10 Best Reasons Why You Should Visit Rhode Island
If you have the travel bug like we do, you have dreams and plans to travel far and wide across the globe to visit all of the best and most beautiful places this world has to offer. But I would guess that Rhode Island does not come up on your list of dream destinations. Well in this article, 10 Best Reasons Why You Should Visit Rhode Island, I am going to tell you why it should be, and I would bet by the end of this article, many of you will indeed add it to your list.
You may recall from a previous post, “What you Must Do When You Travel To Boston”, I mentioned that our son who lives in Providence Rhode Island was recently engaged. That gave us the perfect excuse to plan a trip to the East Coast for a visit. As part of that visit we made it our goal to see as much of the Ocean State as we possibly could in a short time. This post is the result of experiences and I think it will open your mind to whole new possibilities.
So being everyone loves lists, we came up with our list of 10 Best Reasons Why You Should Visit Rhode Island. Our list might be quite different from other lists because we are traveling with the express purpose to capture amazing photographs along the way so we have a special eye towards both interesting and beautiful.
Let’s get this list going and see if you agree with us.
10 Doors Open Rhode Island
In a New England City with the long history of Providence you would think that might be many stories behind closed doors around the city. Well, city leaders thought it would be a great idea to throw open the doors to the public and tell some of these secrets. This was all done one October weekend by the organization called @DoorsOpenRI.
Beautiful Historic Cranston Street Armory
They were able to open up 24 distinct interesting locations from around the city ranging from The Historic Cranston Street Armory, The Old Columbus Theater, Providence Public Library, Barnaby Castle, City Hall, Hudson Furs (site of the shocking Bonded Vault Heist) and many more.
The Old Columbus Theater
The Columbus Theatre was designed by architect Oreste DiSaia and built by realtor Domenic Annotti in 1926. The Theatre originally featured vaudeville and silent films before being leased by RKO Albee Theater, who renamed the building the Uptown Theater and operated it as one of Providence’s premier cinemas for the next 25 years.
With the advent of television the Theatre fell on hard times, but builder Misak Berberian, whose love of architecture drew him to the Theatre, purchased it in the summer of 1962. He revived the Theatre’s original name and installed his son Jon at the helm. After extensive repairs, the Berberians reopened the Theatre on November 1, 1962 – the 36th anniversary of the building’s original opening.
Providence Public Library
We were going to hustle by the Providence Public Library but as we were going past it, I knew it was going to be a special place so I encouraged the group to stop.
Lucky that we did, the place is amazing. It is somewhere around 142 years old with rich amazing architecture.
You might also recall that one of the reasons that we are out in Providence is to visit our son and his new fiance. Well it turns out, since we had this visit they have actually booked the library for their wedding so we received a brief preview of the wedding venue while on this trip. How cool is that?
Hudson Furs site of the Bonded Vault Heist
Of course with a wild day of almost running through the city you need to stop at a local eater for some refreshments. And there was always something to satisfy your hunger.
Some of the sites are so special that we decided to make them separate items on the list. Yes they are that good. So here we go with the rest of the list.
9 The Amazing Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral Providence Rhode Island
My first love in the world of photography is to photograph amazing architecture. So when I heard that Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral in Providence RI was going to be open for this event I know I had to see it. I was going to try to get to it and see what it is all about. And I was not disappointed.
Walking up to the Cathedral through the thick green canopy from the trees, you immediately get a sense of awe at the beauty and size of the structure. It is an immense brick building built in the Romanesque Revival – Gothic Revival style designed by the very well known architect Patrick C. Keely.
Keely was so well known for both his skill and his integrity that he basically because the default architect for many of the Catholic churches up and down the eastern coast.
The interior is also breath taking with many stained glass windows and a remarkably lovely pipe organ.
Just immagine a Christmas eve service in this place with a huge choir. It would be just like hearing angels sing in heaven!
8 Rhode Island State Capitol
State Capitol Exterior
Who is that on the top of the Rhode Island State Capitol dome? On the top of the dome is a gold-covered bronze statue of the Independent Man, originally named “Hope”. Just image the amazing view of the city you would get from up there?
Being from Minnesota, we know what an amazing State Capitol is. The Minnesota State Capitol was designed by the world famous architect Cass Gilbert and was modeled after Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome. (I know shocking right?) The unsupported marble dome is the second largest in the world, after Saint Peter’s. Mind Blown!
But the good people of Rhode Island are not to be toyed with. Rhode Island may be a small state but it is not small in ideas or implementations. The Rhode Island State Capital, the dome of the State House is the fourth-largest self-supporting marble dome in the world, after St. Peter’s Basilica, the Taj Mahal, and the Minnesota State Capitol. Right? Very high aspirations and a mind blowing building indeed.
It had recently undergone renovation, so the 327,000 cubic feet of white Georgia marble was fabulously clean, white and shiney for us.
State Capitol Interior
The interior was just as overwhelming as the exterior. With the ornate chandeliers and gold light poles to dazzle the eyes and the towering ceilings to draw your eyes upward.
But never never never give up looking at the amazing details of the central dome of the Rhode Island State Capital.
So I hope it is clear to you, this is a “do not miss” destination. Go ahead and put it on your list right now! Ok, now we can continue.
7 The Ocean State Oyster Festival
In 2013, more than 6.4 million Rhode Island oysters were sold for consumption. Yikes that’s a lot of pearls! So that is a great reason to have, The Ocean State Oyster Festival!
How can that possibly be? The Connoisseur’s Guide to Oyster Eating in North America stated “We can thank the jumbled geology of Massachusetts and Rhode Island for the amazing variety of oysters found there. As the area awakens to the glory of its local oysters, more and more growers are investing the time and energy to grow premium oysters, knowing that the market will reward them.”
This sector of the Ocean State’s economy is only now beginning to realize the potential it can, and will have, for years to come. The festival is a way to appreciate, celebrate, and expand this incredible resource. And not only that, the festival is crazy delicious. Be sure to try all the great sauces.
6 Brown University
Brown University is a private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution.
Brown’s main campus is located in the College Hill Historic District in the city of Providence, Rhode Island. The University’s neighborhood is a federally listed architectural district with a dense concentration of Colonial-era buildings. Benefit Street, on the western edge of the campus, contains “one of the finest cohesive collections of restored seventeenth- and eighteenth-century architecture in the United States”.
Conclusion
Well that is it for our list for now. We will finish up the list in our next post – 10 Best Reasons Why You Should Visit Rhode Island – Part 2. I am sure you will agree with us and you will want to put it on your travel list.
Now that you are hungry for oysters it is ok to go to your local oyster joint to satisfy your desire. But until next time, get out and capture the adventure.
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Written by Wayne Moran - Visit Website
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