Iowa City: More than you expect in the Midwest

Iowa City: More than you expect in the Midwest

Iowa City is a surprising town...This comes from someone who's visited many towns and cities on three different continents, so I figure that makes me something of an authority on the subject!

I relocated to Iowa City ten years ago and had no idea what to expect. What do you think of when you think of Iowa? I thought of the Gilbert Grape movie and corn fields and that was about it…

It didn't take me long to realize that I was way off base and there's a lot more to Iowa City than that...Of course Iowa City is a college town, so it has the college town atmosphere. The University of Iowa as the largest employer in the area has an enormous influence on the Iowa City way of life. The University is probably the main reason why Iowa City has such a diverse community with so many people from so many different cultures. It’s this diversity that makes Iowa City unique in so many ways.

What impresses me most about Iowa City? I'm going to start by talking about the Arts. It only took a walk through the Ped Mall for me to get a sense of how Art and Culture influence day to day life in Iowa City. Book shops, Theatres, Museums, Art Galleries, oh, and Coffee Shops…Such a small town and so much to offer!

A walk through the Ped Mall is interesting any day of the week, it's even more enjoyable when there's live music and that happens a lot throughout the summer months. Summer this year has been a bit on the wet side to say the least, but that hasn’t stopped Iowa City celebrating the Summer of the Arts / Jazz Festival.

Although Summer of the Arts is not over yet I want to move onto what for me is the highlight of the events taking place this month. It’s the Landlocked Film Festival and runs from August 27 to August 30. It’s a collection of independent films that are screened at different locations in the downtown area.

International Independent Films in Iowa City – Are you impressed? As an independent film lover I am...It ranks up there with the time I saw Richard Thompson performing at a concert at the Ped Mall a couple of years ago...

Midwest – Boring? Think again! Come visit us. Iowa City will surprise you! And when you're here, make your first stop is one of the coffee shops at the Ped Mall...Then you'll know what I'm talking about!

Many thanks to my friend Howard Horan for the use of the photos: HHoran Studio, Iowa City Tel: 319-351-2813