Exploring the Saint Clair Avenue in Cleveland
The city of Cleveland is situated in Ohio, on the shores of the beautiful lake Erie. Cleveland used to be a very important industrial city in the past with a lot of different factories. Unfortunately, most of them do not operate anymore and Cleveland is not as fabulous as it used to be in the past.
But I still think that Cleveland is an amazing city. First of all, it is the home of the best museum I have ever had a privilege to visit - the Rock and roll hall of fame. Secondly, it is the home of the House of Blues where you can often attend amazing concerts. And last but not least, Cleveland has one of the biggest community of Slovenian expats in all the United States of America.
But why do I care about the last reason so much? Well, simply because I am from Slovenia, and despite the fact that I live in the United states of America now, I have not forgotten about the fact where I am from.
But why does Cleveland have so many Slovenian expats? During both world wars, people from the area where Slovenia is now (it did not exist in the past, it only formed in 1991), were fleeing to three areas: Australia, Argentina and Cleveland. And I have to say I am very glad that even though they are not the first generation anymore, they still decided to carry on with their culture and not forget about their ancestors.
One of many Saint Clair avenue's colourful murals.
So during my last trip to Cleveland, I decided to check the Saint Clair’s Avenue out. I decided to only dedicate around fifteen minutes to my visit, since I thought this place is nothing special and I will be able to see everything during that time. Well, it turned out I was wrong, and I was glad about being wrong this time! Feel free to keep reading to find out what gives the Saint Clair avenue its special charm.
Where is Saint Clair avenue situated?
You will find Saint Clair avenue in the city of Cleveland, Ohio, very close to the Lake Erie. In fact, the Saint Clair avenue is situated just a short walking distance away from the lake, and at the same time from the Rock and roll hall of fame. One of my friends from Cleveland mentioned that, despite the fact that you can walk between these two landmarks, that does not mean you should.
Apparently, you are crossing a rather unsafe area, but, according to him, it is completely fine to drive through that neighborhood. When you will be passing through that neighborhood, pay attention to the houses - most of them look old and run down. Upon the closure of lots of factories, the economic situation in Cleveland has not been the best, and therefore, quite a few of the city’s areas are best avoided.
What to see there?
Saint Clair Avenue is not populated only by Slovenian immigrants, but it is true that most of them are from Slovenia. Why am I telling you this? So you will not be too surprised when you see a Croatian or Lithuanian flag next to the Slovenian one.
When I was exploring the Saint Clair avenue, I parked the car on the Wendy’s parking lot, which is conveniently situated on the very beginning of the avenue.
The first thing that I noticed when I stepped out of the car, was a big mural with a lot of flags on it, including a Slovenian flag. If you have ever lived abroad for an extended period of time, you probably understand how amazing (and also surprising at the same time) it is to see a piece of your country on the other side of the world.
The mural with the flags at the beginning of the Saint Clair avenue.
And things were getting more and more interesting. Most of the shops and stores had something Slovenian in the name. For example, this store, Slapnik and son. Slapnik is a traditional Slovenian last name.
It is so weird (in a good way) and mind blowing to see something from your country so far away from home.
Or this one, Smrekar hardware. It is good to see that people do not forget about their roots and are proud to display where they are from. Unfortunately, both of these stores were already closed. I was just a little sad, because I would love to go there and talk to the owners.
Next time I am in Cleveland, I will have to visit the Saint Clair avenue earlier in the day, when the stores will still be open.
At the very end of the Saint Clair’s avenue, you will find the Slovenian archives and the Slovenian national home, which frequently hosts meetings and events about Slovenian culture and language. Unfortunately, since I was there quite late in the day, both the Slovenian archives and the Slovenian national home were already closed, but I stumbled across a staff member that was just leaving the place, and she asked me if I need any help. I told her I am from Slovenia and she seemed so happy to talk to me in Slovenian language.
Home... away from home.
She told me that her grandparents moved to Cleveland quite a few years ago and worked in one of the factories, and she said they were very proud of their Slovenian roots. Then she amazed me by speaking almost fluent Slovenian, although with a very strong accent. Next time I am in Cleveland, I will definitely visit the Saint Clair avenue again, because I am really curious about the Slovenian archives and the Slovenian national home.
Where to eat?
Cleveland is a city that is full of amazing breweries, and you will find some in the close proximity of the Saint Clair avenue. If you feel like eating traditional Slovenian food, well, there is probably no better place in the United states of America to do so (besides my kitchen, but that does not really count) than Saint Clair’s avenue.
When I was exploring the area, I had a few delicious beers at the Goldhorn Brewery, and a typical Slovenian meal at a restaurant, called Sterle’s.
Goldhorn Brewery serves an impressive amount of good beers, including an authentic Slovenian one. If you cannot decide on which beer you want (just like me), you can try their four beer sampler (just like I did). After trying all four beers, I almost wanted to ask for another four, because they were that good, but then I remembered that I have more to explore, so I decided to keep walking to a place where I could also eat something. And I found a great restaurant, called Sterle’s.
Eating at Sterle’s was almost like eating my mother’s food, but on the other side of the world. They offer some of the most authentic Slovenian dishes, and some of them have an American twist added to them. The prices are very reasonable, and I was told they have good beer too, but since I already had some beer at the Goldhorn brewery, I decided to skip it here. Next time I am there, I will definitely try it.
A few words for the end…
After living in the United states of America for almost two years now, it is pretty mind blowing to see a flag from your country and hear strangers speak your language. Before visiting the Saint Clair Avenue, I had no idea what to expect. All I knew was that this is one of the biggest Slovenian communities in the United states of America, and I must say that I loved exploring this long avenue, filled with random mementos from my home country.
