It was one of the least compelling offers I'd ever heard. But, not being one to refuse an invitation from my host, I politely agreed.

"How'd you like to see my brick collection!", was one of the first things John asked me shortly after we first met. I wondered what could possibly motivate anybody, even a carpenter, to collect anything so mundane as a brick. But, once I saw the variety in John's collection of bricks I discovered where their appeal lay.

I'd never met or even heard of anybody whose hobby was collecting bricks. So, I initially imagined being introduced to some boring heap of blocks uniform in size, shape, and color. Instead, what John had amassed were antique bricks from the 19th and early 20th centuries, back when kilns fired an impression of words and designs from the mold into each brick. Many bore the name of the company that had produced it. There were lots of years, streetnames, and mysterious initials. John had taken much of his collection and built them into a long wall along the back of his yard with generous amounts of mortar separating each to highlight every individual brick's text and design.

Couchsurfing Host John Stands In Front of His Brick Wall

"There's one of the rare Athens double-starred bricks," John said pointing to a beautiful, ruddy, glazed block with patterns of parallel lines highlighting two six-pointed stars placed at center. "That's Athens, Ohio, of course," John clarified. "Here's another one I picked up in Russia," he waved at a brick with an impression all in Cyrillic script. I was surprised by how truly curious I was to hear more about the background of John's brick collection.

Cincinnati is one of the few stops along the my self-dubbed "Grand Overland Tour 2015" where I've chosen to stay despite having no friend, relative, or other contact to call on--let alone to stay with. I decided to stop off anyway just to see what was here. It was along my way. "When else would I come through here for another visit?", I reasoned.

Before coming into town I'd considered other places to stay. A traditional hotel sounded boring and beyond my budget. Air B'n'B might be better--but I found no short-term rentals in the area that appealed to me. Even hostels weren't an option. Evidently, not enough fellow travelers include Cincinnati on their itineraries to warrant anybody opening up a hostel, here. So, I fell back on my old standby, the CouchSurfing website, which connected me to John. He turned out to be just the right person to show me around the area, bricks and all.

David Rides Bike Share on University of Cincinnati Campus

Before we met I couldn't easily slot John into any typical category of traveler or host from his CS profile. He hadn't traveled to many places... but the places he had visited included remote parts of Siberia that I had never been to. His trade was listed as being a carpenter. Somewhere from his profile I gleaned that he was a recent widower. He'd lived in the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area for decades. Aside from the appeal of his offering a spare room to stay for a night he seemed like an interesting person to meet.

Arrival into town from Bloomington yesterday morning was easy. My connecting bus from Indianapolis made two stops in Cincinnati, the latter right downtown in the city center. Though that stop would be more central and closer to where I'd stay with John over my one night in town I decided to get off at the earlier dropoff point further up on the University of Cincinnati campus. I'd read a newspaper article describing a surge of recent construction by world-renowned architects that had transformed the campus into a slick, postmodern village within the city. It sounded worth a look before I made way to stay with my CouchSurfing host.

Cincinnati Skyline Across Ohio River

Conveniently, right next to the university bus stop where I got off was a bank of bike-share bicycles on the same scheme as the ones I rode back up in Madison. Branded here not as "Bcycle" but as "Cincy Red Bike", the system was the same in all but name. My annual membership was valid here in Cincinnati as well which allowed me to choose one from a docking station then return it to any other in the area within an hour without paying any fee.

I pedalled slowly between the university buildings then dismounted and walked alongside the bike to navigate areas heavy with pedestrian traffic. In-person, the glitzy new buildings didn't stand as impressively as I'd imagined them from their desciption in the article I'd read. Perhaps my lack of appreciation came from merely walking around their exteriors without seeing what was inside. Perhaps it came from not knowing the architect's intention. I had tried to get to know more by registering on-line for a standing noon campus tour several days prior... but nobody responded to that reservation request.

David & John Go Out for Bluegrass Music

The sun was hot and high for a November day. I was soon done with my self-guided tour of pretty new buildings on the University of Cincinnati campus. I bought several postcards at a bookstore on the opposite side of campus from where I'd come in. I write postcards faithfully wherever I go and decided that this city should be no exception. Even if it wasn't appealing as an exotic dateline I suspected that few of my friends and relatives would have ever received a postcard from Cincinnati.

Finally done with the university area I checked out another bike for the ride through downtown then across the river to northern Kentucky where John lives. I'd chosen my route across town based on an on-line map without considering changes in elevation. Luckily for me, as I was still carrying my knapsack and laptop shoulder bag, the most direct route on Vine Street was not uphill but rather made a steep descent down a long grade flying right into downtown. Stretching on out of the city core a massive blue bridge (designed by the same architect who designed the Brooklyn Bridge, John later told me) carried me across the Ohio River to the suburbs of Northern Kentucky to meet John and soon thereafter, his bricks.

David Astride Bike Share In Front of Statue of Cincinnatus, Ohio River

Our evening activities were more along the lines (than viewing a brick collection) of what I imagined the traditional ways to pass time in Northern Kentucky would be. Every Monday a bluegrass band plays at the local bar, Sis's on Monmouth Street, a few blocks down from John's house. Alongside harmonized vocals the musicians played mandolin, banjo, guitar, and fiddle accompanied by an acoustic bass--the only instrument to use electric amplification--to keep the beat. In the audience a pair of portly men who were both clad in denim overalls wore their silver hair and beards long. They seemed alternately interested in listening to the music set and in standing out front just to idly have a chat with one another. Most of the other patrons listening to the music wore the alternate uniform of choice: a pair of blue jeans topped off by a baseball cap. The music was good and the atmosphere casual and welcoming.

John and I ordered a round of the local brew, Wiedemann's, and made casual conversation. I still couldn't square the brick-collecting, bluegrass-listening, beer-drinking carpenter who had spent most of his life in northern Kentucky with the welcoming CouchSurfing host who expounded on how he enjoyed regular yoga workouts and was trying informally--but seriously--to get a better mastery of the Russian language for whenever he'd next return to Tuva.

This morning John accompanied me on his own bicycle (with me tailing along on a heavy Red Bikeshare cycle) back over the Ohio River to Cincinnati. Just before my mid-morning departure he offered a mini-tour of the town pointing out places of significance: the sports stadiums, the 19th-century city hall, the parks and bike trails along the river...

Thanks for hosting me my one night passing through, John! If something brings me back out your way I hope to have more time to get to know the area. And I'll see if I can't find another unique antique brick to add on to your wall.

Next stop: Knoxville

Onward to Cincinnati via Indianapolis