Big 10 campuses
 

I thought it might be fun to try to visit all of the Big 10 campuses in a year (or thereabouts).

Anyone have any suggestions for not-to-be-missed campus or area sites?

Thanks for your help.

I couldn't tag more than 1 state, so I will include the states here:

Illinois------------Urbana
Purdue-----------W. Lafayette, Indiana
Wisconsin-------Madison
Indiana-----------Bloomington
Northwestern----Evanston, Illinois
Ohio State-------Columbus
Iowa---------------Iowa City
Michigan State--Lansing
Michigan---------Ann Arbor
Nebraska--------Lincoln
Minnesota-------Minneapolis
Penn State------State College

We have already visited the first four.

Oddly enough, I have been to all of them except Penn State and Purdue, oddly because I hadn't thought about it. I just did it for work.

What they have in common: attractive core campuses; nearby kool areas with funky bands funky food good beer; lots of traffic and very little parking.

I don't know where you are starting from, but the logical links would be Lincoln-Iowa City-Minneapolis; Evanston-Lansing-Ann Arbor-Columbus (really, you should have done Northwestern when you did Madison); and poor old Penn State.

Columbus is a major city with a population of over 1 million including the suburban areas. The campus is located about 2-3 miles north of the downtown area. There are some interesting neighborhoods in Columbus besides the University District. The Short North, just south of OSU campus, has all sorts of interesting art galleries, non-chain restaurants, etc. including some Victorian - era architecture. Just south of downtown is German Village, built in the late 1800's with lots of red brick cobblestone streets, old refurbished houses, interesting shops and restaurants.

I would stay in downtown or near downtown (Short North, Nationwide Arena, near the statehouse)but there is also a major shopping area - Easton on the east side of town, a large outdoor mall with every type of chain store you can imagine and lots of chain restaurants you have seen in every other major city or Polaris, which is an indoor mall in the northern suburbs, again, the usual mall type chains.

If you do decide to visit Columbus, post back and I can share restaurant recommendations.

The University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA), while not on par with some of the major museums of the world, has a very nice collection worthy of its free admission. Just across the street is the Michigan Union, and on the steps is a plaque commemorating President Kennedy's announcement of the formation of the Peace Corps. The Law Quad, near to both, is very pretty. Michigan Stadium is on the athletic campus, south of the main campus. Near-to-campus neighborhoods worth exploring include Kerrytown.

The Michigan League, on campus, has a hotel that would put you in the center of the main campus and there are a few hotels close to campus. There are several chain hotels on the "North" campus, too. I would stay near the main campus, personally.

Being a large university campus there are many kinds of restaurants, of course, and I'll recommend Zingerman's Deli.

We are starting in Illinois - not too far from the U of Illinois campus. Our son is going there, our daughter went there, we both went there. The good news with that starting point is that we are basically in the middle of them all and could do any in a weekend. My husband is actually from Evanston and we've been by Northwestern - but never really stopped to walk around campus. It will be an easy visit though since we go to Chicago periodically.

We've been to some of the other cities too, but never with the goal of walking around the campus. I'd always hoped to do campus tours with my kids, but they were never interested in traveling around to visit them. On the other hand, a parent that I chatted with visiting the U of I told me that I hadn't missed much. I still think it will be fun to explore the campuses as a tourist rather than as a parent of a prospective student.

DH and I discussed it tonight and think we may start with Columbus. The Michigan campuses may be next in line. Thanks for the tips on University of Ohio and University of Michigan. The German area in Columbus sounds like a good additional to our jaunt around the campus. And the plaque about the start of the Peace Corps, the art museum, and the Michigan League are the sorts of things that are good to know about.

Interesting things on the Illinois campus are the grave of the first president, disks across the quad where you can stand and talk to each other, plaques all over campus telling about points of interest, and a place that shows the solstice. There's a virtual tour online. My favorite place to eat is Papa Del's for deep dish pizza. They also have thin crust. If you go at lunchtime, you can buy it by the slice and from 3-4, slices are half price.

If you go to Penn State, definitely get ice cream at The Creamery, which is on campus. The school offers a short course on ice cream making.

If we go to Penn State, that will now be at the top of our list. U Wisconsin Madison has an ice cream shop in their union and it is wonderful.

If you come to Columbus with your kids, you should try Dirty Franks, a fun, hipster hot dog joint in the downtown area. Also, Thurman's is a bar in German Village with very famous hamburgers. They have won all kinds of awards and have been featured on TV. Be prepared to wait in both places.

Skillet is a locavore restaurant in German Village serving breakfast and lunch that is pretty good as well. In the Short North, Mac's is a great place for a burger & beer that won't break your budget.

Also if you go to Penn Stste....in addition to great ice cream at the Creamery, make sre you go to The Diner for their famous "stickies".
http://www.thediner.statecollege.com/stickies.html

The PSU Creamery for sure. I'm also partial to Meyer's Dairy on Atherton Street going south out of town.

Should you happen to visit Happy Valley on a Wednesday, head south on 322 to the Reedsville exit about half an hour down the road. Follow signs (or buggies) to Belleville for the weekly market and auction, strong Amish country here. There is also a flea market at Dairyland right at the exit.

When you visit the University of Minnesota, you should see the Frank Gehry designed Weisman Art Museum on the bank of the Mississippi.

Thanks for all the great ideas. I'll add them to list.

I was looking for a way to "pay it forward" for all the good advice I'm getting on a different forum here, and it looks like I found it! I live in Lansing, near Michigan State University. If you visit I'd highly suggest coming in late spring or early autumn when the students are here and the beautiful Gardens at Michigan State University are in bloom. That would mean May or September. If you come during the summer, you can't get the real MSU experience - East Lansing without the students is like a ghost town.

Michigan State University's campus is one of the prettiest, or so I've been told. Many old Ivy covered buildings. Stay at Kellogg center to be in the heart of the campus and contribute to the Hospitality Industry Student's learning experience. Be sure to take a walk along the river, and if you have a chance, hit a public skating session at Munn arena. Find your way to the MSU dairy store where cheese, ice cream and yogurt from our own MSU cows is for sale! This is still an agricultural college, so as you work your way southward, you will find pastures with horses grazing and can walk through the cow barns and see the cows that have little doors into their stomach. (yes - I'm serious - always fascinated me when I was a little kid and we made field trips there.) There is a nice museum, and make sure you walk the main strip in East Lansing while things are bustling. Eat at the Peanut Barrel - one of the busiest bar/restaurants in East Lansing - it is not fancy, but will give you a real taste of the culture. They have great outdoor seating during nice weather. Throw your peanut shells on the floor if you like - its tradition! Be sure to get an olive burger - another Michigan specialty, and the Peanut Barrel makes them better than anyone. Hope you enjoy your visit - MSU is a jewel!

... also - you mentioned bringing the kids. Depending on their age, they may find the special Children's garden at MSU fun. Its very cute and creative - too cute for preteen and above, but the little ones (6 and below) love it.

I am chomping at the bit to visit Lansing now too. Thanks for all the great ideas. I think this will be a fun quest.

No kids coming along. Our youngest is busy going to college himself right now.

Thanks for the continuing tips. I too have gotten a wealth of information from these boards.

Glad to have been of some help. Let us know how it all goes! Very neat quest....

Have not been to the MSU campus area in East Lansing (sounds interesting from BBTTB's description), but did visit Lansing proper on a day trip. Can recommend the Michigan Historical Museum near the capitol -- good if you like museums of this kind. Wasn't that taken with the capitol building, though, which I found very over-the-top in ornament and decoration but not in a good way. Others might disagree, of course.

There's also a car museum (the R.E. Olds Museum) and a zoo (Potter Park Zoo) in Lansing, neither of which I was able to visit, so I can't comment further.

I can't quite see the point of visiting the Big Ten campuses. What is the point of looking at a bunch of buildings? In some cases there are museums of note and the city locations offer some interesting sites as mentioned. Love Madison and Columbus e.g.

Bill in Boston (now) have lived mostly in Illinois, Missouri

Bill: I can't "see the point" of a lot of people's travels, but their plans are special to them, for whatever reason. Live and let live!

The U of Iowa campus sits (mostly) squarely in downtown Iowa City. We had horrendous flooding in 2008 that destroyed several wonderful buildings that sat along the Iowa River, but the university has been slowly getting back together.

When you hit Iowa City, I suggest you make plans for lunch at the famous Hamburg Inn. Most presidents and pres. candidates have made campaign stops there. It's a fun, quirky place to relax over a nice lunch.

There's also Pagliai's Pizza, just off downtown, which is VERY much a local favorite for thin-crust pizza. (It's pronounced "Polly-eye" - if you pronounce the "g", as Pag-lee-eye, you'll be tagged an out-of-towner.) ;-)

If you wander around downtown Iowa City you'll find all sorts of funky little shops that are fun to browse through.

In the middle of the "Pentacrest" - which is the heart of the campus - sits Old Capitol. Iowa City was once the capital of Iowa, and the building has been historically preserved and is open for tours. It's a beautiful building.

Since no one has yet, let me put in a plug for Northwestern. If you follow Sheridan Road about a mile north from campus, you'll come to the the Baha'i Temple at the corner of Linden. You can also take the CTA Purple Line from downtown Evanston to Linden and walk a block east.

The building is spectacular and it's especially nice when the gardens are in bloom. You can see everything in about an hour.

Ozarkbill - Usually major campuses have interesting architecture, some neat restaurants and other points of interest. Choosing Big 10 universities is just a take-off point since the ones that I have seen have had those qualities.

Went to school at both University of Wisconsin (undergrad) and University of Michigan (grad.)

In Madison:
- Of course, a walk down State Street, with its cute stores and good dining. Love the restaurant Kabul, as well as Parthenon for Gyros. Love the bar Paul's Club -- there's a tree inside!
- Babcock Hall ice cream either at the Union or Babcock Hall. The Chocolate Shoppe also has really good ice cream, and a bit more variety.
- Visit the capitol building.
- Around the square, the Old Fashioned is good for drinks and food.
- Harvest is my favorite fancy restaurant -- lots of locally sourced ingredients. Terrific service.
- The Great Dane for really good bar food and even better beer. Crop Circle Wheat is a beer I really miss.
- The Monona Terrace is lovely with beautiful views of the lake.
- The Henry Vilas Zoo is FREE and is great for a walk on a nice day.
- The Wisconsin Union allows you to overlook the lake, though I think you need a membership to purchase beer -- sometimes they check, sometimes they don't.

In Ann Arbor
- Zingerman's Deli or Roadhouse. If you go to the deli DURING a home game, it will be mostly empty. You can sample nearly everything in the store.
- Grizzly Peak is my favorite bar, and has decent though not amazing bar food.
- Cafe Zola for brunch.

Clearly, I like food a lot :)

Beth

Thanks for all the tips, Beth.

I am so looking forward to visiting all these campuses.

Hi Traveler2005 - Lincoln, Neb. is an excellent capital city with a lot to do and see. First and foremost, you must visit Memorial Stadium, home of the Nebraska Cornhuskers. You can take self-guided tours 7 days a week from 8 a.m.-8 p.m. or arrange a guided tour in advance. Also on campus is the Sheldon Museum of Art, which has an excellent collection of contemporary American Art; and the University of Nebraska State Museum, which has exhibits on Nebraska’s ancient past, including a display of mammoths.

Another must-see is the Nebraska State Capitol. It was completed in 1932 and has a lot of interesting art deco touches inside and out. It’s my favorite building in the entire state. It’s open 7 days a week and guided tours are conducted on the hour.

Lincoln also has some excellent restaurants, from steakhouses, to Indian, Thai, Mexican, etc. Let me know what you are interested in and I’ll make a recommendation. You can find more information about Nebraska at http://www.visitnebraska.gov.

traveler - Re: MSU - I forgot to mention The old Auditorium on your list of places to see there. It has fantasic murals by the American Artist Charles Pollack - some of the best examples of his art in the country.

Also the Wharton Center - which is the performing arts center used now. Lots of touring Broadway shows come here, sometimes for weeks at a time (i.e. - The Lion King.)

They are also building a new museum - extremely modern in design. I fear it is going to look as out of place as those pyramids in front of the Louvre, but I'll withhold judgement. Thankfully it is outside East Lansing City proper a bit, so it doesn't spoil the view there.

Someone mentioned "why would you want to visit a bunch of buildings." In MSU's case, the old part of campus, immediately accessible from the heart of downtown East Lansing (not to be confused with Lansing) is a bunch of very lovely buildings - great walking opportunity - more like a park!

Bachslunch - thank you for reminding me of the jewels in my own city of Lansing as well. We have suffered so many downturns lately that it is sometimes easy to forget what we do have. The downtown is becoming quite lovely by the waterfront and new city market, the river trail that extends from East Lansing to points beyond, and yes - our zoo. There are many who prefer it over the Detroit and Toledo zoos. Their children enjoyed it more because they can be so much closer to the animals. What it lacks in variety, it makes up for in intimacy!

Just for trivia's sake, Lansing and East Lansing are actually two different townships - they have a very clear border and each has their own downtown. "East Lansing" is not the east part of Lansing. Its confusing I know!

So iowagirl...you are from Iowa City? Not long ago we visited Cedar Rapids (DW's hometown) and surveyed their extensive flood damage. But you didn't even mention Amana not so far away? As for the Big Ten campuses...what can I say since DW and I met at Drake Univ. in Des Moines...this being a reminder of many delightful campuses that aren't Big Ten. Also would consider scenic sites close to said campuses...beside Amana Colonies, how about Brown County IN and Tippecanoe Battlefield and Wisconsin Dells and Art Institute in Chicago. Now those are sites really worth seeing.

Thanks for the tips on Lincoln, AlexisAbel. We plan to visit that one when we are in Iowa for a family get-together this summer. It won't be close - but it will be closer than from home. When we started planning the Big10 quest, I didn't think about the plus of having the state capital there too. We also like to visit them. As far as food, pizza, Italian, or restaurants with vegetarian options are my favorites.

Ozarsbill - I would definitely like to see other sites near the campuses. I had a cousin who went to Drake. We've been to most of the places that you mentioned (need to make it to the Tippecanoe Battlefield) and agree that there are lots of sites worth seeing!!

We started our quest with a quick day trip to Ohio State. Snow was predicted, but we decided to start out and turn around if we needed to. As it turned out, it was a beautiful sunny day - although cold and windy.

The irony of the trip is that the following Thursday, my son called and told us that he had been accepted to Ohio State for grad school. I suggested that he should tell us what his top choices are and we can take a detour from our Big 10 trips to visit them.

Hey Bill: yes, I'm from Iowa City - born and raised and still here.

I didn't mention the Amanas just because I wanted to mention points of interest in Iowa City proper.

But yes, traveler, if you have time, the Amana Colonies are a nice little trip west of I.C. on I-80. Take a big appetite - the restaurants are wonderful!

Happy travels!

We are invited to a wedding in Madison next fall, so will pencil in a visit to that campus that weekend.

Any tips on Bloomington, Indiana?

As to Bloomington you may know about the lovely state parks nearby which are especially beautiful in the Autumn. This includes McCormicks Creek (http://mccormickscreekstatepark.com)
Also nearby Brown County has a Fall (Oct. 12-21) festival with merchandise along the roads...www.coveredbridges.com. But I'd recommend going another time avoiding the crowds to see the covered bridges.
Bill in Boston

Thanks for the tips near Bloomington. We used to go to McCormick's Creek every spring for a get-together with college friends. Eventually, we changed to Starved Rock in Illinois since McC C was such a distance for friends in Chicago and Madison.

You are absolutely right about the crowds at covered bridge time. Of course, if shopping flea markets is important, Covered Bridge festival time is the time to go.

Will let you know what I find out about IU. So far, I discovered that they also have a walking tour. Also their art museum has tours on Saturdays at 2.

Friends shared some more tips on Indiana University. The first tips are from a former student. The last is from someone who worked there for a time. I thought I'd share them here for others that might be looking for Bloomington/IU info.

Bloomington Indiana:

I went to a nice Korean restaurant on 13th street, not far from my old dorm. I'm not sure if it's still there.

There's a street full of ethnic restaurants and I heard the food was good. I think it might be 10th street. It's not far from campus either.

They should try the bowling alley in the Union. That way they can get a good look at the hugeness of the place.

The creek is nice to walk along and there is nice path through the woods behind the law library.

The rare book library display areas are free.

The football stadium is impressive.

When I was working in Bloomington, I always liked the Uptown Cafe, and the Upland Brewery. Both always had interesting and often changing menus. The Uptown Cafe is half a block from the Courthouse heading toward campus. The Upland Brewery is a bit northeast of downtown. Probably best to look on Google maps.

Hi Traveler!
I have a couple of great local restaurants to recommend in Lincoln:
Dish,1100 O Street, is contemporary American with lots of International flair. They have lots of vegetarian options and gluten-free, and make a killer steak. http://www.dishdowntown.com/

Something a little more affordable is Yia Yia's Pizza, 1423 O Street. This spot is very popular with students and families. They do pizza by the slice or pie, and have tons of options, including a completely vegan pizza made with soy cheese. They also have a fantastic beer selection. http://www.yiayiaspizza.com/

More traditional eateries are Lazlo's, 210 N 7th Street (Haymarket) which is a microbrewery and restaurant. They have steaks, lavosh pizzas, burgers, etc. Good veg options here, including a couple of salads and a mushroom burger that's very tasty. http://www.lazlosbreweryandgrill.com/

Another favorite for steaks and beer is Misty's, 200 North 11th Street. They have steaks, pastas, fish, burgers, etc., and they also brew their own beer. http://www.mistyslincoln.com/

I hope these help. Let me know if you have any questions or need more ideas!

Well, I guess I'll have to put in a plug for Purdue! Whenever you go, don't miss Harry's Chocolate Shop ( http://www.harryschocolateshop.com/) which of course isn't a chocolate shop.

If you go in September, the Feast of the Hunter's Moon is a lot of fun -- but crowded. http://www.tcha.mus.in.us/feast.htm

And, if you're interested at all in alternative power, there's a huge wind farm just to the north of West Lafayette on I-65. Probably 1000 windmills, and you drive right through the middle of them, mile after mile after mile. Really quite amazing.

Jumping from Indiana to Nebraska and back again. Is this thread helpful I wonder?
Bill in Boston

Bill - I suppose it is helpful to anyone who'd like to go to any of these places.

Thanks for the Lincoln tips. We hope to go there this summer.

I've been to Lafayette a couple of times, but had never hear of the chocolate shop. I'm going to google and find out what it really is (G).

As it turns out, my son is going to Ohio State in March as a prospective student. Too bad that we visited there in January. OTOH, we were able to tell him a little about the campus.

I've written up trip reports on the first two trips and will try to get them uploaded as a separate note.

My son went to Indiana University and one of our favorite places was Scotty's Brewhouse for its 50+ beers on tap. Upland Wheat was a favorite -- can probably get that at the Upland Brewery ;-)

There are several local wineries. Try the Camelot Mead for something different!

A more upscale restaurant - Scholar's Inn -- in an old house, great food! (don't confuse with the bakery on the square)

The Irish Lion - gets crowded and crazy on the weekend. Great Irish pub fare!

Next to the Memorial Union is a small chapel (Beck Chapel) and cemetery with an intriguing history. The Union has a nice hotel, though it can be difficult to get a room at certain times of the year.

I once stayed at a bed and breakfast, the Grant Street Inn, for a change of pace and would recommend it.

I think the campus buildings are really beautiful, made from Indiana limestone. The campus is really beautiful in the spring with all the flowers blooming, especially at the Sample Gates. You could also check out the Little 500 (remember the movie Breaking Away?)

As others have said there are a number of beautiful parks around Bloomington. About an hour east is Nashville, Indiana. I've not been, but friends have and enjoyed the shops and restaurants.