Welcome to Spokane

 So you are in a new city, at your new school, wondering what to do on a perfectly sunny day. What are you to do? Are you hungry? Do you want entertainment? Do you want an air conditioned building because C/M's heat is killing you, or do you prefer to be outside in the 92 degree weather? While Spokane is not the biggest city in America (trust me, I'm from here), there is still a lot of stuff you can do as a freshman that you will want to do the entire time you are at Gonzaga.

To start off, there is the obvious. If you are hungry and lack sustenance, you go behind Twohy Hall and everything you could ever want is right there. Pita Pit is the clear choice for everybody at all hours. Pita Pit is open until midnight on Sundays and later than that every other night of the week, including 3 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. The healthy eating aspect of Pita Pit may be expensive, however, it is much more enjoyable than the COG all the time. Right there along with Pita Pit is your best bet for a great breakfast. While everyone knows the benefits of Starbucks, Ultimate Bagel is the true secret of the just-beyond-campus food joints. The bagels are made fresh daily and the array of cream cheeses could blow a person's mind. Ultimate Bagel closes mid-afternoon every day of the week, so you have to get there at just the right time to get a perfect bagel and lemonade to start your day off right.

Of course, as a newly minted Gonzaga student, you should know that Safeway is there for all of your food needs. Getting accustomed to the store can be easy and they will help you find whatever you need. Within four or five aisles of each other, you can obtain some soda, any cracker you could think of, the paper towels to clean yourself up and the ice cream to finish it off. Safeway is also the closest grocery store to campus, so unless you have a car or a friend who is willing to drive to Fred Meyer or Albertson's, you should get to know Safeway and the employees.

By now, you can realize that I, along with most Gonzaga students, love food. So after you get a hearty meal, you should hit up a bus or walk the Centennial Trail to get to downtown Spokane. The centerpiece of downtown is Riverfront Park. While not the largest to-do in Spokane, the possibilities are worth a good afternoon of fun. If you are looking for some air-conditioned activities then the IMAX at Riverfront Park is perfect. While the AMC in River Park Square has an IMAX, the Riverfront Park IMAX screen plays mostly educational films such as Hubble, an exploration of space and the telescope via 3D technology.

Also at the Park is the Looff Carrousel, which was built in 1909 by Charles Looff. The carrousel was built for Looff's daughter, Emma, and her husband as a wedding gift and put in a park in Spokane. When the park was closed in 1968, the carrousel was set away in storage until 1975 when it debuted at Riverfront Park. Every part of the carrousel was hand carved and includes 54 horses, one giraffe, one tiger and two chariots. When riding the carrousel, if you reach out and grab a brass ring from a dispenser it is good for one free ride. Directly east of the carrousel is a Spokane landmark called the Garbage Goat. This steel structure uses its vacuum-aided system to digest any amount of small garbage. It was created for the World's Fair in 1974 as a statement to recycle and avoid littering.

South of the park are two very opposite sights, but two great shopping opportunities lie ahead. Boo Radley's is a shop that specializes in the goofy things in life, including novelty items and lunch boxes. The joy of expecting the unexpected is what you will find at Boo Radley's. This is the type of store for people who love gag gifts and things you would never think about shopping for. While Boo Radley's is close to the goofiest place in Spokane, you can head over to the Main Market Co-Op afterward for some fresh organic fruits and vegetables. The Co-Op, located at the corner of Browne Street and Main Avenue, was built to deliver fresh organic food to the Spokane public, which has been lacking it, along with decreasing the carbon footprint of the community. Anybody can join the Co-Op for a small price, but everyone is welcome to shop there and help do their part to shop and stay green.

You've discovered a good chunk of downtown, but you look south and see a huge hill. Deciding to hop on a bus and explore the South Hill is, in fact, a great idea. Once you get up to 19^th Avenue, you can stop and spend a nice afternoon at Manito Park. The park is filled with five different gardens from the Duncan Gardens, which is a symmetrical three-acre garden with a large granite fountain, to the Nishinomiya Japanese Garden, named after the sister city of Spokane, Nishinomiya, Japan. There is enough room in Manito Park to play catch, watch the ducks in the duck pond and even play some Frisbee golf. 

After a long day at the park, you could be craving some sweet treats and there are two fantastic places on the South Hill to scratch that sugary itch. Across from the park, you can find the Rockwood Bakery, which has a large amount of sweet treats and some of the best coffee Spokane has to offer. If coffee isn't what you are looking for, then Lindaman's Gourmet Bistro could tickle your fancy. With homemade meals including marinated salads, crusted chickens, and some fantastic desserts, Lindaman's has a little bit for everybody. 

With all of these places within reach from Gonzaga, the opportunities for fun and bonding with new friends and roommates are endless. Enjoy your first few weeks with the great autumn weather and the beautiful colors of this wonderful city. And remember, for things that cost money, Crosby Center may have discounted tickets, including Riverfront Park passes.