If you ask anyone who truly knows me, they would tell you that I could be a tour guide for our area.

My aunt came to visit a month ago.  One morning, we spent time going to go get donuts and then I took her to various places.  My mom was ready to come over to my house for us to continue working on organizing my kitchen.  She was sort of panicked because we were only suppose to be gone for an hour or so.  Yep, we took longer than an hour because I ended up taking her to a couple more places than expected.  I wanted to show her some of the places I enjoy taking photos.

Then last week my friend, Molly came to visit.  She came in 2016 and enjoyed it so much that she flew down once again.  I took her to different places this year.  Well, that is except for one place.  We went to Carillon Park in 2016 but it was a rushed visit.  She talked about the park so my mom got us tickets to see Orville Wright’s home and tickets for Carillon Park.  Molly got to see more of the park this year.

Since I enjoy taking people to various places in my hometown or areas close to my hometown, I needed to really think what area of my town I wanted to showcase in this blog post.

Before we begin, where is it that I live or what city do I live close to?  I live near Dayton, Ohio which is an hourish north of Cincinnati, an hourish west of Columbus, and an hourish east of the Indiana border.  An hourish north of me is Wapakoneta, Ohio where Neal Armstrong is from.  There is a lot to see and do in this big hourish circle.  Don’t you love how I use the word hourish?

Dayton is known for having the most patents and inventions.  Here is a list of some of the inventions that have come from this small city:

• pop tabs for pop cans
• freon for air conditioners
• self starter for cars
• airplane
• self scanning machines
• Etc. . .

We have the biggest free museum on Aviation in our city.  People from all over come to see the National Museum of the Air Force or Air Force Museum.  However, I’m not going to showcase the museum today.  (Air Force One is on display in building 4 of the museum.)

Today I’m going to showcase two places which are located diagonally across from each other in downtown Dayton.  Downtown Dayton used to be known for it’s shopping back in the day but that is no longer a thing.  So a group of people have worked together to revitalize the downtown area.  Riverscape Metro Park and Fifth Third Field are two places that have been built so that people will come to the downtown area.  Today I’m going to share why Riverscape is a great place to visit.

One of the cool thing is the RiverScape River Run.  It makes the Great Miami River in downtown Dayton more accessible to those who enjoy water activities.

There is also cool statues throughout the park.  Here is an example of one of those statues:

I believe this is represent the devastating flood we had in 1913.

There is also a walking path along the Great Miami River so if you want to exercise this is the place to go.

There is also a splash pad for the kids to beat the summer heat.

There are also swings to sit on so you can watch people riding their bikes or walking.  You could also watch the wild life.  (I once saw a deer crossing the road into the park.)  Or read or check your phone while sitting on these swings.

Or you could read a poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar, a famous African American poet who was a resident of Dayton.  Did you know he was friends with the Wright Brothers and is buried close to them?

You can also watch the fountain show.

I forgot to take a photo of their pavilion where you can sit on a hot day or ice skate under in the winter.

You can get food there during certain hours.  So if you worked in downtown Dayton, it would be a great place to get your lunch.

Across the street is my favorite sculpture.  It’s Orville Wright and Wilbur Wright and their 1905 Wright B. Flyer.  (Wilbur’s flying)

Diagonally across from the park is Fifth Third Field where the minor league baseball team plays.  (Dayton Dragons)  As Molly told me, she had more fun at that game than the minor league team she has in Rochester New York.  It’s not just a game, it’s an experience.

I have done another blog post about Riverscape, click here for that post.  Those photos were taken during the spring.

I hope you enjoyed my oasis in the city.

Have a magical day,
Traci