Providence

You may not know this, but the state of Rhode Island is roughly the size of Yosemite National Park. That's pretty small for a state! And with thousands of miles of coastline, it is certainly the "ocean state". The downtown area of Providence flanks their river, which used to be completely covered with roads and parking lots. 20 years ago they opened up their river again and it brought new life to the city. Sidewalks go along both sides of the river for walking, and it's a small enough city to where you can see quite a bit on foot, though there was much more I didn't see.

Exploring Providence was easy. We parked along the street outside of Brown University, an Ivy League school, and walked through the big gates to one of the main, old quadrangles. Surrounded by historic and architecturally interesting buildings, we wandered the quad, entering the student union and a science building, just to poke around the classrooms. Taking a coffee break at the Brown University bookstore was essential, of course. 

We ate lunch downtown near Johnson & Wales University, at a hip, modern spot called Tazza. I had delicious beignets with 3 different kinds of lemon sauce/creams. And my turkey, avocado panini sandwich was so tasty with red potato and sweet potato home fries. The place itself was cozy with clean lines and cool wooden chairs that were actually comfortable.

Of course I found a used bookstore very close to Tazza and discovered a few of the books I talked about here.