Ohio is located in the Great Lakes region of the USA and boasts three major cities that all start with the letter C: Columbus, Cincinnati, and Cleveland. If you are a fan of basketball or American football, you have probably heard of the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Ohio State Buckeyes. Ohio LOVES its sports, and people of all ages and backgrounds will cheer for their teams. The Ohioan people are welcoming and open to meeting people from around the world. In fact, there’s a large German population in Ohio as well—the second largest Oktoberfest celebration is in Cincinnati, Ohio! Like most of the USA, there are many places to shop, go out for a nice dinner, grab an ice cream cone, and get outside. Au pairs love living in Ohio!
Thai au pair Natmetha says, “Ohio is such a pretty place and I have the best host family here.”
“At first, I had honestly NO idea where Ohio was located. Are they sure there even is a stated named Ohio? Is there anything to do in Ohio? But keeping in mind what Cultural Care said—choose the family not the state. I went with it, and it’s a choice I will never forget.”
—Johanna Gustafson, au pair from Sweden
“The Cincinnati area has a huge German impact. You will often hear: “Oh, you’re German? My great great grandfather was German too. I even have a German last name”. The Ohioans are very excited to meet Germans and are totally interested in their cultural and language which makes it easy to start conversations. It’s not rare that a lot of students take German classes at school. There’s at least one German preschool in this area, so it can happen that you’re at Greater’s getting the best ice cream ever and kids behind you in line start singing German songs. Cincinnati hosts a huge Oktoberfest as well which is really great to visit and you shouldn’t miss it. When you hear someone talking about “Over-the-Rhine” there not talking about the Rhine as the river we know in Germany. They talk about a neighborhood in Cincinnati which was built by the Germans back when the revolution of 1848 in Germany was happening.”
—Jessica Küsters, au pair from Germany
“I love Ohio because it’s very welcoming. Everyone shares the same burning love for the college football team, The Buckeyes. If you are not a Buckeye fan on arrival, you will be before you leave. Ohio is also located in a place which makes it very easy to travel. Within 10 hours you can make your way to New York City or Chicago or why not Nashville? I have traveled more this year than I have my entire life. I could never have asked to be anywhere else. Ohio is amazing, but no matter which state you end up in, you will have the time of your life!”
–Johanna Gustafson, au pair from Sweden
Swedish au pair Johanna says she took Cultural Care’s advice to choose the family not the place. “I went with it and it’s a choice I will never forget. I love Ohio because it’s very welcoming. Everyone shares the same burning love for the college football team, the Buckeyes. The love for this team is quite amusing and cannot be compared with anything I’ve seen before, it creates such a cohesion. If you are not a Buckeye fan on arrival you will be in time for your departure.”
“I totally lost my heart in this state! The suburb I lived in is called “Loveland” and is very close to Cincinnati, one of the big C’s in Ohio (Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati). If you ask an Ohioan about Cincinnati, they will give you the name of their baseball team, “Cincinnati Reds” and football, “Cincinnati Bengals”. The whole city shows off their pride around the “Great American Ball Park” by wearing red and it’s so much fun to be part of. If you’re an animal lover or looking for something to do with the kids, you can visit the Cincinnati Zoo which is really beautiful. The Cincinnati area has three big malls which were 15 minutes away from me, Kenwood Mall, Eastgate Mall and Tri-County Mall. On Labor Day there are always big fireworks in Cincinnati and you get a wonderful view if you watch it from Newport, Kentucky, which is so close by!”
–Jessica Küsters, au pair from Germany
“Before I came to the US, I was not into nature and animals. I’m a city girl and enjoyed to be in big cities. Well, since I’m here in Ohio, I REALLY enjoy the nature. Ohio (especially Cleveland) is beautiful. The metroparks here are great to hike in, Lake Erie is the best place to relax, and I love to support the sport teams here in Cleveland, Ohio! I know Cleveland is not like New York City, Miami or Washington DC, but once you’re here, you’ll fall in love.”
–Lea Gherensae, au pair from Sweden
German au pair Pia loves the people of Ohio because “Everyone is so friendly, easygoing and helpful. There are tons of things to do here! Amazing restaurants, beautiful parks for hiking (Hocking Hills), zip lining, rock climbing, movie theaters, clubs on the college campuses and more!”
“I love Ohio because it has everything. Ohio has four completely different seasons! There are towns, cities, farms and suburbs, meaning you get the best locally grown produce. There are all sorts of fun things to do whether it’s with the kids or on your days off, from theme parks, to museums and everything in between.”
–Ellen Binney, au pair from New Zealand
“I live in Cincinnati, Ohio. which is not such a well known city among Europeans, but definitely an amazing and great city to live. What I love about this place most is that you go to places you would never normally visit if you come to the US. Everyone is talking about Miami New York or LA. But Cincinnati, Ohio is just amazing. I really enjoyed fall and spring. The nature in Ohio is amazing and there are so many relaxing parks and places to go.”
–Hannah Bernhofer, au pair from Austria
Sofia Ouakri, au pair from Italy, says of her home state of Ohio, “I love my state because it’s so comfortable for au pairs—it’s not too expensive and there are a lot of opportunities for us.”
“Ohio isn’t necessarily a very exciting place to visit as a tourist, but it’s a LOVELY place to live. There’s so many nice places to visit with your friends and just hang out at. Everything is nearby and it’s easy to find things to do. The people here are so nice and friendly and I have the best LCC group you can imagine. I’ve got so many friends here, from all over the world and this will always be my second home.”
–Victoria Eliasson, au pair from Sweden
Coolest places, events and activities in Ohio you won’t want to miss:
The largest Oktoberfest celebration outside of Germany; the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal; beautiful Lake Erie in the summertime; the largest amusement park in the world—Cedar Point Amusement Park!; Hocking Hills State Park; Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; Cuyahoga National Park; Amish Country; Hueston Woods State Park
Au pair Sofia loves that there is so much to do in Ohio!
Great classes to consider in Ohio:
Business Management, Psychology, Marketing and Educational Psychology at Notre Dame College; American Idioms and English as a Second Language at Columbus State Community College; English as a Second Language at Great Oaks Career Campus; Introduction to Psychology at Clark State Community College; Conversational Group at Cincinnati State
Perfect way to spend a day in Ohio:
“Wake up in time to fully enjoy a beautiful sunny day, get a good breakfast and then hit the road to join some friends to go hike in the woods. Take some pictures in the nature and see some waterfalls, explore and just enjoy the time, laughs, and the good memories you are making with your friends. And to have great end, go have dinner at Northstar, and then ice cream at Greater’s or Jeni’s Ice Cream. End the day with a movie before returning home after an amazing day! Or just enjoy a nice dinner with your host family and spending some time around a bonfire.”
–Cyrielle Marlier, au pair from France
“Definitely a road trip. Ohio is not that big, but it has a lot of different cities. There’s Cleveland with one of the best basketball teams the Cavaliers, Columbus with a German village (since I’m from Germany) and Pittsburgh with a great Art Museum about Andy Warhol and the Golden Triangle.
–Julia Stranger, au pair from Germany
“Getting up with my host family, going to Grandma’s house for breakfast. Play games with the whole family until lunch. When coming home, go out with au pair friends and go to a park, shopping, out for ice cream or just a walk. End the day with dinner with my host family and enjoy my day off!”
–Lea Knudsen, au pair from Denmark
“Visit the Cuyahoga National Park, beach on Lake Erie, go shopping, have a good dinner and stay for drinks in a bar in downtown to watch the football or baseball games. Go to the Zoo or visit a museum like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. You could stay one weekend in the Put-In-Bay Islands, or go to Cedar Point or Kalahari. There’s a lot of fun to have with au pair friends!”
–Sofia Ouakri, au pair from Italy
Au pair Stan, from France loves his state of Ohio because, “I love my state because people are really welcoming and nice. Life is not very expensive and there are many activities to do during the week and on weekends.”
“I would spend the day with my au pair friends at Cedar Point, one of the best amusement parks in the world.”
– Johanna Gustafson, au pair from Sweden
“I would start my day off by going for a run on the trail from the Ohio State University’s campus to the beautiful park of roses. After that I would pick up my three best friends to get some breakfast at Tasi, downtown. We can sit there for hours and just talk. When we’re full we would go to the pool and just relax until it’s time to get ready for tonight’s big game. The football team of the Ohio State University, the Buckeyes, are playing a home game which means the streets are colored in red by everyone’s outfits. At a game day, everybody is going crazy. It doesn’t matter if you’re not interested in football, if you’re a child, a old woman or a tourist. On a game day in Columbus, Ohio, everybody’s joining in. We would meet up with our American friends who’s living on the campus. When the night is coming we’re getting into the arena to watch the Buckeye’s take home the victory. The feeling of being a part of the buckeye family while sitting in the arena together with 100,000 other fans is magic. It makes me happy to see people unite as a family in such a huge event and I’m so happy I get to experience this moment together with my friends who I love!”
–Madeleine Stolpe, au pair from Sweden
“I’d do outside activities. Either going to waterparks, waterfalls, zoos, or parks. Cincinnati is separated by a river (Ohio River) from Northern Kentucky. You can always take a nice weekend road trip to great cities like Louisville and Lexington in Kentucky and have some fun!
–Jessica Phelps, au pair from Brazil
Cultural Care au pairs are in love with Ohio! What do you love about this state or the one you are currently living in? Click here to share your state love with us.