6 Ways Fort Collins Manages to Feel Like Home, Even If Hasn’t Always Been
While I grew up in a place where cheese is its own food group and where sitting in one of my friend’s cars in the McDonald’s parking lot was my idea of a Friday night on the town, it’s safe to say my Friday nights and cheese consumption in Fort Collins differ immensely.
If you hadn’t guessed already, I come from a far away land called Wisconsin. We like beer, cheese, the Green Bay Packers and pronouncing words differently.
Of CSU’s student body, 19% are from a state other than Colorado.
Whether these 19% had lives where at least trying to cow tip was normalcy, or where the skyscrapers and lights were synonymous to someone else’s ocean waves, we all have something in common: Colorado has not always been home.
Presumably like many, I fell in love with Fort Collins. And that wasn’t without aid. If you find yourself in my shoes, the 19%’s shoes, or if you just were wondering how Old Town differs to someone trying to make Colorado a home, then keep on reading; ’cause I’ve got 6 ways Old Town has helped diminish my yearning for good cheese and bubblers.
1. The People
Of course people from different demographics, states and countries are all going to have a difference in what they can relate to. But whether you’re used to the smiles and the friendliness or if you thought everyone here truly does take advantage of the revised marijuana laws, you’ve noticed almost everyone has a smile.
Nothing quite as homely as doing a double take at a complete stranger because their smile mimicked your grandma’s whenever she saw you enter a room.
2. Niches for Everyone
Whether you’re a beanie-wearing, I-knew-that-band-before-you-did coffee shop goer, or truly miss the feeling of barbecue sauce covering your cheeks, there is a place in Old Town for you.
For me, it was finding Mulligan’s, an Irish pub that celebrates multiple sports teams, but most importantly, is a place where I can whip out my accent, scarf down some cheese curds and be surrounded by green and gold.
3. CO Pride
I don’t think I’ve managed a day in Colorado without someone sporting the Colorado flag in one way or another. Old Town has plenty of those I-probably-don’t-need-this-$12.00-shot-glass-but-I’m-buying-it-anyway stores.
And now that I have my Colorado flag shirt, I can basically say I’ve summited dozens of mountains while eating organic granola.
4. Free WIFI
Okay, basically a given in today’s day and age… But honestly super helpful when your roommate hasn’t washed their old oatmeal bowl and you’re semi-convinced it’s grown legs and you need some time to yourself… OR some time to FaceTime back home, where your true loved ones would at least warn you about the oatmeal creature you may have to fend off with a spatula.
5. The People: Part 2
Not too hard to say, considering the diversity (lack-there-of) of my hometown, Fort Collins has a multitude of people. By just walking around Old Town, it’s clear to see that home for one person, is not home for another in the companion sense of it all, but that Fort Collins allows for that.
So if you’re into music, or art, or just smoking pot and slack lining, to anything in between, Fort Collins and Old Town certainly have your future BFF waiting for you.
6. Sense of Community
There are so many festivals and events held in Old Town where all of Fort Collins has a place to kick it together and build a sense of community that is second to none to your hometown (but maybe not quite as cool as my hometown’s cheese ball drop on New Years… Just sayin’).
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So whether you’ve bought what I’ve tried to sell you in those six points or not, I suggest that if you’re struggling to make Fort Collins your home, to just click some of those links above and to just explore.
Get to know the Old Town that you want it to be. There are plenty of places that can be unique to your own experience, and while it’s not quite like your mom’s home cooking (whether you loved it or hated it), or not quite like the constant attempts to get your sibling in trouble, Fort Collins sets itself up pretty nicely to help fill those voids in one way or another.
