Dorn Rodriguez reunion, Columbus, GA - Oct 2024

Well, our cousins family reunion was overshadowed by an unexpected encounter with President Bill Clinton who was using Columbus as his "home base" while campaigning for Kamala in Georgia. We got to see him several times during the weekend. 

His writing on our shirt says: "I was glad to share the Indigo (Hotel) with you. The U S needs a reunion! Bill Clinton"

 The Atlanta airport is about 90 minutes away and mostly 4 lane highway. Columbus was already on our "possible vacation list", so we were happy the cousins voted for Columbus GA as our destination. Columbus fits in the category that "Any city has two or three days worth of things to do."

The city seems to be pretty friendly to tourists, and you can enjoy walks along the river. Alabama was literally a couple of hundred yards away. Troy University has a big sign pointed towards the Georgia state line. We had several group meals, and our "big" activities included two museums.

1) The Army Infantry Museum. This is a World Class museum. They made sure there was enough endowment that admission would be free. It has a HUGE indoor path with rooms for every phase of the US Infantry from the Continental Army to current times. Dressed mannequins (in the appropriate uniforms), photos, videos, and actual sounds of real combat - very compelling! You'll find a room (or two) that will generate a lot of emotion for you. 1775 Legacy Way, Columbus, 31903 706-685-5800  https://nationalinfantrymuseum.org/ There is also an outdoor tank display about a half a mile away.

2) The Civil War Naval Museum (The Confederate Navy). History lesson: Before we had an intercontinental railroad system (about 1870 or later), a lot of commerce and transportation was done via waterways. Which made cities on rivers VERY important. Columbus was one of those cities. The local river had its own ships!  The Navy museum has a lot a fascinating artifacts and the skeleton of an actual  Confederate Gun ship. It's probably 200 feet long. Certainly worth a visit. 1002 Victory Drive, 31901 706-327-9798. There's some fee, but it wasn't much www.PortColumbus.org

3) There's a lot more to do in Columbus, but we spent most of our time just visiting with cousins (and waiting for another glimpse of Bill Clinton). Here's a link to local activities: https://visitcolumbusga.com/visit/things-to-do/

4) Oh, several of us did the Zip Line course, which runs from the Georgia side to the Alabama side and back. It was only "OK" because the harnesses were not comfortable. The ride felt safe, but never comfortable for me. We've been on other zip lines (Asheville) where the harness was comfortable and didn't leave you squirming. 

We had several meals in the hotel Indigo. It was "OK", but it's hard to get top notch service when there's not much high level traffic like in the Big City (or in Carmel). Of course, we weren't expecting a "Big City experience", so all in all, the dining was fine. We did try a couple restaurants that were within walking distance of downtown, and really enjoyed the southern charm and hospitality.

Don't know that we'll return, but if we did, we would get an Air BnB so we can cook and have more space. One knock against the Hotel Indigo is they have a roof top bar, and the band is very loud until 10 pm or so. But I would say, if you haven't visited Columbus, it would be worth a try. It's a pretty active city, and there are some hikes nearby, but we only stayed downtown on this trip.

Here is Bill Clinton chatting with my sisters, Terry and Marty, and accepting a gift of one of our reunion T-shirts https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7eKgnQIZiyI