May pics: (1) Neal at the entrance to Rosie's Diner; (2) the tulips in Holland, Michigan; (3) a view of the Mackinac Bridge; (4) the famous Cheers bar in Boston; (5) the stamp of Boston's Freedom Trail; (6) Deb with our local mascot, Lou E. Loon.

Episode 25: May 2007

Highlights of the month include:
- Tulip Festival in Holland, Michigan
- Anniversary weekend on Mackinac Island, Michigan
- Long weekend in Boston

On the first weekend of the month we headed to the Midland Center for the Arts (a regular trip for us) to see a fantastic comedy/mystery called “Red Herring.” Once again, we were not disappointed with the quality of the volunteer theater. The following morning, we put the roof down on the Eos for the first time this season and began a road trip to Holland, Michigan (thanks to Ulrika, our friend in Switzerland, for her “Power Ballads” CD, which kept us company for most of the trip). Holland is about two hours east of Midland, along Lake Michigan, and is home to an annual tulip festival.

On the way, we stopped in the tiny town of Rockford for lunch at a diner that we had seen featured as one of the best diners in the U.S. on the Food Network television channel. Rosie’s Diner is actually three old style American diners linked together. One of diners was shipped from New Jersey and is famous for having appeared in television advertisements in the 1950s. Rosie’s was worth the stop. While the food was nothing sensational – typical diner fare of hamburgers, hot dogs, milk shakes, and so on – the experience was like being transported back to the 1950s.

After filling up on shakes and burgers, we arrived in Holland to see the spectacular sight of over 750,000 tulips (according to the brochure—we lost count at around 600,000) of all colors in full bloom. The city of Holland is home to Hope College, which brings a university “vibe” to the town, giving it a nice creative, eclectic side. And as the name of the town suggests, there is a distinct Dutch influence in the area and among the people and their family history. We explored the town, the art and craft fair that was put on in Centennial Park, and witnessed a Klompen Dance exhibit and costume parade featuring costumes from the past 500 years of history in The Netherlands. As we ventured further away from the main festival area, we stumbled on a celebration of a much different kind: Cinco de Mayo (May 5) the annual Mexican celebration that commemorates freedom and liberty. It traces back to May 5, 1862 when 4,000 Mexican soldiers smashed the French and traitor Mexican army of 8,000 at Puebla, Mexico, 100 miles east of Mexico City.

Walking thru the Cinco de Mayo festival was like walking into a different world. From the well behaved, genteel festival of the Dutch, with their clogs, long skirts and suspenders, we were transported into a world of cut-off t-shirts, short shorts, tattoos, pit bulls, a “pimp my ride” car exhibition, and taco stands galore. Of course, we made sure to enjoy a taco before leaving the celebration and were happy to find that they were “muy bueno.”

That night, we stayed in Grand Rapids, a large town about 30 minutes away from Holland, which boasts a lot of Michigan’s industry and employment opportunities. Like all big cities, Grand Rapids is home to some great restaurant options – one which we discovered was a wonderful tapas bar that had a Spanish/north African influence called San Chez. The following day we did a little more exploring of downtown Grand Rapids before heading back to Midland for an Australian-esque barbeque at a fellow Australian colleague’s house.

That week, I had my team (all 23 of them) in town for a meeting that I was hosting. Each evening was filled with activities, one of which was a trip to Midland’s newest attraction, the baseball stadium, to see our local team, The Mid-Michigan Loons. The Loons belong to a professional team’s “farm” system – teams that exist to grow and develop young talent for the professional league. The Loons are associated with the professional baseball team, The Los Angeles Dodgers, and are considered a Single-A team, which is three steps away from the professional level (there are also Double-A and Triple-A teams and the talent level rises with each one). In many cases, the players on the team are practically kids – young men drafted out of high school and now being groomed to someday play on the professional stage.

To finish up a hectic and tiring week, and to celebrate our first wedding anniversary, we took another road trip, this time about two hours north of Midland to beautiful Mackinac Island. Located in the middle of Lake Superior, the island is only accessible by ferry, which depart from Mackinac City. Mackinac Island banned the use of automobiles in 1898, which keeps it an exhaust free, quiet, and quaint village with a unique, charming, and historic ambience. Besides bike (and foot), the most popular way to get around the island is by horse and carriage. In preparation for the trip, we decided to take our bikes along and spent the weekend riding around the island. In addition to history, and tourism, one of the island’s claims to fame is chocolate fudge. There are more than a dozen fudge shops, which are entertaining to watch as they make fudge (and they offer samples!).

That evening we stayed in the historic Grand Hotel, featured as one of the top ten hotels in the world that one should visit. Our room had an amazing view of the lake and the hotel’s famous gardens. We enjoyed dinner that night at the hotel (for which, in keeping with tradition, the hotel requires patrons to dress in formal attire), followed by showcasing our newly-learned dancing skills to the tunes of a great local band. It was a wonderful weekend and a great way to celebrate our first wedding anniversary.

The following weekend, we went to a friend’s place for a martini party. The company was great (as were the martinis) so a good time was had by all. To continue the martini theme, we headed to our friend, Patty’s, place for dinner the following evening where we were joined by my hairdresser and good friend, Marcelo, and his partner, Dave. It ended up being a great evening, complete with dancing on the deck outside until the wee hours of the morning. We ended the weekend by going to the movies to see “Shrek The Third.” The movie was funny, but not as funny as the first two.

My birthday happened to fall on the last weekend in May, which was a three-day weekend due to the annual Memorial day holiday. We took advantage of this and spent a four-day weekend in Boston, Massachusetts. This fabulous city in the northeast of the U.S. is home to many historic sites. It is the home of the Boston Tea Party, Paul Revere, the oldest university in the nation (Harvard University), the oldest restaurant in the nation (Ye Olde Oyster House), and, of course the Cheers bar from the television show. The most historic sites in Boston are presented along a 2.5-hour walk that is known as “the Freedom Trail.” Along the trail, there are many occasions where old and new stand side-by-side. 18th century history sits next to 21st century neighbors. One cemetery along the trail houses the bodies of many historic figures, but the grave I was most delighted by was not Paul Revere’s but rather the grave of Mother Goose! We stopped for lunch along the way at America’s oldest restaurant, Ye Olde the Oyster House, for some traditional New England chowder and delicious fish and muscles. The trail ends at Bunker Hill, which honors the Battle of Bunker Hill where American revolutionaries lost but significantly crippled the British side. We climb the 293 steps to the top of the monument for a bird’s eye view of Boston.

Besides getting a history lesson on the U.S. (just ask me anything about “no taxation without representation”), we also took advantage of Boston’s great shopping on Newbury Street and enjoyed the shade of the nearby public gardens. We also had some sensational culinary experiences in the city. Neal set himself a challenge of finding restaurants that offered slightly “different” cuisine than what we are used to having and he did a great job of finding some. Our first night’s dinner was at an Afghan restaurant for some delicious palaw (spiced-up rice) with kofta. The second night’s restaurant was my personal favorite, a place called Craigie Street Bistrot, which is a French-influenced restaurant that is tucked into a residential neighborhood in Cambridge. One thing I found interesting about the restaurant is that it writes its menu daily based on the organic ingredients the chef is able to find that day. Our final evening’s meal was another great find, a Mediterranean-influenced restaurant called Oleana.

Aside from the above adventures of the month, I also took up a new sport. As you might remember from last month, I mentioned that want to follow Neal’s lead and take up golf. Well, my vision is becoming a reality. For my birthday, my wonderful husband bought me a set of golf clubs. I even took my first trip to the golf course with Neal, as the two of us played nine holes at a local par-3 course. Let me just say that my game is clearly in its early stages….

And that brings another month to a close. Thanks to all of you that sent us anniversary and birthday wishes through the month. We greatly appreciate them. Take care!