Columbus Zoo, COSI, Dublin OH

Columbus Zoo

We renewed our annual trip to Columbus, starting with a visit to Columbus Zoo. As always, we drove up to Columbus Zoo which is roughly a 90 minute trip for us, surprisingly much quicker than one would expect. We try to time our arrival so that we get there at opening give or take 30 minutes and skip the crowds at the entrance. We had no trouble getting there. This year we decided to try a few things we’ve not in the past including riding the train which was OK, but the boys enjoyed it. We also started our day in the “North America” exhibit and ended in the “Coral Reef”, which is reverse rotation for us when looking at the map. We also did the dinosaur boat ride and that was fun, although there was some kind of technical difficulty and it took us about 20 minutes to get through it (normally 4 minutes). We saw all sections except for “Asia”, which we skipped because everyone was worn out from the walking and the heat.

We ate lunch at the zoo and it was tasty, opting for the food vendor near the polar bear exhibit. We split the fried cauliflower tots and those were tasty. The boys ordered the chicken tenders. The only let down of the day was that I didn’t get any great animal pics. I realized I left the SD card to my DSLR at home while riding the train, which was a bummer. Of course, whenever you don’t have your camera is when you see something awesome, which we did, as many of the animals were active that day. We also purchased some toy monkeys the boys hanged around their necks. They spent the day making up stories about who the monkeys were and what mischief they would get into, it was pretty funny.

After the Zoo we checked into our hotel in Dublin. We did try a different location this year as Spring Hill was booked up. It was one of those AC Marriott types that are more geared towards business travelers looking for something a little more modern/sophisticated. I would much rather stay at the Spring Hill Suites though, the rooms are more spacious and they have a better breakfast. This Marriott had a European style breakfast, which we all think is fancy but in fact sucks. Give me scrambled eggs and biscuits. The AC did have a skilled bartender in the lobby and I ordered some quality old fashions for myself and my wife while we prepared for dinner.

Dublin, Ohio

Dublin is such a great place. Our first stop after the hotel was our favorite Italian restaurant Z Cucina. The food was great of course, but we noticed a few changes since our last visit. I remember talking to the owner during our last visit about his consternation that a second Italian restaurant was opening next door to him, a real frustration any business owner would feel. The guy invested into that location when nothing else was really there, and as soon as the area becomes popular the developer moves in the same type of business! I am curious if they are feeling that pressure now as I noticed there was no bread service and the cocktails weren’t as boozy. Of course, some of that perception regarding alcohol may be due to the fact I’ve put on so much muscle since our last visit. I notice I just metabolize alcohol much faster now even despite reducing the occasions that I imbibe considerably, which is maybe a quarter of what it used to be. I did order the squid ink pasta which was incredibly tasty.

After dinner we decided to go for a walk. There is a really neat pedestrian bridge that goes into old Dublin. Old Dublin is awash in restaurants and bars. We heard about Jenny’s, a famous ice cream chain in town. We arrived and saw the line was exceptionally long but we went in anyway. The ice cream was very good. I tried a weird combo they recommended that used chili crisp as it’s topping. I don’t think I’d try that again but it was interesting to say the least.

COSI

We had a great day at the museum. Everyone slept well the night before because we stayed until almost closing time and saw the entire museum. The only disappointment I would say is that the “Gadgets and Gizmos” section seemed like it needed some maintenance. Ted can spend all day there but his favorite exhibit, a magnetic wall where you can connect tubes and ramps to move a ball down a circuit, was not working unfortunately. I noticed a few others were broken as well, which is odd for COSI. Usually everything here is in great shape which makes this place stand out so much.

I will say the only downside of COSI at this time of year are the summer camps. These unsupervised kids swamp the exhibits and can be really rude and borderline out of control. You try to time it so you miss the bigger groups but that seemed harder this year. One upside though to this is the cafeteria where they all seem to go at once. The tip I would give is to wait until 1:30 or so to eat and skip the mad rush from these groups. I’ll also say the food is good here and everyone can find something to eat.