Today, the weather was absolutely superb- sunny, in the upper 60's- so I decided to take a troll around my little town of Grinnell. I have posted about all sorts of crazy places in Europe, but I wanted to offer a glimpse of the town in which I go to school.
I started out along the fringe of campus as I headed towards downtown- a 2 block by 2 block square about 4 blocks from where I live.
On my way, I wandered past the vegan co-op's greenhouse, which, as you can see, is starting to sprout something.
Grinnell is a very religious town, in its understated way- I am sure the town has over 10 churches, of all sorts of denominations. We are the "big" town in the area, so a lot of farmers come in to do their banking and praying. Above is the Catholic church, which shows another endearing characteristic of Grinnellians: they love to make nice, imposing brick buildings.
Case in point: our handsome post office, with a flagpole that proudly flys the colors. Note the impressive columns. This is the northern edge of downtown.
As I headed down the street, on the way to my favorite coffeeshop, I stopped to cross the street in front of the old Stewart library, which is the town's, not the colleges. There is a very clear delineation between the town's stuff and the college's.
Some of downtown's storefronts. Grinnell has some nice sidewalks, which are great when not covered with 2 feet of snow. That isn't often, but pleasant when it happens. On the right of the above picture is the bike store, and on the left is Saint's Rest, one of two coffee-shops in Grinnell. Both are independent, and excellent.
Everyone was out on this beautiful day, so all the shops had put out their merchandise. Above is an awesome bike at the bike store.
I settled down outside to an iced americano, which I drank while contemplating the library and post office.
As you can see, the berries are still shriveled from their long winter encasement in ice. They have just now unthawed, and you can see hungry little finches eating them
Grinnell's stores have a legacy of independence. The Music Shop only recently turned into a Radioshack, and it still has a very...independent character inside.
Also, just like Harry Potter, we have addresses that are fractions.
At one of the cafe's in town, a raccoon had taken up residence by the light. When I left, there were 2 police cars and multiple firemen there.
As I headed back to campus, I stopped by flowers on fourth to get something to liven up my Grandparent's house. They live in town as well.
When I was a kid, we would get rolls from the Danish Maid (above) and sit down at my Grandparent's house to peanut butter or summer sausage sandwiches. They also have some delectable pastries and cookies. My mom and uncles have many stories about getting a piping hot Cinnamon bun and biking their newspaper routes.
We also have a darling downtown movie theatre- the strand- with 3 screens. Just recently remodeled however, and very comfy.
Lonnski's pub is a college icon, for their great sandwiches and soups.
Finally, I strolled past Pagliai's, which has some of the best pizza anywhere. Their special- green peppers, onion, and sausage- is spectacular.
Grinnell is a good town; I hope you enjoyed this (very brief) glance into where I live.
1 comment:
I really enjoyed that brief insight into your Iowan home Ben, Grinnell seems like a sweet little town.
If you are still there next year, I may have to come visit.
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