Board the Steamship William G. Mather
Though it doesn’t look it from the outside, the 618-foot-long Mather houses five ornate passenger staterooms, one of which has been restored to its 1920s glory with black walnut wood paneling and brass fixtures. As the flagship of the Cliffs Natural Resources fleet until 1952, the ship’s staterooms were used to schmooze board members and bigwigs, including the 48th mayor of Cleveland, Thomas Burke, for whom Burke Lakefront Airport is named. Great Lakes Science Center, 601 Erieside Ave., Cleveland, 216-694-2000, greatscience.com
Spend a day at Put-in-Bay
Island life is slow and easy, so take your time soaking in the lake breeze from the 317-foot-tall observation deck on the Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial. Mosey along in a golf cart for an island tour, and cap off the trip to South Bass Island with a creamy cup of the Boardwalk’s famous lobster bisque and a fruity pour of pink Catawba from Heineman’s Winery. Bonus: Swig whiskey at the 140-year-old Roundhouse Bar to the sounds of Mike “Mad Dog” Adams, resident island singer and comedian since 1980. shoresandislands.com
Take a spin on the Euclid Beach Carousel
Forty-six years after the beloved Euclid Beach Park closed its gates, Clevelanders can take a spin through history on the recently restored 105-year-old merry-go-round at the Western Reserve Historical Society. You can jump onto the back of one of the carousel’s 54 original wooden horses, housed in a glass pavilion and painted in vibrant colors, as they gallop to the tune of the original Euclid Beach Band organ. 10825 East Blvd., 216-721-5722, Cleveland, wrhs.org
Shop at the Cleveland Flea
From April through October, you’ll earn hipster points wading through a sea of beards and beanies at this collection of 140 artisans the second Saturday of every month that celebrates our rich history as makers. So talk to Liza Michelle Jewelry’s Liza Rifkin about how she combs Ohio City for the perfect twigs to cast in recycled metals to create necklaces, rings and earrings or how AmpersandCLE’s Nicola Wilhelm folds at least 200 book pages into individual rosettes to create wreaths for literature lovers. Various locations, clevelandflea.com
See the Cleveland Orchestra
Start at its home base: Severance Hall, a 1931 Georgian temple with gold and silver art deco-inspired lotus blossom and papyrus leaf patterns running throughout.
From late June through Labor Day weekend, the orchestra moves outdoors to Blossom Music Center’s 800 acres of rolling hills in Cuyahoga Falls. Pack a picnic and find a lawn spot.
Catch the orchestra during its At Home neighborhood residency, which heads to Slavic Village this spring. Venues include Our Lady of Lourdes Church and the Slovenian National Home. clevelandorchestra.com
Grab groceries from the downtown Heinen’s
There’s a meat counter, salad bar and bakery — all the typical things we’ve come to love about Heinen’s. But this new location, housed mainly in the former Cleveland Trust Co. rotunda on Euclid Avenue and East Ninth Street, tops our list of gorgeous grocery stores with its 61-foot stained glass dome and third-story murals by American painter Francis Millet, who died in the 1912 Titanic sinking. With a coffee bar and self-serve wine and beer station, we’ll gladly sip and shop. 900 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, 216-302-3020, heinens.com
Run Our City’s Bridges
Sure, you can log another mile on that gym treadmill to burn off those calories — or you can pound the pavement of Cleveland’s two most popular bridges during Harness Cycle’s Wednesday 3.5-mile run, jog or walk. The course takes runners over the Lorain-Carnegie Bridge past the towering Guardians of Traffic and back under the baby blue steel arch of the Detroit-Superior Bridge — all while providing stunning views of the city’s skyline that your NordicTrack can’t. 2901 Detroit Ave., Cleveland, 216-357-3258, harnesscycle.com
Say a prayer at Old Stone Church
Clevelanders have been worshipping at this spot on the northern edge of Public Square since 1820. So you’ll feel the weight of 195 years of history as you step inside the Berea sandstone building to check out the four Louis Comfort Tiffany windows, two of which the famous glassmaker signed himself. Bonus: Take a seat in the pew at the front of the church that Abraham Lincoln’s family sat in when the slain president’s funeral caravan came to town in 1865. 91 Public Square, Cleveland, 216-241-6145, oldstonechurch.org
Do a craft beer crawl in Ohio City
Owner Sam McNulty opened Market Garden Brewery, Cleveland’s first American beer garden in 2011. Drink This: Boss Amber Lager, a Viennese-inspired smooth lager with a hop twist. 1947 W. 25th St., Cleveland, 216-621-4000, marketgardenbrewery.com
McNulty recently expanded and renovated his brewpub Nano Brew, which offers 24 beers on draft. Drink This: Nano #KOLSCH, a bright-colored, pilsner-like ale. 1859 W. 25th St., Cleveland, 216-862-6631, nanobrewcleveland.com
Platform Beer Co. brews small-batch experimental beers with its 13-barrel system. Drink This: Platform Alouette, a Belgian farmhouse saison with flavors of ripe fruits and peppery spices. 4125 Lorain Ave., Cleveland, 216-202-1386, platformbeerco.com
Listen to polka at Sterle’s Slovenian Country House
We wouldn’t be a polka town without Slovenian immigrants such as Frank Sterle importing the ethnic genre. They paved the way for “America’s Polka King” Frank Yankovic to translate the classics into English and add the button box accordion and banjo to create the folksier Cleveland-style polka. So as you watch the jovial Polka Pirates fan their accordions during frequent weekend gigs, join the twirling couples on the dance floor and embrace our indigenous sound in a place that helped elevate polka to national prominence. 1401 E. 55th St., Cleveland, 216-881-4181, sterlescountryhouse.com
