October 8 - 10, 2009 - Columbus, Ohio

Highlights of Columbus...

There are lots of interesting things in Columbus, Ohio. For example, there's our grandson Victor Richard Hatch:

Victor playing peek-a-boo behind his book about buffaloes.

You may want to visit the Columbus Museum of Art:

Columbus Museum of Art (photo by Yuriy Vashchenko)

OK, we didn't make it to the Columbus Museum of Art. But we did get to visit with our son Dana and his wife Wendy, and our grandchildren, Victor and Violet:

V & V after breakfast at Bob Evans Restaurant

For those who aren't into grandchildren, there is always a chance to visit the Wexner Art Center:

Wexner Art Center, Columbus, Ohio (photo by Alisa Courtney)

Well, we didn't visit the Wexner Art Center either, but did I mention our grandson Victor?

Vic almost finished with his buffalo book.

Another attraction one shouldn't miss while in Columbus is CoSI, the Center of Science and Industry, named the Number 1 Science Center in America by Parents Magazine:

Center of Science and Industry (photo by cristiannava)

We didn't happen to visit CoSI ourselves this trip--but we have on previous trips to Columbus, so that almost counts, doesn't it? And, yes, we did see our granddaughter Violet...

Violet working on her grandfather's laptop at Towne Place Suites

...and our grandson Victor:

Victor's turn at grampy's laptop

Victor has a future in photography. He snapped this picture of his grammy while we shopped at Best Buy:

Grammy (photo by Victor Richard Hatch)

Perhaps the one stop in the Columbus area that shouldn't be missed is the famous Franklin Park Conservatory, a unique presentation of flora of the various world climates:

The Franklin Park Conservatory (photo by Alisa Courtney)

By now you're onto us. We didn't visit the conservatory this time, but we did last time, and here's proof:

Violet with Little Pup in left hand and butterfly in right, at

Franklin Park Conservatory, May 2009

We leave today's edition with one last picture of Victor. Can you blame us?

Victor this afternoon at a nearby playground.

This cross-America trip, and this blog, have been our attempt to see and share some of the greatest and most scenic places in this beautiful country. It has certainly been a most successful four weeks on the road in that respect, but even with the magnificent scenery, the majestic national parks, the beautiful and sometimes challenging byways, what we enjoy most is seeing our family, and this three-day stop in Columbus had nothing at all to do with scenery and everything to do with what's most important to us.

For you, though, there really are a lot of great things to see in Columbus.