Hello everyone! Today, I wanted to share my latest adventure in Providence, Rhode Island!
Now, this was a work trip, so I didn’t see too much, but I did want to share what I was able to get up to! I managed to make the most of it, and still had a few little adventures around downtown Providence though!
Providence’s Brown University
I had a great time wandering around Brown University’s campus! I really feel like I blended in as a college kid, despite being 31. At least, up until I walked through the greek life area and then it was obvious I was not a student there. But it was such a pretty campus and I felt smarter after walking through for sure!
It was also “pre-college” weekend so there were a ton of incoming freshmen with their excited families walking around.
I will add that I totally got Rory Gilmore vibes from the campus and did think about bribing kids to get away from my “study tree”. Kidding on that last part!
Providence’s Art
I managed to make it into the RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) Museum one day after work! I can’t remember the exact time I got there but I had about an hour and a half to go through the museum before they closed, and the last two hours of the day were free entry! I raced to see as much as I could!
I do love visiting museums so I had a great time. There were plenty of things to look at! There were paintings, of course, but also rooms with vintage furniture staged to what a room may have looked like in the past, a mummy, clothing articles, a garden, and so much more. It was a really cool museum!
Providence’s WaterFire
I was able to see a partial WaterFire event! Some of my contacts for the event I was traveling for actually participated in lighting the bonfires, which was super cool. I had a great time getting to know other employees of the company putting on the event I was in the city for, and we all had a great time at the WaterFire event.
To be honest, we were surprised at how simple it was. I suppose most of us thought it was more of a performance but it’s actually an art installation and a very lovely one at that. Now, this was a partial event, not a full WaterFire, so I think the full one would have more to see, but it was still really cool and there was even a proposal!
Providence’s Historic Graduate Hotel (formerly the Biltmore)
I stayed at the Graduate Hotel in Providence, and I loved it! Not sponsored, I just really enjoyed my stay. The bed was sooooo comfortable, the room was spacious, and the decor was phenomenal. I totally slacked in getting pictures of the room, silly me, but here’s a picture of the giant Andre Leon Talley portrait in the hotel lobby that I was obsessed with.
I also found the staff to be absolutely fabulous! I really enjoyed my entire stay and both the coffee shop and the restaurant at the hotel were great. I really loved the chai latte at the coffee shop and the pretzel bites with aioli. Oh, now I’m hungry!
Providence’s Food & Shopping
I don’t have pictures for this one, strangely, so here’s one of the city from the river. But I had some really great food in Providence! I loved walking around Federal Hill, where they have tons of Italian restaurants. I also really liked Small Point Cafe, which had amazing sandwiches and coffee. Kin’s Southern Table had fabulous food and drinks too. I really recommend their Black Girl Magic drink. And there was a little stand in front of my hotel by the roller rink that was really good too, although the food took forever to come out.
I didn’t really get much shopping in but there was a great gift shop at the Omni hotel. There were tons of small shops around the downtown area too. I found a small book shop, Stages of Freedom, which gave a portion of all sales to pay for swim lessons for children from lower income families. I also did walk around the mall nearby which had some fabulous options as well.
Providence’s Landmarks
I had to stop by the gorgeous Rhode Island State House building! It sits atop a hill, so it is very impressive looking. I really enjoyed walking around the area!
One other cool place I want to mention is the Providence Theatre! I really wanted to catch a show there while in town but the show was the same time as the WaterFire, which I thought was more unique to Providence so I opted for that instead.
Rhode Island – What I Want to See Next Time
I don’t know when I’ll be back in Rhode Island but next time I do hope to make it to Newport and tour those Gilded Age mansions. I also would love to see Westerly and see Holiday House, Taylor Swift’s home, from a respectful distance. And the lighthouses would be cool to see too!
So that’s my short recap on my trip to Providence. I really did enjoy the time I did get to see the city, and I loved the New England vibes!
Thanks for reading!
Pamela
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