Iowa City Things to Do

Iowa City has a great little downtown area near the Old Town mall that is paved with cobblestones. A lot of the bars, restaurants and shops in town are found here, along with the public library and a playground. Public art is featured prominently in this area and it's a great place to walk around and pass the day away.

1 more image

The U of Iowa provides a lot of entertainment.

Last weekend ESPN's Gameday was in town for the Iowa Hawkeyes to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Contact the U of I to get more current info on sporting events, Hancher Auditorium etc.

Check out the Robert Lucas Home. I was there back before I landed my first job in Iowa City. The hostess told me, upon learning that I was a local, that she met another couple from Ohio where Robert Lucas had a home prior to coming to Iowa City. It was so close to them that they never got to see it. So they stopped to see this one so they could get an idea of what their "home" looked like! It was interesting to see what frontier life was like.

You can start with the Devonian Fossil Gorge located north of Iowa City. Here, if you are interested in fossils, you will find them in a washed out area below the Coralville Lake Spillway which was uncovered during the floods of 1993. See the link to check on directions and phone for further information. This struck the interest of many at the time as the movie "Jurassic Park" was making the rounds through the theaters at the time even though the Devonian period was just prior to the dinosaurs.

This is Iowa's Old Capitol Building which is now the heart of the University of Iowa campus. When open to tourists is shows a building that's been around since Iowa was still a territory. It suffered from fire a couple years ago but has been restored, at least from the outside. It's still being worked on the inside but should be available later on. See the website for the latest information.

You’re Invited – Beam on in

What: Captain James T. Kirk’s (future) Birthday Celebration

Where: Murphy’s Bar & Grill, Riverside, Iowa
71 East First Street – 319-648-2888 (reservations helpful)

When: Saturday, March 21, 2009 – 6:00 p.m. to ???

6:00 p.m. – Order from Murphy’s dinner menu.
You can preview it at www.murphsbar.com

7:00 p.m. – Toast to Kirk. Enjoy Star Trek-themed cake, Romulan Ale (alcoholic), and Blue Moon Beverage (non-alcoholic) – provided by Riverside Area Community Club (RACC) and Jerry Murphy

James Tiberius Kirk won’t be born for another 219 years, but that doesn’t stop Riversiders from celebrating their future legendary son’s birthday – and we’d like you to join us.

Fun event for all ages – Door prizes – Come one, come all

Be the first in your galaxy to own a commemorative TrekFest XXV t-shirt. They’ll be available for purchase at the party.

Downtown and the Pedestrian Mall is worth a look and a walk around. They have some stores and places to eat or get an ice cream here. It's pretty nice, albeit not very large. There are of course the obligatory shops catering to the college students. I don't know how this place would be during the regular school year.

Wander around the downtown ped mall and on to the University of Iowa campus.
The campus is beautiful, with a river running through it. Downtown there are many wonderful, unique little stores. They show you the heart of Iowa City.