Student Blog: Seeing the Sights: Things to Do in Cape Girardeau

Hey friends! The semester is quickly winding down which means I am about to close up my time in the college town that is Cape Girardeau. I talk a lot on here about what all I’m involved in and the fun little projects I work on, but I wanted to take a second and talk about what I do when I’m not running around like a chicken with my head cut off. My school is located in Cape Girardeau, MO which is in the southeastern part of Missouri. River Campus, the arts campus where I spend my time, is located right next to a bridge that crosses the Mississippi River and once you cross that bridge you are officially in Illinois. Which is kind of crazy because I drive 3 hours from Illinois to get to Cape whenever I drive to school from home, which is weird to think about but I digress. Anywho, I wanted to talk about the fun things in Cape that my friends and I like to do in our free time and fun stuff in general. And you already know I like my lists, so here’s a list of my favorite things to do in Cape!

1. The Cape Riverfront Market

I absolutely love the riverfront market. It is probably one of my favorite things that Cape Girardeau does that I enjoy. The Riverfront market is basically a farmers market that happens in downtown Cape Girardeau May-October. So my window to catch the market is always very small. But I love it. They have a bunch of different cool vendors from jewelry makers, soap makers, fresh fruits, coffee stands, and so much more. It is all locally made and all of the stands are small businesses in the area. My favorite stand that always pulls up is Crepe Girardeau. They make these amazing crepes and have a bunch of different flavors that change throughout the season depending on the month and they are delicious. The market also almost always has live music from local artists playing in the background and they always do fun events at the market throughout the season. It is very local, homegrown type beat and it feels very homey to me. I love waking up on Saturday morning and heading to the market with my friends.

2. Downtown Cape

Piggybacking off of the Cape Riverfront Market, Downtown Cape Girardeau is also a really cool place to just walk around and see. We have a bunch of different local business shops up and down the streets. My favorite shop downtown is Annie Laurie’s. They are an antique thrift shop that always has the cutest clothes and the coolest stuff. I’ve gotten a lot of vinyl records from there as well as other cool knick-knacks. Even if I don’t buy anything it’s cool to just walk around and look at things. I also always hit up my favorite downtown coffee shop Ground-a-Bout. They have the best coffee in Cape and their breakfast is incredible as well. Downtown is very historic and it is known for the giant clock tower in the middle of one of the roads. There is also a huge mural that is painted on the riverfront wall, since downtown is right up against the Mississippi River and the mural highlights famous figures that came from Missouri with a few other really pretty murals as well. It is really cool to see and walk up and down the riverfront and see all the paintings and take in the river. Also, downtown Cape is where they shot a lot of the movie Gone Girl, including the bar where Ben Affleck works. The Bar is still there with its sign and everything. It’s cool to see.

3. Marcus Theater

I love going to new movies with my roommates. Marcus Theatre is really great here in Cape because they offer value Tuesdays where tickets are only 7 dollars and on Thursdays, any Southeast Missouri State University students get discounted tickets as well. I never have a whole lot of money to spend, so this is a great way to go see movies and get out of the house without having to spend a lot of money on tickets, popcorn, etc. We love to bring our blankets and wear out comfy clothes and go watch movies!

4. Dogwood Social House

Dogwood is really cool. It is a restaurant but with a bunch of cool activities on the inside. They have axe throwing and bowling and an arcade and a bunch of other things as well. The organization I’m a part of always tries to go there once a year and eat, go bowling, and have fun. 

5. Capaha Park

On nice days,  I like to go on a walk at Capaha Park. It’s a beautiful park near main campus that has a walking path and a playground and also a pavilion where you can do picnics or events and such. One day recently, classes got canceled due to a power outage, so we all went to the park and had a little picnic in the grass. It was so so fun. I love the park!

6. The Rec Center

Our on-campus rec center or gym is really great because it has a pool that you can go and swim in during gym hours which I think is really cool. They have a slide and a little zip line looking thing that you can jump off of. I always have fun when we go and it’s free for all SEMO students-which I always love to hear.

7. The World's Largest Fountain Drink

At one of our Rhode’s gas stations, we have the world’s largest fountain drink. It’s huge. I’ve gotten my picture next to it and am proud of it.

8. Scout Hall

Scout Hall is a place in downtown cape that is basically a performance venue/multipurpose building and they host a lot of really cool events. Recently, my roommates and I went to a Broadway Rave that they hosted and it was probably one of the most fun times I’ve had here. It was crazy, it was so loud, people dressed up, we all danced and sang and it was great. They also just recently hosted a grown up book fair which was also super cool. They host a ton of different events like that. 10/10 recommend.

Those are just a few of the fun things to do around Cape G. I really do like our little college town. It’s been a lot of fun exploring. Find time to do the things you love and things that bring you joy. Do something new. And as always, go do great things.