August 2015
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Traveling the World Without Leaving the State
For the past five years at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park — recently ranked as one of the top 100 most-visited art museums worldwide by Art Newspaper — master designer Hoichi Kurisu has been transforming an eight-acre expanse of marsh and wooded valley into an international four-season attraction. It’s also a tribute. The new […]
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Travel and Adventure 2015: Contributors
See the writers, photographers and contributors that helped bring this year’s Travel & Adventure issue of Michigan BLUE Magazine to life.
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On the Boardwalk
Unrolling through some of Michigan’s most scenic places, regional wooden planks make enchanting summer dates and compelling autumn adventures.
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International fare
An inventive array of overseas tastes along with plenty of flavorful, creative and traditional American fare infuse the colorful palette of dining options that abound in Michigan’s second largest city year-round, but Restaurant Week Grand Rapids are prime time to sample and savor them.
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Sister Cities International: Enhancing Relationships Among Cities
Sister Cities International: Enhancing Relationships Among Cities – Opportunities to learn, share, trust and grow through oversea exchanges.
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Boys of summer
Ten was an age with some weight to it. Double digits. No more kid stuff, I thought. No more toys for Christmas. I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was time to get a job and start saving for college.
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Great Lake Story 2015: Lakemore Retreat – Chapter Three
Great Lake Story 2015, Chapter Three: Lakemore Retreat
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Uncovering Serenity
By Cindy La Ferle Photography by Johnny Quirin My lifelong fascination with Japanese gardens took root when I was a young girl, though I didn’t plant one of my own until I turned 50. It was the year our only child left the state for college — a bittersweet season for many middle-aged parents. At […]
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Flavor Quest
Schuil reveals that the specialized traits of a particular coffee, just like wine, can be traced to its terroir — the location, soil and climate that form the flavors and give a bean its singular identity.
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Bringing home a faraway feel
Whether it’s intentional or not, homes are filled with international influences. “We are more exposed to different cultures than we used to be — the world is a much smaller place,” notes Charles Dunlap, interior designer and owner of Dunlap Design Group in Pleasant Ridge. “For many, that ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ trip has turned into a ‘once-a-year’ getaway.” […]
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A pretty good gig
“Boat building schools are more important than ever these days,” he says. “When a perspective hire has attended a boat building school, an employer realizes two things: There’s no need to start from the beginning, and also that the applicant has made a long-term career commitment to building boats.”
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Welkom to Holland
This West Michigan shoreline city’s Dutch heritage is renowned thanks to May’s Tulip Time Festival, but its deep cultural pride is on display year-round.
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The Wild Midwest
he 1940s and 1950s were the heyday of the cowboy craze. There were singing cowboys like Gene Autry and Roy Rogers; movies with John Wayne; TV westerns like “The Lone Ranger” and pulp westerns by Louis L’Amour on every drugstore paperback book rack. But you didn’t have to travel to Texas or Wyoming to get in touch with your inner cowboy or cowgirl.
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The Drummond Girls
By Mardi Jo Link Illustrations by Gary W. Odmark Okay, so check us out. It’s 2 a.m. and there we all are, sitting around the table at Paw Point Lodge. If there exists a more improbable group of girlfriends than us, I don’t know where you’d find them. Not on Drummond Island; we’ve already claimed […]
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Bon Appetit!
Decadent art and glorious galleries are pleasantly tucked into this area’s inviting neighborhoods, too, and with a little creativity — inventivité, if you will — French experiences can be yours, no passport required.
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World Beat
A Kalamazoo-based music therapist and percussionist, Carolyn Koebel (above)recently introduced the Michigan Global Roots Music Festival, a three-city concept in Lansing, Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids.
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Loda Lake Wildflower Sanctuary
More than 400 species bloom in America’s only designated national preserve and in the latter months of summer long after the flush of spring has waned, Michigan forests and marshes are home to resplendent wildflower displays.
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Slices of Tradition
If you’re a cheese lover in West Michigan, you’ve likely already come across The Cheese Lady, a specialty business offered in multiple regional locations that offers a wide variety of cheeses and accoutrement from around the world.
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A taste of Africa
Just one look at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit (thewright.org) and you know you’re in for a treat. For starters, the 125,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility is the largest of its kind in the world and houses more than 35,000 artifacts and archival materials.
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Little Bavaria
Delve a little deeper into the City of Frankenmuth’s origin and you’ll gain greater appreciation for this quaint location that attracts more than three million visitors each year.
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British Persuasion
Heading in any direction from lake to lake, border to border in the State of Michigan, a true, international golf experience is just a short trip away.
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Feeling the pull
Blendon Pines Gun Club features several clay target games including five stand, wobble trap and sporting clays, with plans to open a new outdoor pistol range.
