I am and always will be a Grand Rapidian at heart; I was born and raised here and I wouldn't have had it any other way. Grand Rapids, Michigan is a lovely city (and I'm not just saying that because I live here). I don't know if I want to live here forever, but I would not be opposed to living in GR my whole life. For those of you who are from Grand Rapids: here's my take on the best parts of the city. For those of you not from GRap, here's some reasons that I absolutely love my city.- ArtPrize: A city wide art-festival that showcases art in all its forms from artists in all walks of life. It literally takes over the city from the middle of September to the first week in October. One of my favorite times of the year (the weather is more or less perfect in the fall) and a lot of the art is really cool. Some of it is interactive, which is really fun to play with; some are the most detailed and gorgeous paintings or sculptures you've ever seen; and of course some of it is just weird, but variety is the spice of life, right?
- It's (more or less) affordable! As a Dutch-by-culture college kid with a less than exciting assortment of employment, I love the fact that you can get by in Grand Rapids on not a ton of money. Granted, you could spend a fortune if you wanted to, but places like the GR Symphony and Opera, the GRAM (Art Museum), even Celebration Cinema offer moderate to awesome student discounts. A lot of restaurants have half priced appetizers during "Happy Hour." Some things, like Ice Skating in the winter and Swing Dancing in the summer at Rosa Parks Circle are free! If you know how to get around and where to get good deals, you can have a great night on just a few bucks.
- Local gems: Every city has it's locally owned businesses-- restaurants, coffee shops, stores, attractions that you as a customer just fall in love with because of their uniqueness. They make you proud to be from such a wonderful community that can produce places like these. Some of my favorite places in Grand Rapids: The Bitter End Coffee House, NW side of town on Fulton-- it's a teeny little shop, but the coffee is amazing and the atmosphere is one of the best in town-- plus it's open 24/7. The Electric Cheetah, a buzzing restaurant in East GR on Wealthy Street that serves delicious sandwiches (mainly, but they have lots of other things) with an urban feel AND 28 flavors of root beer. Robinette's Apple Haus is an orchard on 4 Mile that has some of the best cider and donuts I've ever had, which are especially good on a cool fall day. That and the giant pumpkins, corn maze, huge plastic-y apple sculpture, and old house turned gift shop full of trinkets make this one of my favorite autumn places. John Ball Zoo is exactly what you think it is: a zoo-- it's pretty large and has some fun stuff like a zip line and monorail (well the monorail is coming soon). Olga's Kitchen, although I've only ever eaten appetizers and soup at Olga's, their "snackers" are one of the best things I've ever eaten. They definitely make the trip to Gaslight Village worth it (while you're there be sure to check out Jersey Junction for ice cream!).
- I've only listed a few of my favorite places to visit in Grand Rapids; there are many many more, and there also a bunch of places and festivities that I've never been to, but want to go. Like Sanchez Tapas Bistro, the Grand Rapids Art Festival, Marie Catrib's, Madcap Coffee, etc. [Update: As of 7pm, 8 June 2013, I have been downtown for Art Festival and it's super cool!]
So go check these places out! I don't think you'll be disappointed! Also, have I missed anything that makes Grand Rapids so fabulous? Let me know!
Just for copyright purposes: I do not own the photo at the top, I just found it on Google images. All credit goes to Cory Smith, the photographer. Here is the link just in case: http://www.flickr.com/
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