areas are very inviting and a nice place to hang out with friends and family. The mall wasn’t quite bustling, but there were some stores in there. A common area for teenagers was getting full use and I am glad to see something for the youth to do. We ate a great lunch at Tom and Chee’s and sat outside and people watched. The sandwich I got was delicious and I’d definitely get it again.

We also visited the Party Source. I picked up some great alcohol to try. I’m going to write another post on it separately.

IKEA – We are redoing the boy’s room and adding some furniture in there. We got a small entertainment center, a desk, and several lamps to brighten up the place. Since we are redoing our upstairs and forgoing a television in our living room there, the boy’s will play video games/watch television in there going forward until the basement media center is up and running. I also wanted a place for them to play Switch together, and corral their LEGOs as well.

We actually ate at Aladdin’s this time, which is one of my favorite spots to eat. I used to enjoy lunch there when I worked in the area. I really missed the place. We also drove by the old office but it’s gone now and moved up north but I at least got to show the boys it. I remember walking all over the place up there.

We also found IKEA’s garden and I was really impressed. It was very clean and orderly and definitely taken care of by somebody. It’s off the parking lot near the expressway side of the property if you ever find yourself in West Chester’s IKEA.

Kings Island – We came here to see the fireworks display. It was pretty great. The best part to watch it is the lawn outside of the large outdoor entertainment venue behind the tower. We sprawled out on the grass and watched the entire show. The park is always a great place to be but they did a great job with Independence Day. It was also much less crowded than I expected it to be honestly.

It was just nice getting outside and seeing things. The area is changing so very much. Greater Cincinnati before COVID was in full on expansion mode. Developments were sprouting up everywhere. Such a shame. I’m not sure there was a better time to live in the region. I hope COVID didn’t tamp it back down, but then again I can’t see it getting any worse than twenty years ago when it seemed Cincinnati itself was dying, and it just wasn’t a great place to live. Let’s be honest, the food sucked. There wasn’t much to do. Entertainment was relegated to a handful of small areas that came and went. It was unsafe. If you looked back then compared to now you wouldn’t even recognize it, believe me.