If you only had 24 hours to spend in Columbus, what would you do? This was a hard question for me to answer, but I’ve come up with a list of must sees and must dos that I feel will leave any visitor with an experience uniquely Columbus.

I’m sharing these ideas in a three part series - the first post is geared to families, the next to the business traveler, and finally, a post to help a local decide what to do with visiting friends or family.

Here’s part three of three, with suggestions geared to residents looking to entertain visiting friends or family.

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We all have friends and family come to visit us. And inevitably we all get asked the question, “So, what are we going to do while in town?”  Check out the following ideas for a fun Columbus experience and give your visitors a better sense of why you call Columbus home.

Where to Eat
My favorite place to take family and friends to eat in Columbus is Tasi Cafe . Located just behind High Street, Tasi’s offers freshly prepared comfort food with a unique flair. The casual atmosphere makes it a favorite of locals, and the menu offers breakfast, lunch and dinner options.

The Refectory is an AAA Four Diamond award winner, offering contemporary American cuisine and classic French cuisine. The restaurant’s location is unique - it’s inside of an old church, and the atmosphere has a rustic feel. Also, they have an amazing wine cellar with over 700 selections.

No matter what your visitors’ tastes, they are sure to find something they like at the North Market . Central Ohio’s historic public market since 1876 and located between the Short North and Arena District, it features fresh and prepared foods, and authentic ethnic cuisine. (more…)

Dale Chihuly
Mille Fiori, 2008
de Young Museum, San Franciso
Photo by Teresa Nouri Rishel

If you haven’t been to the Columbus Museum of Art lately, now is the time to visit. Chihuly Illuminated is one of their current exhibitions and includes six large installations and various other pieces. You’ll also get a behind the scenes peek at Dale Chihuly’s studio and life.

With pieces never before seen in Columbus, the exhibit focuses on light and glass. A couple of the pieces even incorporate neon in the glass to make it glow.

My favorite was Mille Fiori, which is the biggest and most colorful in the exhibit. From the moment you turn the corner you are hit with so many bright, vibrant colors and shapes. The piece is very reminiscent of a garden with plants, flowers and animals all made of beautiful glass. It is quite breathtaking to stand back and try and take everything in.

Chihuly Illuminated isn’t the only place in Columbus you’ll find the works of Dale Chihuly; different Chihuly exhibits are running at the Franklin Park Conservatory (check out Cathe’s blog post about that here ), and also at Hawk Galleries. For more details on these and other glass exhibits throughout the year, visit GlassArt365.com .

July 4 marks the beginning of an entire year’s worth of glass art exhibitions in Columbus. Seven organizations are hosting glass art programs - three featuring the works of Dale Chihuly, and many at the same time:

• Franklin Park Conservatory: Chihuly Reimagined (July 4-March 28)

• OSU Urban Arts Space and Hawk Galleries: BIGG: Breakthrough Ideas in Global Glass (July 10-Oct. 10)

• Upper Arlington’s Concourse Gallery: Melting Pot (July 22-Aug. 21)

• Columbus Museum of Art: Chihuly Illuminated (Sept. 25-July 4)

• Hawk Galleries: Chihuly XIV (Oct. 2-Jan. 31)

• The King Arts Complex: African Art: Tradition and Influence (Nov. 12-Dec. 15)

• Glass Axis : glass workshops (ongoing)

This weekend, the anticipated Chihuly Reimagined opens at the Franklin Park Conservatory . The Conservatory’s entire collection of Chihuly glasswork is on display throughout the facility, along with three brand new installations.

I was lucky enough to preview the exhibit and it definitely lives up to the hype. The contrast of the bold Chihuly glass among lush foliage is spectacular. My two favorites were the hundreds of blue reeds in the courtyard and a rowboat upstairs in the showhouse that is filled with gorgeous purple and blue glass.

Chihuly’s Blue Reeds
at Franklin Park Conservatory

Although most pieces have been on display at the Conservatory before, some of the work has been positioned differently, changing the light and bringing a fresh perspective. For instance, the Persian Ceiling is now in the Himalayan zone. It’s in two sections that are much closer to eye level, so you can see parts you never noticed before.

Next week, the OSU Urban Arts Space in the old Lazarus building and Hawk Galleries (a few blocks away at the corner of Main and Fourth streets) open a really intriguing exhibit of international glass artists entitled BIGG: Breakthrough Ideas in Global Glass . This is juried exhibition of master-level artists (or the equivalent in their country) and really represents the future of glass art.

On July 22, Melting Pot opens at the Concourse Gallery, followed by the rest . . .

For details on each exhibition and photos, visit GlassArt365.com .

The Columbus Arts Festival , a well-loved Columbus favorite, takes place in the Discovery District this weekend (check their site here for all the details).

As part of the weekend, the Columbus Museum of Art is celebrating with a special offer and activities for festival goers including free admission, kid-friendly fun and your last chance to see To Live Forever: Egyptian Treasures from the Brooklyn Museum .

Nannette Macijunes, CMA Executive Director, shares the details below.

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As part of the Discovery District , the Columbus Museum of Art is delighted that the Columbus Arts Festival will once again be in our own backyard. To celebrate, CMA, and our special exhibition To Live Forever: Egyptian Treasures from the Brooklyn Museum, will be free to festival goers. The exhibition closes June 7, so if you haven’t had the chance to visit, Arts Festival is the perfect time to explore ancient Egyptian artworks, play the ancient game of the pharaohs and dress in ancient Egyptian costumes. Our parking lot will be transformed into a children’s area with hands-on art making activities and visitors can also take advantage of daily tours, Art Challenges and Museum Quest activities throughout our galleries.

There will also be a Salon Schools make-up station where you can transform yourself into a King Tut or a Cleopatra, and a Generation Gap magical Act featuring Jim Rogers and his thirteen-year-old grandson Ian Davis performing family-friendly illusions. Finally, and I have to say I think this is truly a first for the Museum, there will be a giant inflatable slide located in our parking lot along with an inflatable bounce house. I am fairly certain we’ve managed to cover our bases and can honestly say that we will, indeed, have something here for every visitor.

Arts Festival is one of those fabulous Columbus traditions that helps make central Ohio the richly layered community it is and firmly establishes us a cultural destination. Last year, nearly 7,000 people visited the Museum over the course of the festival, we hope to welcome even more of you this year.

Art Speaks. Join the Conversation.

Nannette Maciejunes, CMA Executive Director

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Photo: Mummy Cartonnage of a Woman, Roman Period, 1st century C.E. Linen, gilded gesso, glass and faience 22 11/16 x 14 5/8 x 7 1/2 in. (57.6 x 37.2 x 19 cm) possible place collected: Hawara, Egypt, Africa, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund.