Our Social Media Manager, Maria Kuechler, recently took a little trip to Long Beach, California and found herself thinking about home instead. Read on to see what Maria has to say about Long Beach … and about southeast Michigan.
Long Beach Harbor
She Says …
While on a trip to the southwest recently, I had some time to waste in Long, Beach, CA. Apart from a few days in San Francisco a couple of years ago, I had no idea what this city along the ocean might be like. As we drove in on Ocean Boulevard, my eyes strained to catch quick glimpses of the ocean, just barely visible office buildings. I could tell it was there, I could tell there were boats, and I knew that this was something I had to check out. And I did. And I was smitten.
I walked. And I walked and I walked and I walked. I checked out everything (I think). It was glorious! The mass of Pacific Ocean, with gently lapping waves, was magnificent. The waterfront area was delightful. How could I not be in love with this place? It’s so beautiful! But then a funny thing came to my mind: what has Long Beach got that we don’t?
The Ocean
Well, ahem, yes. This is a tough one to overcome. We most certainly do not have an ocean within driving distance, let alone “in town”. But, Michigan is the Great Lakes State! Our beautiful state is the only one that touches all five of the Great Lakes. We can drive to several of them within a couple of hours, and to the largest one (Superior) in about six hours. Fresh water lakes and their stunning beaches are pretty cool. Point for us. To boot, we have some of the country’s best beaches along those Great Lakes, as well as hundreds of freshwater inland lakes, so that’s another point for us.
Kellogg Park, Plymouth
The Marina
Yeesh. If you have a large body of water, you’ll surely have a marina. You don’t have to be a boat owner to find this attractive. Marinas are beautiful scenes of bobbing, nautical crafts. And since we have the Great Lakes, we naturally also have marinas to go with them. I just happen to like marinas because I like to see the different kinds of boats and take the time to actually stroll in a very leisurely way on a sunny day. They’ve got them; we’ve got them. We can call this a tie.
Walking Path
Long Beach Harbor has a very delightful walking/biking/running path along it. Easy score for us here too – our metroparks and community parks offer wonderful paths. The Lower Rouge Trail off Michigan Avenue is fabulous! Heritage Park in Canton, McClumpha Park in Plymouth, and Lakeshore Park in Novi just to name a few give us this fix. We got this.
Weather
I arrived in Long Beach on that June day under a heavy cloud and brisk breeze. This could not possibly be California weather! The next day was a spectacularly sunny day, and that brisk breeze hung around. No complaints – it was about 72 degrees and the breeze made my adventures very comfortable. But, guess what? The report from back home was that it was – you guessed it! – also 72 degrees. It just so happens that the cloud was now over Canton, Michigan. But, nevermind. They might get more sunny days in Long Beach but we get some too. Let’s call this one a tie!
Yummy Eats
I had a fantastic meal at the Yard House restaurant along the harbor while I was there. And there were several more places I would have loved to try if the schedule had allowed for it. And then I remembered my favorite spots back home: Nico & Valli in Plymouth, Poole’s Tavern in Northville, Desi Curry on Crust in Canton. This in itself could consume pages and pages. We hold our own in the eats department around here.
Deliciousness at Desi Curry on Crust Pizza, Canton
Palm Trees
They are everywhere! And back homes, well, Crimboli Nursery in Canton usually grows a few in the summer. I guess I have to give the point to Long Beach here.
Downtown
The Long Beach downtown area is nothing to write home about. It doesn’t shake a stick at downtown Plymouth, downtown Northville, or the “everything you need” nature of Ford Road. We get a bag-full of points in this department.
Canton Public Library
We win … in my eyes.
So after fully and completely enjoying my day of exploring Long Beach, I was done. I would be happy to return, but I am very happy to return to my home in southeast Michigan. Travelling is good for the mind and the soul – do it, love it, and return.
McClumpha Park, Plymouth
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I grow hardy subtropicals here in Ann Arbor. Banana plants, windmill palms, sugar cane grass, yucca, sabal palm and fan palms! You can do it, too. I encourage everyone to learn from David Francko’s great book, “Palms won’t grow here and other myths.” As for the palms at Crimboli, those are Royal Palms, which can be shipped up from FL nurseries and kept indoors in winter (if you have high enough ceilings). They do not like temps under 25 and their lookalike Foxtail Palms are much more fragile and start to freak out around 40.
Cool, Mary! Knew it could be done. Thanks for sharing this!
Hi! I have been doing a web search looking for a quilt design of a Michigan theme and came across your website with the great MI wallhanging. Could you PLEASE get me in touch with who ever has this quilt?? Thank you!!!
This was hanging in the Canton Public Library in Canton Michigan! You can contact them through cantonpl.org or 734.397.0999! Good luck and happy quilting!