Tag: Ohio

Magnet Memories: Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Part 1)

When I was 17, I embarked on a trip of a lifetime: I spent the summer in Italy studying Italian with Miami University at its summer language institute in Urbino. Truly, that summer changed my life (more on that in another post). One of the most exciting parts of that trip was traveling throughout Italy and other European countries by rail. Armed with a Eurail pass, the world (or at least Europe) was my oyster: I could hop on a train anytime and go anywhere. The freedom was exhilarating. More than 40 years later, I can still hear the soothing, rhythmic sound of the train riding over the rails; I can almost feel the gentle sway to and fro as the train reaches cruising speed; I can sense the rush of anticipation imagining the clackety-clack of the arrivals and departures board (Alas, the clackety-clack is heard no longer since the old-time boards have largely been replaced with digital ones. The video below, though, captures the ambiance of those boards, and while the one pictured in the video is small, imagine board after board in the larger stations, all flipping at the same time. The cacophony was positively thrilling!).

Traveling by train is special, especially in Europe, and I’ve had the great good fortune to return to Europe many times, riding on all kinds of trains. Here, in the US, though, unless you live in an area where train travel is ordinary and ubiquitous, traveling by train is a mystery or a dream or a magical fantasy. The classic Christmas movie, The Polar Express, portrays rail travel, albeit fantastically, to an entire generation who may never have set foot on a train, and for others, the film triggers waves of nostalgia, calling to remembrance a by-gone era of steam engines chugging along, billowing smoke, with conductors collecting paper tickets, and panoramic vistas rolling blithely by.

My Mom loves watching The Polar Express with her grandkids; it’s become a holiday tradition (as it has for so many families) – even though all of those grandkids are now adults. Still, they’re her grandkids and forever will be, no matter their ages. And, she’s always wanted to travel by train. On the trips we took together to Europe, though, we either motored by car or tour bus, so she didn’t have the opportunity to enjoy the rail experience there (other than the Tube on our visit to London or the NY subway on our Broadway extravaganza – Oh, those were great trips! Stay tuned! And, remember: Mind the Gap!). She and Dad dreamed of boarding Via Rail in Toronto and traveling cross Canada to Vancouver and Victoria, stopping along the way in Banff and Lake Louise. (Wowza! I’d love to do it, too.) Unfortunately, Mom and Dad never made that trip.

Several years ago, at the start of my summer break, I decided to surprise my Mom with a trip on a train. So, as I am wont to do, I did some research, and then, my son Benji and I headed to Youngstown; we picked Mom up, and, tickets in hand, we set out on a day-long adventure. No, we weren’t whisking her off to the airport to head to Europe, nor were we trekking north of the border to catch Via Rail. Instead, our excursion was a hop, skip, and a jump from Y-Town. The magnet below, recently removed from my old side-by-side refrigerator, is a reminder of that trip:

Located between Cleveland and Akron, you’ll find Cuyahoga Valley National Park, first named a national recreation area in 1974 and then designated a national park in 2000. Who knew? Not I, even as a life-long Buckeye. At least, I didn’t know until recently when I began researching possible nearby train trips. I’ve driven by, around, and above (yes, above on the I-80 bridge that spans a portion of the park) the park, but I’d never known that we had a national park here in Ohio.

Through my research, I learned that the scenic park offers a multitude of outdoor recreational activities: birding, hiking, camping, picnicking, golfing, kayaking, cross-country skiing. And, the park is home to and in partnership with the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad – the destination for our adventure.

In early June, on a weekday afternoon, we boarded the train at the Rockside Station in Independence, our seats confirmed in the Dome Car, for the National Park Scenic Tour. For a couple of hours, we were transported back in time, and life slowed wonderfully down: we settled in, relaxed, and watched the beautiful scenery of Northeast Ohio – so familiar, yet now viewed in an entirely unique way – roll by. Oh, we had a ball! It was a thoroughly pleasant way to wile away a summer day. Mom got to check an item off her bucket list, and, best of all, we made lasting memories together.

Make your own memories aboard the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. Choose from a plethora of options including: Family Friendly Rides (themed rides for the littles with visits from princesses or superheroes), Dinner on the Train (4-course, chef-created meals on the train), Murder Mystery Train (role-playing whodunnit), Grape Escape (scheduled wine tasting excursions, and a special event upcoming for Valentine’s Day in conjunction with Gervasi Vineyard), Ales on Rails (craft beer sampling), Fall Flyer (for leaf peepers and all), and of course, Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad’s own version of The Polar Express – the North Pole Adventure (c’mon, take a look at that conductor in the above photo: doesn’t he look like Tom Hanks’ character in The Polar Express??).

There’s something for everyone aboard the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. So, grab your sweetheart or the kids or your folks or your girlfriends or the guys, and make a day or night or weekend of it, riding the rails through Ohio’s very own National Park.

#InAroundAndBeyondTheBuckeye

Y-Town is My Town

Though I have lived in the Columbus area for almost 40 years, I was born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio. I am a Buckeye born and bred. Well, actually, I was born in Youngstown but raised in Austintown, a suburb on the west side of Youngstown (Proud graduate of Austintown Fitch High School Class of 1981. Go, Falcons!).

Restless, in search of adventure, and attracted by the bright lights and the promising prospects of the big city, I joined the great migration that left Youngstown in the mid-1980s for Columbus, the capital city. Needless to say, this was ironic given Columbus was then widely known as a “cow town.” Regardless, my twenty year old self reasoned, aside from family, that it had more to offer than Youngstown. At the time, irony upon ironies, it seemed everyone I met in Columbus was from somewhere else, especially from Northeast Ohio. In fact, the Youngstown transplants numbered so many that an annual gathering, the so named “Y-Town is My Town Party,” convened to, of all things, connect with each other and celebrate the town we had all deserted.

Columbus, especially Dublin where I’ve lived for the last 25 years, is my home. But, “home” is where my Momma is. Therefore, Y-Town is, and will always be, my town.

Indeed, you can take the girl outta Youngstown, but you can’t take Youngstown outta the girl.

A Boom Town Gone Bust

Bruce Springsteen, my favorite balladeer, tells the sad story of Youngstown…

Well my daddy come on the Ohio works

When he come home from World War II

Now the yard’s just scrap and rubble

He said, “Them big boys did what Hitler couldn’t do”

These mills they built the tanks and bombs

That won this country’s wars

We sent our sons to Korea and Vietnam

Now we’re wondering what they were dyin’ for

Bruce Springsteen

A boom town gone bust after the steel mills closed, Youngstown, scrappy as ever, takes its punches, too many landing below the belt, but it doesn’t pull any either: even when it is seemingly down for the count, it always finds a way to get back on its feet. Sometimes wobbly. Other times punch drunk. Or slap happy. Gasping and groggy. Often on the ropes. Still, however, standing. The boxing metaphor is particularly apt considering Y-Town is the home of world champion pugilists with title belts forged in the fiery furnaces of the rust belt. More on that in a future post. It’s more than just a metaphor, though: it’s the character and tenacity and grit of its people who, round after round, answer the bell – No. Matter. What.

Before the Boom

A wave of European immigrants flooded Y-Town in the early 20th century in search of opportunities in the burgeoning steel mills – opportunities that promised prosperity and a better way of life. They settled in Y-Town, creating ethnic enclaves of Italians, Irish, Germans, Poles, and Slovaks – all with rich traditions firmly rooted in family, faith, and food (oh the food!), and all familiar with every sort of adversity. They built families and businesses and whole new lives in a whole new land. And, upon their backs and through their hard work, they built America with Youngstown steel.

The DeLaurentis Family – My Grandfather, My Grandmother, My Aunt

My Dad’s parents were among those brave souls who set sail from the shores of the Old Country in pursuit of the American Dream. They left behind everything and everyone they knew to journey to the New Country with its new ways and new language. As well, my Mom’s family – the Pennsylvania Dutch and Irish – emigrated, too, first from afar across the ocean, then from the coal towns of central Pennsylvania to that steel town of Northeast Ohio.

I’ll tell you about them.

Their stories.

My remembrances.

And, in this blog, I’ll write more about Youngstown – part memoir, part travelogue, part family tree, part history lesson, part love letter – to share with you why Y-Town will always be My Town.

#InAroundAndBeyondTheBuckeye