Seeing the Queen City (Cincinnati) on a Jester’s Wallet

Author: theshutterbug
Date of Trip: September 2002

On your way to/from the airport:
Stop by Mutter Gottes Kirche or Mother of God Church in Covington. Rev. Dr. Ferdinand Kuhr founded this church in 1841 and the present Renaissance building dates from 1871. The towers are 200 feet tall and cupola 150 feet. After the recent and extensive renovation the 1890s rosary murals and stained glass windows glimmer as the woodwork from the same era shines. Mother of God Church resides at 119 W. 6th Street, Covington. Hours: Mon-Sat 9am- 4:30pm. For more info visit their website.

Quick Tips/Suggestions:
Tree-huggers welcome: If you simply want to grab up a picnic lunch and head to the park for sunshine, this is your best option. Now select your park: Mt. Echo is an 84-acre park over-looking the river on Elberon Ave. It has a ballpark, play area, grills, shelter and a 1929 pavilion, which held dances in the 1930s and 40s.

Mt. Airy is Cincinnati’s largest park at 1,469 acres with a variety of trails, play areas, gardens, shelters, lodges, sports activities, and more.

Ault Park is a 223-acre park on Observatory Ave. in Hyde Park. This park’s claim to fame is the amazing (and expensive) flower show in the Spring. It offers a wonderful Italian-style pavilion and formal gardens throughout the year. For more info on the Cincinnati park system visit the website. Hours are 6:00am to 10:00pm in most cases.

Best Way to Get Around:
If you’re flying in, you’ll arrive in Northern Kentucky at the International airport – we like to confuse people by putting our airport in another state. Several car rental options are available from there. If you can’t afford to rent wheels you can find downtown shuttles also. (Call Airport Executive Shuttles 800-990-8841 for more info). A taxi ride to downtown can be expensive. (859-767-3260 for more info).

Cross over one of the many colored bridges (the latest is purple) to the downtown, where weekend and holiday fares on Cincinnati’s vast Metro bus system start at 50 cents a ride. (Call 513-621-4455 for more info).