Interview Trail Stop #11: Cleveland, Ohio

Free Cleveland!
Originally uploaded by ironchefmike.

My drive from Columbus to Cleveland was a pleasant one, though I was quite tired, and all I wanted was to pull over and take a quick nap. Ohio is flat - really flat - and you can't help but think of American Gothic as you drive by the acres of farmland and barns and silos. Then, a rogue hill rolls by, then two or three, and then Cleveland, affectionately known to us Pittsburghers as "The Mistake by the Lake" looms in the horizon, pops into view, the first sign being a quartet of smokestacks churning out white plumes of steam that swirl then dissipate before they attain the level of the clouds.

My impression is that Cleveland is a city like some of the others I've visited on the interview trail, with the natives describing the city as a 'well-kept secret' of the Midwest. Certainly it has some culture with a world-renowned orchestra, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and a multitude of art galleries. It has several major sports teams, a handful of large universities. The local government has repeatedly attempted to jumpstart the city's economy and culture (the photo above is that of a sculpture commissioned by the City of Cleveland). Still - the economy remains rather depressed.

Cleveland Browns Stadium, Cleveland, OH
Originally uploaded by ironchefmike.

I walk to the edge of Lake Erie from my hotel, and get a view of Cleveland Browns Stadium and the nearby RnRHoF. It's late afternoon, and the city seems rather dead. It's clearly winter here, but one would figure that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame would show a little life, or perhaps the nearby art institute. I walk into a nearby Galleria - reflecting downtown, it is nearly devoid of any activity. I hesitate to call Cleveland a major city - the life, I hear, seems to be in the 'burbs.

I wonder if my visit to this next residency program will also be lifeless.