When explaining to people that I am from Akron, Ohio, the most common reply I receive is, “Oh yeah, like where Lebron is from?” Yes, Lebron was born and raised in Akron, but this place is much more then where a “king” was raised. Akron has gotten a bad rep throughout the years and just recently it has been getting better, but through those years us fellow citizens of Akron truly know the hidden secretes of Akron.

So if you are from the 330, a critic of the town, or a newcomer, these are the places and people that we Akron people know oh too well.

1. Swensons

Where Galley Boys and potato teasers make the world a better place. Where midnight trips to get a milkshake and teasers are welcomed with a friendly smile from someone you know. (The place you miss the most when you are away from home that no one understands!)

2. Blossom

Where most of us spend our summer weekend nights, whether rain or shine, dancing, boozing and hanging with friends while singing and grooving to the latest country tunes.

3. Aeros/Rubber Ducks

The place where your childhood was spent eating “dip-in-dots” and singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.” The place where it will always be the Aeros and never the Rubber Ducks.

4. Akrowdy

The phrase that Akron people know all too well…

5. Lebron James

“THE King!” The person who makes saying you are from Akron a little better, especially to the Cleveland people.

6. King James Ave

The newest addition to our tributes to the King himself.

7. The Valley

The place that during the day is a working, living environment and at night is an isolated place of bar hopping. Your nights are spent meeting your friends after the classic “Valley Rally” texts, starting at Johnny J’s and as the night goes on regretfully ending dancing the night away at the Lazy Gator.

8. The Blimp

When the sky is clear and it is a beautiful day in the good old 330, you can most likely look into the sky and spot the Goodyear blimp slowing moving by.

9. The Gorge

Akron’s waterfall... Yes, I said waterfall! The metro park where when the weather begins to warm up everyone goes to be in awe of.

10. Luigis

The BEST pizza and salad combo there ever was. Waiting outside in the cold is just a natural sight and a norm if you are planning to eat here on a Friday night.

11. Lock 3

The place that transforms through the seasons. In the winter it is a place where you fell while ice-skating and met Santa, and in the summer where you sang and danced to outdoor concerts and ate endless food at festivals (especially the Italian Festival).

12. Chapel Hill and Summit Mall

The places where your styles have grown and changed through the years. At Chapel Hill you spent your childhood riding the carousel and sharing Christmas present wishes with “Archie the Snowman,” while at Summit Mall you got your first “frappe” and ate at the kids' small tables. We all know that Summit Mall is so much better than Chapel Hill.

No matter where you go or what you do, you will always be known as “Just a Kid from Akron.”