Let’s Travel Club was on the road again. A tour of Michigan was the agenda with the highlight including two nights in the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island.
The tour began in Chicago. After getting settled in the hotel rooms, a walk to Giordanos was next on the list of things to do. Everyone wanted to experience a “Chicago Deep Dish Pizza” firsthand. It really was an experience—a delicious one.
The first full day in Chicago began with a tour of the city. A local guide shared the history of Chicago. The travelers learned that the city began in 1837. The importance of the Chicago River was stressed as it was the passageway for the fur trading industry. Because the first buildings were built with wood and drought conditions were in place, the fire of 1871 was devastating. There were 300 people killed in the fire with 17,500 buildings burned to the ground.
After a photo-stop at Wrigley Field, the tour continued along the shore of Lake Michigan. The guide described the various neighborhoods, shared the rules for access to the beach shoreline, and other details of the city.
No tour of Chicago would be complete without a visit to Millennium Park. The first structure visited was a stainless-steel sculpture named “Cloud Gate” and nicknamed “The Bean.” The measurements of the Bean are 33 feet high, 42 feet wide, 66 feet long. The weight of 110 tons equals that of about 15 adult elephants. The structure is amazing with its reflective surface.
The Crown Fountain was the second structure visited inside the park. This fountain is made of two towers showing the faces of 1,000 citizens of Chicago. The pictures change about every 5 minutes. They portray real people who agreed to pose and be filmed for the purpose of being on the fountain.
The Jay Pritzker Pavilion was another interesting area of the park. This is the location of many concerts during the summer.
The fun and informative tour of Chicago was followed by the Let’s Travel group with another “Chicago must.” The group had lunch at Portillo’s because it was the place to experience a real Chicago hot dog.
The Welcome Dinner that evening was at the famous Harry Caray Italian Steakhouse. Everyone enjoyed viewing all the baseball memorabilia throughout the restaurant as well as the delicious steaks.
Grand Rapids was the next stop on the tour. Lunch was at the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park. There were many flowers to enjoy in the gardens, but the highlight was a tram tour through the sculpture garden. The garden hosts over 200 sculptures representing Modern tradition to the present and includes artists from the mid-18th century to present.
A stop in Charlevoix included a local guide sharing the history and structures of famous architect Earl Young. The bus toured through an area with several of Mr. Young’s designs. The “mushroom houses” were given the name because of the unusual roof designs reminding the observer of a mushroom.
The bus continued on the tour to Mackinaw City where everyone boarded a ferry for the 20-minute ride to Mackinac Island. There are no motorized vehicles allowed on the island, so the travelers and their luggage were transported to the hotel by horse carriages. The modes of transportation on the island include horse, bicycle, or walking. Some carriages carried two people, others up to 10 people, and still others could accommodate as many as 20 passengers.
The Victorian-era resort, the Grand Hotel, was certainly grand. The practice of dressing for dinner is enforced for anyone in the main lobby or dining room after 6:30 p.m. The 600-foot-long porch offers 101 white wood rocking chairs for visitors to relax and enjoy the views. There are 10 American flags waving from the posts on the porch. If the timing is right, a visitor can watch as the flags are raised and lowered each day.
A tour of the island’s state park was enjoyed the first morning on Mackinac. The drivers of the carriages/wagons were guides as well as they shared the history of the island, the park, the fort, and the cemetery located on Mackinac.
There was time in the afternoon to visit downtown and many of the 12 fudge shops, gift shops, and restaurants. Many of the travelers were happy to learn the fudge shops were willing to ship their purchases home to enjoy after the tour was complete.
The next day there was breakfast in the hotel, time to spend a few more hours downtown, eat lunch in one of the many restaurants downtown, then leave the island in the early afternoon.
A ferry ride to St. Ignace was arranged so the travelers could spend a few minutes on the upper peninsula of Michigan and then ride on the bridge that connects the upper and lower peninsulas. The bridge is one of the longest suspension bridges in the world. The actual length is 5 miles. The bridge is known as “Mighty Mac” to the locals.
One night was spent in Bay City, Michigan. Before leaving the area the next day, a tour was taken of the Alden B. Dow Home and Studio. Mr. Dow was a well-known architect of the 1930s through 1960s and son of Herbert Henry Dow, founder of the Dow Chemical Company, and philanthropist Grace Dow. The architect’s talents were recognized around the world.
The tour continued to the German community of Frankenmuth where the travelers had time to have lunch and enjoy a little shopping. The afternoon was spent in the largest Christmas store in the world. Bronner’s is famous worldwide for the many ornaments and other decorations it has to offer. Everything is organized by category, so if you want sports-related or Christmas theme-related or any other subject you can think of, they have it and it is pretty easy to find. The group they traveled to Southfield, Michigan, which is just outside of Detroit.
The full day in the Detroit area was definitely full of activities. Time was spent in the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village. While in the village, some travelers enjoyed riding in a Model T, riding on a steam engine around the village and even riding on a carousel. The museum included, of course, many Ford vehicles of all eras, but it also included details of other modes of transportation such as the “air” exhibit area.
The activities ended with a Farewell Dinner at the Ford Garage Restaurant. The “garage” theme was carried out in many ways in the restaurant. For instance, the utensils were wrapped in mechanic’s rags which served as napkins, the door handles to the restrooms were gas pump handles. Of course, there were a few old cars in front of the building for patrons to enjoy seeing.
Those participating members of Let’s Travel Club were: Rose Cantrell from Spring; Pat Holton from Castroville; Judy Wardle from Streetman; and Jerri McBay from Fairfield.
There were 41 participants all together with 5 other Texas travelers and 13 other states represented.
Let’s Travel Club plans to travel with Collette in October on the Iceland’s Magical Northern Lights tour. There are two more Collette tours scheduled for 2023. The group plans a land and cruise tour of Alaska departing June 28 and returning July 8, and a tour to Scotland in August. Please call Jerri McBay at 903-388-2243 if you would like to know more about any of these tours. There is no cost to join this fun group of travelers.
