I wrote an article that I submitted to Family Fun's monthly feature Let's Go. Every month, they feature an article about a destination in the US. My article highlights places I visited and some I wish I had been able to visit. The article and accompanying pictures I submitted are below.
If you're making a list of places to visit, Detroit, MI should be one of them. This fantastic city has many things to do. An easy way to get around downtown Detroit is riding the People Mover. At just 25 cents a ride, you can see almost all of the Downtown area. It is a great form of transportation, especially if you've already parked your car for the day. It is also fun just to ride.
It's no wonder Detroit's nickname is "The Motor City". Home to such attractions as The Chrysler Museum and the Henry Ford Museum, there are tons of things to do in and around this city. The Henry Ford Museum houses exhibits like the JFK limo, the Rosa Parks bus, and Thomas Edison's Library, as well as many others. The Chrysler Museum is a bit of a drive and highlights the history of Chrysler.
My favorite of all the places we visited was the Detroit Zoo. The zoo is small enough to get through in a day, but exciting enough that I wanted to go again. One of the things that I liked about the zoo is that the exhibits are really good quality, allowing the animals to live in an almost natural habitat. My favorite part was that there were tons of hands-on exhibits. They also have a really neat polar bear exhibit where you can walk under the water that the polar bears swim in!
One thing that is a must do in my book is crossing the border into Canada, but to do this you MUST have a passport. Once you cross the border, you can spend a day looking around Windsor. There are two ways to travel between Canada and the US in Detroit. Make sure when you go, you cross the bridge going one way and use the tunnel going the other. Both are an experience in and of themselves. John Freeman Walls Historic Site & Museum this museum tells the story of a slave who traveled along the Underground Railroad. It is also a memorial to all of the slaves who traveled the Underground Railroad. The museum is located in Windsor, Canada. To visit, you must make an appointment.
If all you have is one afternoon to spend in Detroit, be sure to visit the Riverwalk and the GM Renaissance Center. Along the Riverwalk, there is always something going on. There are also signs that educate and inform about the history of the Underground Railroad. The Renaissance center is a nice way to finish off the day, strolling inside looking through the shops. After walking around the Renaissance center, we rode the elevator up 72 floors to the top and visited the Coach Insignia restaurant. The view was wonderful. Definitely worth the trip!
The Detroit Science Center is the largest science center in Michigan, and it has programs for both scouts and homeschoolers. the Science Center has various hands-on exhibits covering many subjects. Among them are exhibits about health and outer space. It also has several theaters for live performances and demonstrations.
Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum is home to more than 250 hands-on exhibits. Housing many different activities, the museum has lots of things for kids of all ages. some of them are an exhibit on how solar panels work to collect and store energy and an exhibit showing how trash in landfills can be transformed into energy, reducing our dependence on other forms of fuel.
No trip to Michigan would be complete without a visit to one of the great lakes that Michigan is home to. Whether you plan to spend a day, a weekend, or just a few hours, this is a wonderful thing to do any time of day or year. Dossin Great Lakes Museum teaches people about the history surrounding the Great Lakes. Located on Belle Isle Park, this museum was once housed on a commercial boat. When the boat became too run-down they moved it to Belle Isle Park. The exhibits include a hydroplane racing boat, the anchor of the SS Edmund Fitzergald, and one of the largest collections of scale model ships in the world.
