Columbus, Ohio

I lived in the Midwest of the United States for seven years. One city I had never visited while there, however, is Columbus, Ohio.

I recently went there for a week for a volleyball tournament. Columbus is home to The Ohio State University and that's where the tournament took place.

Ohio State is a great campus. There's a lot of money at that school, which means that basically everything is new and everything is well-maintained.

Of the eight days I was there, it didn't rain on two of those days. And on those two days, it was as windy as it could possibly get.

So, if you're looking for great weather - you may want to visit elsewhere.

Columbus does, though, have many redeeming qualities. The biggest - the North Market.

My hotel was within walking distance of this great building. The North Market is a multi-level building with small restaurants and shops located throughout. Whatever you're craving, you're likely to find it at at least one of the restaurants.

The biggest disappointment that I found with Columbus was the downtown area - which is where my hotel was.

It's full of businesses and that's pretty much it. There's no nightlife. Everything - including the limited restaurants - shut down after normal business hours. It was kind of depressing.

I did, however, enjoy roaming around downtown - even with the poor weather.

Now, I wouldn't necessarily recommend planning a vacation to Columbus, but it is a great city with a great university that is well maintained.