This is a destination for any low-key traveler, offering entertainment, history and beauty. Appleton has roughly 72,000 people, is part of the greater Fox Cities with about 300,000. It is a college town: Lawrence University Campus is situated on College Ave., the main street. College Ave. was recently remodeled after the addition of a large Performing Arts Center. There are two main centers of activity: one is the Lawrence area on east College Ave. (my family always called this area “downtown”) where one finds bars, clubs, high-end restaurants of exotic cuisines, and specialty stores, and the other hubbub is the by the Fox River Mall on west College Ave. To get to the mall area you can either go down Wisconsin Ave. or College Ave., both of which intersect Casaloma Blvd. The mall draws consumers from around the state, and you have fun stuff to do like Laser Tag (LaserQuest), and the Funset Boulevard arcade/bumper car place in the Hollywood Cinema.

Entertainment and Theater:
The Performing Arts Center brings in musicals, shows such as 12 Angry Men recently,
and renowned, popular bands to perform. It stands on the North side of College Ave. and is hard to miss because it has big glass windows and a lighted sign. It’s advisable to get tickets ahead of time, which can be expensive. The community troupe Attic Theater puts on performances on the Lawrence campus (in the Music Conservatory building, north side of College Ave. next to the tall, white-columned chapel building; you can enter the back way from Washington Street also), or they perform in other venues. Also worth noting, excellent high school theater shows at Appleton West High School; in 2004 they qualified to attend the International Theater Festival in Edinburgh, a prestigious honor to be invited to, and performed there.
Movies theaters—Hollywood Cinemas located by the Fox River Mall; Valley Value
Cinema in the old mall on Memorial Dr. on the south side of town, almost to Menasha; Regal Cinema off of east College Ave. (you must cross the bridge and keep going on College); the Big Adventure Theater (Imax) on Washington Street
The Building For Kids—If you are traveling with family, this museum will be right for your kids. I worked there and saw it change, always getting better and better. It is what sustains the downtown mall. Small children can play in the mini-sized Kid’s Town, pretend to drive a police car or a firetruck, infants can play in the oversized garden area, readers can recline in the library for hours or parents can read to their kids, and astute young ones can learn science in the Doctor’s area, physics experiment area or planetary room. Also totally fun is the art room and the dress-up playplace called Grandma’s Attic. However, you must accompany your child at all times. Located on College Ave.

Food:
Some of my favorite restaurants that I recommend in Appleton are…
-The Olive Garden on Casaloma Blvd. Italian sit-down-and-order establishment.
-Hometown Buffet off of Wisconsin Ave., delicious all-you-can-eat breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Only serves breakfast during certain morning hours, likewise for lunch and dinner.
-Señor Tequila’s on east College Ave. Simply sumptuous Mexican food. Reasonable prices.
-Taste of Thai on east College Ave. Economic prices for truly great Thai food, in a classy, peaceful atmosphere.
-Mary’s Family Restaurant. In the city near the intersection of Glendale and Richmond. Or, travel south on Oneida Street to the town of Menasha where there's another one (you will cross the Fox River).
-Sunrise Family Restaurant on Richmond St. A homey stop for breakfast, all the traditional combos of eggs, hashbrowns, omelettes, pancakes, waffles, steak and eggs, toast, coffee and milk. Salads and sandwiches. Personable servers and fresh doughnuts and bagels!!
-Big Apple Bagels on west College Ave. You have to turn off College onto the service road. The sign isn’t very big…it’s by Perkins. The best bagels in the world and cream cheese that is so creamy. Not for wimpy people who are self-conscious about dieting or weight. The best deals are posted on the counter, and you can buy something like 12 bagels for $6 dollars. Assortment of sweet and salty bagels and cream cheese flavors, mix and match. They serve other food like sandwiches, too.

Coffeehouses:
-Pilgrims’ Café (College Ave. and Durkee St.). Church-run, but you don’t have to be Christian to enjoy their imported coffees! Friendly faces, cappuccinos, newspaper to read, ice-cream parlor attached, grande cookies and desserts, and a lunch menu too! They sometimes still make the strawberry, onion and walnut salad (my favorite, it’s amazing) in the summer, but if that's not available, try the Moody Blues salad with craisins on it. You can either sit in the sunlight by the front windows to people-watch, or in the cozy balcony couches for privacy and intimate conversations. There is a library there but it is rarely open. If you get lucky, you can hear singers and musicians playing in the evenings on weekends.
-Harmony Café (by the back entrance of the downtown mall, on Oneida St., but you access it from Washington St.). A community-building, socially just, and accepting place associated with Goodwill, the Rotary Club and the Multicultural Organization next door. I love to just sit there and read, talk with whoever happens in, play piano and/or listen to local groups perform there. Delicious cappuccinos, Harmoccinos (their signature drink), Chai, organic tea, and lattes. See website www.focol.org/harmonycafe .
-Brewed Awakenings (College Ave.) Their coffee is better than Starbucks, and maybe even better than Harmony’s. Comfy couch to sit on, eye candy on the walls and books in the bookshelf. They have a great selection of coffee drinks and an assortment of snacks.
-Gloria Jeans Coffee (in the Fox River Mall). For any addicts, it is a quick coffee stop while you’re shopping. If for some reason you don’t like coffee, I recommend their delicious ice cream and chocolate specialty drinks.

History and Architecture:
Appleton is the home of Harry Houdini, the famous magician. You can visit the Houdini Museum downtown on College Ave. It is also the home of actor Willem Defoe and Senator Joe McCarthy, the Red Scare perpetrator…but I don’t know of anything you can see related to them, and McCarthy was a dipshit anyway. Appleton was built on the Fox River, so it had a water-power industry and, also, the paper industry is important still. The Appleton Papers building is located on east Wisconsin Ave. The historic district and old neighborhoods are resplendent with beauty, form, gemutlicheit, industrial remnants (railroad tracks), and some hidden walking trails. Also there is a museum made out of the first house in the area to receive electricity, called Hearthstone Museum on south Memorial Dr. (same street as Richmond, different name).

-Essentials:
Hearthstone Museum, of course, and…
The Olde Oneida Street bridge, south of the Lawrence campus. You can get there by heading south on Drew Street (you’ll pass the Art building on your right), go down to the old Academy Strings/Arts office, Olde Oneida St. is there to the left, squeezed between the River Mills Apartments. There is probably still a display of artsy wind-wheels and baubles that the dam-keeper (I think) puts up on the side of the bridge in the summertime.
The Skyline Oneida Street bridge is also interesting. On the north side of the Fox River, off of Oneida Street, there is the “historic ward” neighborhood with beautiful houses. Pretty much any neighborhood around Lawrence University is colorful. On the south side of the bridge, you have a country club if you turn off to the right, and some other sights on the left.
Along College Ave. there is a treasure trove of metal and concrete sculptures (and in winters past, ice sculptures), as well as several parks nearby. Closest is Jones Park, accessible from Lawrence Street, or from Water Street down by where the Olde Oneida Street Bridge is. City Park, north of the Lawrence campus, has a neat sculpture of children playing and tables for picnics or parties. Arbutus Park is on Packard Street, if you are on skateboard or bike or rollerblades, there is a wicked hill to take advantage of! East of there, Packard Street becomes North Street and on it you will find Peabody Park, which I like best because it is on the river and gives way to a wooded hiking trail. If you’re driving to Telulah Park for disc-golfing, you just go east on College Ave. and cross the bridge, turn left at the first stoplight onto Walter and you run right into it. Pierce Park is by Hearthstone Museum, from there you go west on Prospect St.

Walking/Biking trails:
Between Peabody Park and Wisconsin Ave. On Wisconsin Ave., you have to enter the trail slightly east of Appleton Papers by the railroad tracks, on a small back road that splits off south of Wisconsin…it is hard to find if no one shows you. So instead, go to the back of Peabody Park, toward the woods, to get to the trail. Double-track mostly with some single track. For hardcore mountain bikers just a heads-up, it’s not very long.
Newberry Trail. Paved double-track, hilly, wooded, and takes you along the river. You can enter by way of the Olde Oneida Street Bridge: once you’re on the south side of the river, turn onto South Island St., and an opening in the fence appears not far down the street. It is a long trail with some breaks in it though, when you hit Lawe Street, you have to hop across the road, up an incline/bridge section, to Newberry Street where it continues. Then there is a fork by John Street, you are under the College Ave. bridge at that point…to walk the whole length of the trail, go straight and take the right fork (I think), don’t turn onto the street. It ends at Telulah Park…bring some discs along and while you’re there take advantage of the disc-golfing course!!
CE Trail. It’s completely paved and along College Ave. It stretches from the West Side to the East Side and into other towns, but too noisy due to cars.
Bubolz Nature Preserve. This place is quiet and very beautiful, for anyone interested in the natural history of Wisconsin or who enjoys scenic hiking/biking. Extensive network of trails. It is located on County A, which is named Lynndale Street in Appleton. You go north of the city and it is on your left with a sign, I think.

Bars and clubs on College Ave.:
Note: almost all the bars close at around 2:30 or 3:00 a.m.
-Dr. Jekyll’s, a bustling bar with a “beer garden” for smokers in an outside enclosed area (with fountains!). Atmosphere is a mix of patriotic and Buddhist, you’ll like it if you’re weird. Good prices.
-Wet is a newer dance club/bar. If you’re from a bigger city and used to rougher atmospheres, then you should check this one out. Plays mostly hip-hop and urban music. Several floors. The one time I went there it was filled mostly with Black and Hmong people, ages 18 to 20-somethings. The cops came because of a fight.
-Señor Tequila’s has salsa dancing on Thurdsay, Friday, and Saturday nights (maybe Sunday nights too?), all the best popular Latin music such as reggaeton, Cuban, salsa, merengue, Juanes, rap, Mexican, etc. It is packed. This is the best time I’ve had in Appleton.
-Cleo’s, a small bar with a discussion, meeting-oriented climate.
-Katsu-ya’s, it is a Japanese restaurant and bar. They bring in quality piano performers, mostly jazz and rock-and-roll. Classy, sit-down place, with a fantastic mural. Their serve their specialty Obezi sake, a Japanese brand of beer called Saporro, red and white wine, as well as the normal fare of mixed drinks.

Any questions? Let me know, send me a message, e-mail , or check out the Fox Cities website: www.focol.org