Luckily I was able to get a weekend off at work. So it gave John and I a chance to get away before the summer starts.
I made a return trip to the amazing Columbia Museum of Art and the incredible Excavating Egypt . This unbelievable exhibit delved back thousand of years of the time of Egyptian royalty and a look at the artifacts of everyday people. The museum is one of the largest in the Southeast and some of the artists you will find include Tiffany, Remington, Talous Lautrec, and my favorite …Monet. Up soon? A Chihuly exhibit this fall. Yeah!
That night we took our second walk with the dead. This time we joined our tour guide, Ryan, and several others as we listed to tales of the undead from Ghost of Legends of Columbia . We had some spine tingling tales from the beautiful State Capital, USC Colombia, and even a walk through a haunted cemetery!
It wasn’t all fun with the dead though. On the way home we stopped to enjoy the very alive and adorable creatures and amazing gardens at Riverbanks Zoo and Botanical Gardens . The place is the perfect place for everyone in the whole family.
The downtown location of Marriott was the perfect place to getaway for the night. It had us just mere minutes from the nearby capital building where we took our tour. Judging by the numbers of parties we seen that night, it is also a great place for that as well. We enjoyed a wonderful breakfast at their Capital Bar.
We enjoyed a couple of good ‘ole dogs at Sandy’s famous hot dogs. After a day of walking all over the zoo, we enjoyed a wonderful meal at Copper River Grill . Our meal at the Club House was the down part of our whole trip.
For even more things to do in Columbia, I do have 2 other journals on this beautiful capital city. While here you may want to take a tour of the Capital Building and its spectacular grounds. You can get an amazing view of the city from Finlay Park. For a look at some of the cities beautiful homes, take time to tour the incredible Hampton-Preston Mansion, The Robert Mills House, and the Mann Simmons Cottage.
Quick Tips:
Where do I always start? Just head over to the cvb’s website at www.columbiacvb.com. You can order one of their handy guides or just look around on the website which is chocked full of information on the city.
Think outside the box! When I told friends we were off to the city for the weekend, everyone wanted to know why! This is a great place for a weekend escape. Great food, lots of adventures, the arts, and a city steeped in history. There are enough things to do here for a couple of weekends away.
This is a military town and a college town. So if your in town to see your baby, chances are so are others. So make sure you plan well in advanced.
In fact it is a good idea in general to plan well in advanced if you’re in town during the summer, for a concert, and major events.
This city is a great place for reunions, conventions, and other groups. You will find plenty of places for your group and plenty of things for everyone in your party.
With all the beauty around, this is an amazing place for the backdrop for your most formal pictures. The zoo, hotel lobbies, the State Capital building, the Governor’s mansions, the historical houses, the Columbia Museum of Art, is just a smattering of the places for formal pictures. In fact while we were out and about over the weekend we saw plenty of bride and grooms and prom couples all in the finery posing for photos.
One thing I can’t suggest is the Red Roof Inn West located off of St. Andrews Blvd. John and I have stayed in Red Roof Inns and have never had any problems with them. Until now. We got tired of waiting for someone to check us in and when what appeared to be a gang came in and started grabbing things we decided it was time to go. The area was unsafe looking during the day, we couldn’t imagine starting there at night.
Best Way To Get Around:
Columbia is served by Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE). They have 6 airlines offering hundreds of flights daily. They are located six miles from the downtown area. You can catch a taxi here or rent a car. Their website is www.columbiaairport.com.
If you are staying in the downtown area then you can probably get by without a car. The streets of this town are easy to maneuver by foot and most attractions are located within the downtown area.
If you want to go further out such as to the zoo, then you will need a car.
CMRTA does operate a trolley service is the downtown area. For more information you can visit them at www.gocmrta.com.
Parking can be a nightmare in the downtown area. Even on this Saturday we had a hard time finding a parking space. On the main streets you will find parking meters and parking is enforcing except on Sunday. There are several public parking complexes on side streets.
Always check with events to see about parking. Some have their own private parking while others do not. Parking prices vary through the city and by events.