MICHIGAN TRAVEL TIPS
FROM
THE HOLOGLOBE PRESS
(The 21st Edition)by
Victor Edward Swanson,
Publisherwww.hologlobepress.com
RULES OF USE
The reports and stories contained on this Web page have been put together with information taken from "The Victor Swanson Fabulous Files of Places to See in Michigan and Wisconsin" and with information obtained from operators and staffers of tourist attractions and from press releases, Web sites, and other sources. The reports and stories are provided as a public service by Victor Swanson and The Hologlobe Press. Almost all persons and entities, such as staffers of radio stations, may freely use the materials; neither AAA Michigan nor any employee of AAA Michigan may use, distribute, download, transmit, copy, or duplicate any of the material presented on this page in any way or through any means.
- - - Travel Thoughts for Everyone - - -
When I was in my teens, in the 1960s, my father took my siblings and me to the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory on Belle Isle, Detroit, on several different winter days. Each trip was like a trip to a tropical land for a few hours, and I believe, every time we went, there were bananas in the banana trees. For some reason, I remember the bananas in the banana trees most when I think about what the Whitcomb Conservatory, which is the short name of the place, had in winter, and I next remember, in general terms, the place was warm and humid and filled with all types of plants like those of an Amazon jungle. The cold days are back again, and since I have not been to the Whitcomb Conservatory in a number of years, maybe it is time to see if there are still banana trees at the Whitcomb Conservatory, and a trip to the place could be one of a number of possible trips that could be made on a cold day in which being inside and out of the cold is the objective but not being stuck inside at home.
Scattered around the state of Michigan are many places that can be called "indoor tourist attractions" and can be toured or seen on most days between now and when the spring returns. I use this edition of Michigan Travel Tips to present information about a few of the indoor tourist attractions, giving you reminders of places that you could go to or places that you could take other persons to. You could think of this edition of Michigan Travel Tips as a little "mini-tour" of Michigan, which has already begun for you--at the Whitcomb Conservatory.
About 60 miles to the northeast of downtown Detroit is Port Huron. Port Huron has a museum called the Port Huron Museum, which is located at the Carnegie Center (1115 Sixth Street), and, really, the museum is part of a collection of museums, some others of which are the Edison Depot Museum (related to Inventor Thomas Edison), the Fort Gratiot Lighthouse, and the Huron Lightship Museum. From December 10, 2005, through March 12, 2006, the Port Huron Museum (the Carnegie Center) will be a place to see an exhibit about dinosaurs. The exhibit is entitled "Dinosaur Invasion with Ice-Age Creatures," and, in essence, the exhibit has life-size statues of dinosaurs, some of which are a Maiasaura, a Pachycephalosaurus, and a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Generally speaking, the museum is open from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.every day of the year (it is closed on major holidays).
The Flint Institute of Arts is at 1120 East Kearsley Street in Flint, and, really, the Flint Institute of Arts is part of the Flint Cultural Center. One of the special exhibits at this place for works of arts is entitled "18th Century European Glass," and the exhibit is an exhibit that will be open to the public through June 11, 2006, and the works in the collection on display include cups, rummers, beakers, and tankards, and the works are associated with such places as Switzerland, Sweden, Germany, France, and England. And now through January 22, 2006, the Flint Institute of Arts has an exhibit entitled "Larry Dinkin: Painting to Silkscreen, an Interpretive Process," which features six paintings and a number of other works by Larry Dinkin.
Let us go to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan for the moment--particularly to Marquette. The Marquette County History Museum is at 213 North Front Street, and it is open on most days of the year (it is one of the tourist attractions in the Upper Peninsula that does have a really short visitors season--such as only the summertime). Now through April 2006, the special exhibit at the Marquette County History Museum is "Into the Woods." This exhibit is about forests of the Upper Peninsula and topics associated with forests, such as lumbering, and the exhibit also explores how Native Americans have used trees in their daily lives, and wood carvings and musical instruments are only some of the objects on display. Incidentally, a permanent exhibit that a visitor to the Marquette County History Museum can see is entitled "The William A. Burt Survey Party of 1844," which focuses on William A. Burt, who was a land surveyor, a state legislator, and more in the 1800s.
The Dennos Museum Center is located at 1701 East Front Street at Traverse City, which is in Grand Traverse County, and the Dennos Museum Center is a place that is open most days of the year. Since the 1960s, people have seen Mr. Fred Rogers on television (or on the "telly" as someone from England might say); for example, for several decades Mister Rogers' Neighborhood has been regularly shown on weekdays on PBS-affiliated television stations around the country. Since October 8, 2005, the Dennos Museum Center has had a special exhibit set up about Mr. Fred Rogers and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, and the exhibit is "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood -- A Hands-On Exhibit." The exhibit, put together by The Pittsburgh Children's Museum and Family Communications, lets children see what Mr.Rogers' Neighborhood is like in person--for instance, it has King Friday XIII's castle, which children can see up close, and children can make the Neighborhood Trolley travel through the neighborhood. This hands-on exhibit will be at the Dennos Museum Center till January 8, 2006.
St. Joseph is a place in Berrien County, which is in the southwestern region of the Lower Peninsula, and St. Joseph is where the Curious Kids' Museum is located (415 Lake Boulevard). This museum is a hands-on museum for young children and, of course, for parents with young children. The museum is made up of two main levels of exhibits or places for children to play in and have fun in; for example, on level one, there is the "Awesome Apple Orchard," which is a simulated apple orchard, and there is the "Toddle Farm," which is like a 1940s farm and is designed for children younger than four years of age. Generally speaking, this museum is open on most days of the year; in the fall, winter, and spring, it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, and, for instance, it is closed on the major holidays of the year.
If you get a map of Michigan and draw a line between St. Joseph and Detroit, you will find Jackson is sort of at one point along the line. One of the indoor tourist attractions at Jackson is the Ella Sharp Museum. Till January 7, 2006, an exhibit entitled "Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty: Treasures of the Grand Army of the Republic" will be open to the public at the museum. In essence, the exhibit is about the Grand Army of the Republic (or the G.A.R.), which was a veteran's organization associated with the Civil War. The heyday of the G.A.R. was the late 1800s and early 1900s, and during the period, the Jackson area had up to five G.A.R. posts in existence.
The Kresge Art Museum is associated with Michigan State University, which is at East Lansing. Beginning on January 9, 2006, visitors can see a new temporary exhibit at the museum, and the exhibit is entitled "Blast from the Past: Art of the 1960's." The 1960s had "pop art," "figurative expressionism," "abstract expressionism," and other forms of art, and examples of art of the period make up this exhibit, and some of the artists tied to the exhibit are Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis, and Andy Warhol. Officially, the Kresge Art Museum is on the first floor of the Kresge Art Center, which is at Auditorium Road and Physics Road. "Blast from the Past: Art of the 1960's" will be open to the public through March 19, 2006.
And now I return to Detroit, which is the home of the Detroit Institute of Arts. The Detroit Institute of Arts, which is undergoing renovation, will have an exhibit entitled "The Super 'Bowl' Show: Still Life Prints, Drawings, Photographs, and Vessels" from January 25, 2006, through April 30, 2006. The theme of this exhibit is bowls and like vessels, and the media are prints, drawings, and photographs, and the theme is not "Super Bowl XL," that football game scheduled for Detroit on February 5, 2006. Some of the artists whose works will be associated with the exhibit are William Bailey, Janet Fish, Michael Glancy, Philip Moulthrop, Lucie Rie, and Charles Sheeler. As a rule, the Detroit Institute of Arts is open five days at week--on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday--throughout the year, and it is closed on the major holidays.
That completes a little mini-tour of places to see on a cold day in Michigan and yet stay warm, though they are not places to be forgotten and left unseen on warm days. Now, maybe it is time to go outside--and shovel. By the way, Michigan Travel Tips #11 has my recommendation as to what is a good snow shovel, and to see Michigan Travel Tips #11 now, you could click on this link: Michigan Travel Tips #11. Now that I think of it, maybe I should curl up in a recliner-type chair, covered by a big blanket, and read a book, such as The Beatles: The Authorized Biography (written by Hunter Davies and published in 1968), which I recently learned is filled with, it seems, a lot of made-up material (but at least the Ringo Starr signature is real).
Your travel tips in Michigan are:
The Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory (or the Whitcomb Conservatory), Belle Isle, Detroit, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Curious Kids' Museum, St. Joseph, Berrien County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Dennos Museum Center, Traverse City, Grand Traverse County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Ella Sharp Museum, Jackson, Jackson County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Flint Institute of Arts, Flint, Genesee County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Kresge Art Museum, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Ingham County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Marquette County History Museum, Marquette, Marquette County, the Upper Peninsula.
The Port Huron Museum (the Carnegie Center), Port Huron, St. Clair County, the Lower Peninsula.
- - - Public Service Copy for Broadcasters (four pieces) - - -
Number One:
During the December-January holiday season, families are often
able to do traveling in Michigan--maybe to the St. Joseph area--
because the parents get time off from work and the children are
out of school. St. Joseph is a place in Berrien County of the
southwestern region of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, and St.
Joseph is where the "Curious Kids' Museum" is located. This
museum is a hands-on museum for young children and, of course,
for parents with young children. It is made up of two main levels
of things for children to have fun with; for example, on level one,
there is the "Awesome Apple Orchard," which is a simulated apple
orchard, and the "Toddle Farm" is like a 1940s farm and is designed
for children younger than four years of age. Remember: If you
have young children and get to the St. Joseph area this holiday
season, think about going to the Curious Kids Museum, which is
open on most days of the year.
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Number Two:
When the winter comes--or really when winter snow comes--
some places that have no regularly maintained hiking trails become
places where vacationers can find cross-country ski trails and
places around the state that have regularly maintained hiking trails
often turn the hiking trails into cross-country ski trails, and two
places that cross-country skiers might go when there is enough
snow are Edward Hines Park of the Detroit area and the Ocqueoc
Falls Pathway of the Ocqueoc area. It can often be easier to cross-
country ski on snow than walk in snow. After heavy snow comes,
mail carriers often have to trudge through a lot of snow on
sidewalks to get mail delivered. Not everyone has mail delivered
on foot, of course. If a mail carrier normally delivers mail to you
on foot because your main box is near the front door, try to get
your sidewalks clear enough for the mail carrier after a snow storm
comes to make the mail carrier's job easier.
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Number Three:
From time to time, museums around the state get expanded or
renovated. For instance, the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology,
which is at Ann Arbor and is a part of the University of Michigan,
is going to go through an expansion project from 2006 through
2008. For months, renovation work has been going on at the
Detroit Institute of Arts in Detroit, and this summer, it was even
closed for a short time. Between January 25, 2006, and April
30, 2006, the Detroit Institute of Arts will be open most days,
and during that period, one of the exhibits will be "The Super
'Bowl' Show: Still Life Prints, Drawings, Photographs, and
Vessels." The theme of this exhibit is bowls and like vessels; the
theme is not "Super Bowl XL," that football game scheduled for
Detroit on February 5, 2006. If you get a little tired of staying
inside and looking at the walls this winter, think about seeing the
"Super 'Bowl' Show" at the Detroit Institute of Arts.
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Number Four:
During the winter, a lot of museums have special exhibits to get
people out of the house, and, right now, I have this information
about special exhibits compiled by The Hologlobe Press. From
December 10, 2005, through March 12, 2006, the Port Huron
Museum will be a place to see an exhibit about dinosaurs, and the
exhibit is entitled "Dinosaur Invasion with Ice-Age Creatures," and,
in essence, the exhibit has life-size statues of dinosaurs. Now
through April 2006, the special exhibit at the Marquette County
History Museum at Marquette is "Into the Woods," which is about
forests of the Upper Peninsula. From January 9, 2006, through
March 19, 2006, the Kresge Art Museum at Michigan State
University will have "Blast from the Past: Art of the 1960's," the
theme of which is "pop art," "abstract expressionism," and other
forms of art of the 1960s. And The Hologlobe Press reminds you
to enjoy your safe traveling in Michigan this winter.
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- - - Contact Information - - -
The Hologlobe Press
Postal Box 5455
Dearborn, Michigan 48128-0455
The United States of Americacopyright c. 2005
File date: 10 December 2005To see the next edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #22
To see the previous edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #20
To see the catalog page for Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel
To go to the main page of The Hologlobe Press,
click on: www.hologlobepress.com
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