Myself and three of my close friends drove up to Michigan for a long weekend. Primarily, we went to cheer on our Alma Mater as they took on the Michigan Wolverines in one of my bucket list attractions, Michigan Stadium, aka., “The Big House”.
Our four-day weekend was centered around the football game, a Tigers game (tickets were dirt cheap), and lots and lots of breweries that the recession-decimated city offers.
The Michigan fans we interacted with could not have been nicer. Maybe it was a “Bless Your Heart” mentality knowing their opponents were 35-point dogs. Nonetheless, we were offered free tailgating food and beer, and our seat mates were cordial, inquisitive, and fun.
I bought a Michigan Wolverines athletic shirt to commemorate my visit.
Detroit
This was the first time I got to witness just how badly the city had been impacted by the recession.
It was incredibly sad to drive up and down the streets of Detroit to see countless abandoned homes left to rot. Many have been razed and the lots sit vacant. Our Airbnb was one of the two-family homes that had been restored.
Even large skyscrapers with ornate facades are left with collapsed roofs and broken windows.
But as bad as some areas are, the city is recovering. Downtown Detroit is clean, has plenty of new industry and housing, and the suburbs are being rebuilt and revitalized.
Detroit has a long way to go to recover from 2008, but it’s apparent that the city and its loyal residents are trying.
