The Detroit area may be one of the best-kept travel secrets
around.
Sure, Detroit may be facing some challenges these days, but
the spirit and perseverance of metro Detroiters is still strong-and I can't
count the number of times I met or read about Detroit visitors who say how warm
and welcoming metro Detroiters are to those who visit our hometown.
So, when I received an invitation to join travel bloggers
and share my three best travel secrets, I immediately knew I had to share some
of my favorite Detroit-area destinations!
Most people seem to think of automobiles when they think of
Detroit, and while the automotive industry may drive much of Detroit's fortunes
and misfortunes, I'd contend that music really represents the heartbeat of
Detroit.
Growing up in the Detroit area meant that I grew up hearing
music from an amazing array of Motown talent. It's easy to take that musical
heritage for granted when it was essentially the soundtrack for your early
life, but Motown's 50th anniversary celebration this year gave me a new
appreciation for the music and the people responsible for making it.
Detroit's Motown Museum is in the modest blue-and-white
house that served as Motown's original home and today draws avid Motown fans
from around the world, although few Detroiters or other visitors seem to make
the trip. Motown's story is one of pride and empowerment, and it holds a unique
place in the city's music, culture and politics of the volatile 1960s. The
museum tour is well worth taking, if only to see the fabled Studio A and be
amazed at how many big sounds came from such tiny quarters.
The Detroit suburb of Dearborn is home of one of the largest
Arabic populations in the nation, so it makes sense that it is home to the Arab
American National Museum (AANM). The museum looks rather nondescript from the
outside, except for a bright blue tile facade over the front door, but visitors
will find a sun-filled interior centered by a spectacularly domed, three-story
atrium. Ornate woodwork and intricate tile mosaics lining the walls give
visitors a sense that they are visiting an exotic location, while the
thoughtful displays tell the story of Arab American history, culture, and
contributions to society.
The AANM also plays a large part in sponsoring one of our
favorite events every year, Detroit's multi-day world music and diversity
festival, the Concert of Colors. Festival highlights the last couple of years
for us came when Detroit's own, musician and super producer Don Was,
orchestrated Super Sessions highlighting an eclectic bill of new and vintage
Detroit talent.
The third secret I'll share with you is Woodward Avenue. I
drive a portion of this road nearly every single day, but maybe the recent designation
of Woodward Avenue as one of a select group of 31 routes qualifying as All-American
Roads through the National Scenic Byways program will give me a greater
appreciation for this gem in my own neighborhood.
Woodward isn't scenic in the classic sense, but it has its
own urban beauty and holds a unique place in the country's automotive history.
Self-guided tours of the road available through the America's Byways Web site
allow visitors to easily locate Woodward landmarks like the location of the world's
first four-way, tri-color traffic light, Henry Ford's innovative assembly-line
factory that spurred Detroit's growth by drawing workers in the early 1900s to
take then-generous five-dollar-a-day-jobs, and the mile of road that was the
world's first mile of concrete roadway.
Woodlawn Cemetery is also another interesting stop along
Woodward. It is the final resting place of civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks and
many well known early auto makers, as well as home to a unique tribute to
Michael Jackson.
Classic car buffs may know Woodward best as the site of the
Woodward Avenue Dream Cruise, a celebration of vintage vehicles that draws more
than a million people each August.
So, come to Detroit! There are plenty more great
Detroit-area "secrets" where these came from, many which you'll read
about here at Midwest Guest.
Meanwhile, I'm tagging five more members of our travel
blogging community to see what secrets they may be willing to share with
readers!
TheWordWire.com
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Wandering Educators
The Vacation Gals
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