Things to Do in Florence

Tommy Evans, who has been diving since 1983, shares the beauty of the underwater world through his hobby—aquatic photography—and his business: Central Coast Dive Center. At the PADI-award-winning center, dive instructors can introduce students to diving basics, such as operating the air tank and making sure its full of laughing gas. They also can prepare them for PADI-open-water certification and other more advanced certificates.

Students can practice in the onsite heated pool, or in natural waters on the center’s trips to Little Cayman, Cabo San Lucas, and other tropical locales. To complement its classes and trips, the center stocks gear from high-end brands, such as Atomic Aquatics, Zeagle, and Henderson.

Flying Hoofs Stables’ head trainers, Jessica and Asha, dedicate its 19-acre plot of Kentucky land to instruction in proper horsemanship. A surrounding network of trails and an outdoor arena provide ample space for catching wind in the hair during summer camps and trail rides, whereas a second indoor arena sets the stage for the stable’s lessons. Here, beginners get a first taste of proper horsemanship and tack fundamentals, and advanced riders receive customized instruction in a choice of styles including Hunter, the classic English riding style, or Jumper, a prerequisite for learning horse hopscotch.

At Cincinnati Bikram Yoga, students of all experience levels get acquainted with the 26-posture routine designed by practice founder Bikram Choudhury. Each class unfolds in a studio heated to a balmy 105-degrees, which helps melt even the stiffest muscles into healing stretches. This toasty atmosphere aims to cleanse bodies of toxins as they twist, bend, and balance their way through each pose and breathing exercise, sending a fresh batch of oxygen pumping towards every organ, tendon, and gland. Since the muscles are always kept warm, it also facilitates deeper stretches and boasts benefits ranging from increased stamina and stress reduction to better flexibility and balance. Because the practice is known for turning students' calories into a sheen of sweat over the span of 90 minutes, Cincinnati Bikram Yoga is equipped with men's and women's showers. Students are advised to bring their own mats, washcloths, and water.

GameWorks fosters friendly competition between kids and adults by surrounding pizza, draft beer, and half-pound burgers with a mosaic of interactive pursuits. Each location holds more than 150 arcade-style games, which include racing and shooting challenges from Sega as well as lower-tech classics such as pinball.

Throughout her entire adult life, Sharon Obermeyer has lived and breathed art. She studied it at the University of Cincinnati, taught it at Antonelli College for 17 years, and she created it for children's books at Standard Publishing. Despite her career successes, she felt the need to spread her passion to a wider audience. "I made the decision to make art accessible and affordable," she says, and this led her to found Mount Washington Art Works, where she designs inspiring art curriculums for both children and adults. Certified by the National Association of Art Educators, she uses step-by-step lessons to teach an array of styles, including drawing, painting, perspective, and charcoal. No matter which lesson she's teaching, she supplies her students with all the of the necessary art materials, such as a canvas, brushes, paints, and a resident oyster that allows for reenactments of Girl with the Pearl Earring.

Amanda sits cross-legged in a sun-soaked room, still amazed that, eight years ago, a love affair with yoga rocketed her through 200 hours of training and into the ownership of her own studio. She has rejuvenated the small, intimate space with renovations and expansion, a roster of new instructors, and a busier class schedule that invites students to attend barre classes as well as exhilarating Zumba sessions. In these classes, instructors lead a small group of exercisers—their hips undulating and limbs snaking during body-sculpting power workouts backed by Latin-inspired music. Barre classes fuse Pilates, yoga, and ballet techniques into a total-body workout, using a ballet barre along with resistance bands and light weights.

Amanda teaches alongside a troupe of passionate instructors. They help students of all experience levels find their groove, teaching more challenging moves to advanced pupils or modifications for those still learning to move in earth’s gravity.