One of my most favorite travel places in the United States, Providence, Rhode Island, I found purely by accident.

I was travelling with a friend through the East, and we were headed to a very different destination in the states.

********HOW we chose PROVIDENCE******
Well, as life would have it, this friend and I began talking [and as anyone who knows me knows that I cannot 'talk' when I am going to change highways or I miss the highway and get slightly lost]. and we talked and talked and laughed and had fun.

Well, before we knew it , my friend was going "oops" , we missed our highway connection, and by now we were hours off course.

I just laughed and she laughed and we both looked for the nearest 'town or city' that we could visit instead of our original destination. [We had no hotel plans as this was just a 'fun' day trip' so we didn't lose any money or disappoint anyone who might be waiting for us].

We found "PROVIDENCE" on the map and this was the closest to where we were headed.

So, Providence it was.

***********Same as my town, almost*******

To my surprise, it didn't look much different than my town [except of course there was no traffic congestion and we found meter parking very quickly. Even in 'rush hour' there wasn't much of a rush. ]

We drove around the 'cityish' part of Providence , we didn't see much 'country' there. And, accidently we found a Christian book store.

This was a special treat, because here we were in a very strange and different city and yet we found something to make us both feel at home , so many miles away.

Even more amazing was that as I browsed this book and gift store, I found something, the absolutly MOST perfect gift for a special child back at home.

There in the midst of all the Bible quotes and books and Bibles and bookmarks was this beautifully pastel watercolour print , framed and all. The thing about this print was that it had the most perfect quote on it that I had ever seen for a child or a baby or for that matter for any human being.

***PLACE OF PERFECT BIRTHDAY GIFTS****

Here, accidentally in Providence Rhode Island, I found the most perfect birthday gift. I saw it, held it and tears came to my eyes and I knew that this was a sign that this trip was meant to be.

My friend and I were meant to come all the way out of our way to find this perfect birthday present for one of my loved ones.

*** GOD Danced the day YOU Were born"!!***

The plaque said, "God danced on the day you were born" . Ahhhhh now how much more special can you tell a person they are than reminding them that God rejoiced the day they were born?

In all my years , I 've never seen a better birthday gift that came from a Christian book and gift store.

[Of course there was an extra special reason why this plaque in this particular town was so special that it brought tears to my eyes. But, as you know, I never tell 'everything' in here at Ciao. So ...you can have just that part of the story.

So, I purchased this plaque [which I had never seen in all my travells of all the bookstores in NYC, and off we went to see the rest of Providence.

I have been to Providence twice in my life. so this review will have bits of both trips, since they were both different.

*******WHat's Providence life?******

The 'busy ' part of Providence , near the Capitol building is busy but not 'overcrowded' . Parking was difficult but not impossible. We parked about five or six blocks away from the building and put some coins into the meters.

We took some pictures of the buildings and the people, and of course, I did the 'blooper' thing.
By now I figure that I must be queen of bloopers, but you know what, it's fun anyways.

I was trying to take pictures of the city. and then I just put my digital camera down to my side a bit, and was talking with my son [this was on my second trip there] and after a few minutes I realized that the camera was in 'movie' mode all along . So, Ms queen of bloopers now had inside her digital camera a nice movie of her arm, the shoes, and the sidewalk of Providence. And, the movie was still going.

***BE careful with your camera*******

Quickly I started pounding all the buttons on this camera to try and stop it and it wouldn't, so I just began pointing the camera around at the buildings and the scenery for what little battery and film I had left. This was an interesting movie, and I decided to keep it anyways.

After that we walked over to the PRovidence Mall, and this was just like being at home. All the same stores, all the same products. You could only tell you were away from home when you saw the signs that said PROVIDENCE Mall.
So this was a nice visit.

*****WE saw the Capitol building****

Back to my other visit, the first one. We walked along the sidewalks and stopped in a few shops. This particular area that we were in resembled a very smaller Greenwich Village type area, with notes about all the artists' events, and even postcards that boasted of the 'art studio ' tour by bus that was happening.

This was the area right near the college, so the town part had the typical college atmosphere, lots of young and old people walking briskly back and forth to the shops, in and out of the coffee places.

*******RIDE a GONDOLA" !!!!

We read everything there and we even found out that AMAZINGLY, Providence has something so special, and so different than some of the other states. When you come to Providence, check out the GONDOLA rides.

You don't have to go all the way to Italy to have a Gondola ride, just come to Providence, Rhode Island.

*****VISIT THE LIBRARY*******

Anyways, as most times when I visit a different place I do try and get a 'souvenir ' of my favorite kind, having to do with books. . We went into the Providence Library which was close by and I approached the counter before I did my browsing.
I asked for a library card, YES, I dared ask for a library card in this strange city where I did not even live and where I wasn't even sure if I was coming back to.

The lady said I could have one, but she told me that I would have to pay twenty-five dollars for the card since I didn't live in Providence.

Well, that might seem expensive to you, but the way I see it , since libraries and books are my most favorite things [other than cameras and books, lol ] then this was worth the money to add this card to my library card collection.

So I paid my money and received my Providence Library card. Now don't fret about paying for a free library card. I'm sure that you have paid way more on bottles of wine or top hats, or automobile accessories or ball caps as souvenirs of the places you visited.

My library card collection is quite portable, and nice to look at and brings back all the memories of the trip. So, it's perfect for me.

So, from top to bottom, the people of Providence are friendly, and no one is in a hurry . Except for the college area, it's a laid-back kind of atmosphere. You must figure that if people are in there riding Gondolas in Providence, then relaxation definitely is important to Rhode Islanders.

*******SAVE time , don't eat, lol ******

We didn't eat. Just for the one trip , we stopped and had pretzels and sodas in the mall. Most times with these day trips, who wants to eat? I want to spend time seeing the sites, really taking in everything and to me eating is just an ordinary thing that I can do at home.

For anyone interested in visiting Providence , check out the providenceplace.com site and you will have all the info about the mall that you need. If you are travelling with children, see the mall first and your kiddies will feel like they are right in their home town.

****SHOP at FILENES & Nordstroms****

For yourself, at the mall you can shop at Filenes. and Nordstroms or a whole slew of other famous stores. I know the kiddies will love this stop first and this will certainly relax them. There you can pick up your pretzels and fries and sodas and be on your way to see the historical places that Providence has to offer .

For more specific information about shopping at Providence Place call this telephone number ahead of time ------

*****TELEPHONE PROVIDENCE******

Telephone 401-270-1000

Another thing to do ahead of time is to check the website . On that website you will find a map and an entire diagram of where all the parking is at. So this will save you some time when you have arrived. Then there is always mapquest if you like to print your map out.

****WHERE IS PROVIDENCE ******

Providence is approximately 181miles from NYC or about three hours from NYC. [These are approximates, check mapquest or your auto club for more information or detailed information]

***USE the MALL RESTROOMS*****

I didn't see many public restrooms here so let the kiddies use the restrooms at Providence Place mall before you leave there.
or use the library restrooms. The libraries, as was everything else in PROVIDENCE was clean and inviting.

ANy other questions? check the website or call that telephone number

****************CHAMBER of COMMERCE** for Greater Providence can answer all of your questions

call (401) 521-5000 for assistance.

ENDNOTE: I figure there might be a few who might not like that I mentioned the "G" word here [GOD} and they might try to rate this review as
"OFF TOPIC" ..but just for the record , this review is perfectly in the right place, it's in the place for
PROVIDENCE RHODE ISLAND..
and the flavor of my reviews, my personal touches or the way in which I write my reviews

will stand as it is

no matter what ratings come from these reviews.

It's just the way I do business

Tell it like it is...

signed

your local God-loving, Providence-visiting aquarian....