We found ourselves in Providence last weekend for a wedding and discovered that despite its ranking as the second largest city in New England and the presence of several universities and colleges, including RISD and Brown, it’s not exactly a metropolis. Here are some of the things we learned:
To do when in Providence:
- See WaterFire, an installation of fire sculptures in the recently uncovered rivers that has drawn many visitors and helped revive downtown Providence.
- Eat ice cream.
- Wander around Thayer Street, read the top layer of the flyers stapled to anything pole like, have a slice of Pizza and check out the student scene.
- Stay at the Annie Brownell House B&B, where golden retriever Lady is waiting for you to drop a few crumbs of your delicious breakfast.
- Leave town, drive to the coast, crash a private beach, play in the waves, build a sand castle and have a mud fight. And bring a surf board or boogie board to enjoy the waves even more.
- Check out the Providence Monthly for local events and hidden treasures BEFORE going exploring so that you know to stop when you see the sign for Daddy’s Bread near Kingstown (an unmanned self-serve store that sells bread on an honor system - you just take the bread and leave money).
- Eat more ice cream, then go have yourself a lobster.
Not to do when in Providence:
- Walk around town in the middle of August in 100 degree weather and who knows what humidity.
- Try to find entertainment or a store that sells books, videos, etc. (or any store for that matter) that is open after 6pm on a Sunday.
- Leave town on a train the day after a thunderstorm caused damage to the railroad’s signal system.