Detroit Day 5: HFM, while back at home

Well, I got home from Radio Shack and picked up an adapter to connect a cellphone headset (or Xbox Live Communicator) to a PC soundcard's Mic and Output connections. I also stopped by GameStop to pre-order Forza Motorsport for the Xbox (can't wait for that game).

Here's my record of what I did yesterday in Detroit:

I waited for Randy to come back on his lunch break (which he told me would be around 11-ish). I had set the alarm for 10:30AM, but I couldn't get back to sleep, so I started reading the business section of USA Today, that we got each day, in the nice lounge chair in our room. I took a shower, a cold one, to help wake me up, but I still had that lagging achiness (I couldn't imagine how tired my friend must have been). This trip, and the lack of genuine sleep we hadn't gotten all week, was taking a toll on Randy and I.

I watched some TV and waited for him to show up. He didn't get to the room until almost 12PM, because he was let out late. We used the GPS phone to find out how to get to the Henry Ford Museum, but we knew it was going to take longer than we had anticipated and Randy would most likely be late getting back to his training. On the Oakwood St., about 2 blocks away from the museum, we saw 2 Ford GTs (pretty much the only Ford car I really car about). Anyone who knows me, knows that when I see a nice car like that, which I've never actually seen in person, only in videogames and pictures, I flip out. I yelled, "There's a Ford GT!" The first one was coming out of a parking lot and was red with white stripes. Then, just a little further down the road, a yellow with black stripes GT was just taking off from a red light. It was first in line and took off at an amazing pace, with an audible roar. I was shocked to see not one, but two. It made some sense to see them this close to the factory, though. Still, I was overjoyed just to have seen them. :)

When I got let out in front of the IMAX theatre that was a part of "The Henry Ford" (I still don't know why they call it that), I admired the exterior of the building (which was erected ~1929). I tried to snap off a quick shot, but my stupid camera has trouble with white balance and I had to swap out my old batteries.

After I got inside, I got my ticket. I was upset about the price, which was $14 PLUS $5 parking (even though I didn't even park; what a freakin' rip-off), but on the website was only $13. I only had a $20 bill, barely enough for admission alone.

I started down this 'road' that was painted on the floor and set off into the 100 years of Automobiles exhibit first. I passed by the car where JFK was assassinated, and several presidential automobiles. They had so many old cars all set up as a physical timeline with info and memorabilia in glass cases that you could read and look at. They had even had a Cadillac model from early in the 20th Century that was the first to feature the electric automatic self-starter, which was invented by Charles F. Kettering from Dayton, Ohio, who also started Delco. They had a photo of him testing it out and a copy of the original design sketch.

In fact they had so much to do and see there, that I was a bit overwhelmed and worried that I might run out of time and miss my 3 o’clock meet-up time when Randy was supposed to show up and pick me up.

Detroit Day 4: REN CEN, the day after

Okay, well I'm home now (got back around 6PM last night). I would've posted earlier, but I had to pack up my PC Wednesday night, so we could check out faster. I did write some notes to myself about what we did on Wed., so I will use that to refresh my memory. I'm glad to be home because of the security of my normal routine, but I'm also depressed that now I'm in a boring place. :/

Anyway, heres goes:

I told Randy about what I thought we should do instead of going to the Henry Ford Museum on Wed. and instead going into downtown Detroit, to see GM World and the Renaissance Center, then maybe taking the People Mover around (there's a station at the Ren Cen). That way we could see the downtown but still be (what I thought should be) relatively safe. Plus, if we didn't want to take the time to go around on the People Mover, but still see downtown, we could go up to the overlook at the top of the Ren Cen (only later did I learn that it doesn't have that feature anymore).

Randy asked the receptionist at our hotel about where we should go. The lady gave Randy the statement not to take the People Mover, not to go into Downtown (a sentiment all too common with Detroit locals) and instead, to go to Ann Arbor (Michigan University, I don't think so) or go into, but not outside of, Greektown (which is very close to the Ren Cen and in downtown; ironic, no?). Well, when Randy told me that another person had told him NOT to go downtown, and instead go somewhere, I just about lost it. Everybody has been telling us not to go downtown, mainly because (I think) Downtown has a bad reputation and everybody's afraid of going down there and forming their own opinion. We went through downtown on Tuesday night (one thing your "not supposed to do" is go into downtown at night) and it seemed fine. We didn't get stalked by anybody and there were no menacing characters lurking around ready to stab us the second we got out of our car.

Well, I finally got Randy to agree to go to the Ren Cen and GM World (which I knew closed at 5PM and we were rapidly losing time because of our disagreement) and not go onto the People Mover. He had to get up early and I thought that would be enough to make Wed. not seem like it was wasted and not something that would make us stay out too late. We got out on the road and hit some horrible traffic. We wasted about 30-45min. pretty much not going anywhere. When we finally got to where the traffic ended, we found out why: some dumbass left his car in one of the lanes (of which there were only two because of ongoing construction). After that, it was almost non-existant until we reached another slow-moving area, though nearly as bad as the earlier one. We found out later after getting through the traffic, that it was, yet again, caused by some dumbass breaking down in one of the two lanes (people like that should be sued if it's something that happens only because of their own ignorance, like running out of gas.

Well, we finally got into downtown (just around the time GM World was closing) and pulled up into the parking garage closest to the Ren Cen (provided to us by the GPS phone). We walked out onto the streets and gazed at the giant skyscraper (not as big as the Sears Tower, but wonderous none-the-less). We went into Marriot hotel across the street to try to take the "Skywalk" across to the GM Headquarters. We got lost for a bit, but found our way (on the way, a stop at Starbucks. ;) I talked to a security guard at a desk right after exiting and found out that GM World was indeed closed for the day and that they didn't have the overlook feature anymore. I was very disappointed, but I decided since I'm paying parking (a total I would find out later of $10; what a rip-off), we might as well do what we can here.

We went down to street-level again and went inside the front doors. We were greeted by some cars inside the building in a see-through glass exterior and continued on inside. We took an escalator down to where GM World was and found that we could still get a good look at it, even though we could go inside. There was a food court down here as well, and we decided to eat at a GyroWorld (good stuff, though a tad expensive). After eating, we walked around the perimeter of GM World and at the halfway mark, we took a side trip to the other side of the building overlooking Detroit River. There was a big atrium there with massive palm trees inside the building and some swanky shops scattered around. I went outside and took some photos of the building and looked over to Canada and could see the Ambassador Bridge (though none of the photos I attempted to take came out well). We went inside again and continued on our way around GM World. Then, on our way, I took some more photos and we left downtown, passing through Greektown, which did look pretty cool.

We headed back to our room to regroup and decide what to do next. I noticed that there was a message on our room's phone and I was sad to hear it. My mom had called me from home telling me that my Grandmother (the only grandparent I have left) had stopped eating and would most likely die soon. This came as a surprise, but I had known that this was coming, just didn't know when. She told me the were going to take a trip up there, but I didn't know if I would be back in time.

Detroit Day 4: Still rainy and cold

Earlier this week, by looking at Weather.com's forecast, today was supposed to be the warmest and have the smallest chance of precipitation, but it's still rainy and cold. In fact, it's even colder than yesterday, and Monday, the day of the week that was 'supposed' to have rain/show showers, turned out to be the warmest and provide the most sunshine. :/

Anyway, my roomy had managed to swing it so that he could off earlier (3PM) so we could check out some of the places that close around 5 or 6PM. I'd like to go to the Henry Ford Museum, but since that costs $13 admission and we'll only be there for 1 1/2 hours max., I'm thinking we might just go somewhere else today, which is pretty much our last day to really do anything.
Tomorrow, though, I'll have to figure out where I'm going to wait around since we have to check out, and my friend has to work. I'd like to take that opportunity to check out some of the downtown area in the daytime (though it was nice and traffic-less last night), but without transportation for me to the city, I may just have to spend all day at a much less interesting place. :(

Now that I think about it, since my friend doesn't have as much money as he'd like and since he's told me he doesn't really want to pay that much admission for the Henry Ford Museum, I'm thinking he could drop me off there tomorrow and I'd spend all day there possibly. It's the closet to our hotel and his where's working, so it's probably the best place to be, while still giving me something interesting to do.

In that case, we might just go to the Ren Cen and GM World tonight. In any case, I'll need to pick up some batteries for my camera. ;)

Detroit Day 3: A Scenic, Energizing Night Drive

Well, after we were free, instead of working out, we instead went out and tried to get into the Buffalo Wild Wings location closest to our hotel, using the GPS phone telling us when to turn. Pretty cool, though the lag in calculating new directions is a little annoying.

After we found out the place was packed with Michigander's (no doubt from nearby Ann Arbor and University of Michigan), we decided to use the phone to tell us how to get to Starbucks (I need my Venti Mocha Frapp!). After that, we used the phone to go to a local bar and grill called Wheat & Rie (really close to our hotel). They said they were famous for their large portions and corned beef. They weren't kidding! I ordered a Reuben and 2 Guiness and the waitress brought over a HUGE sandwich (the biggest I've ever seen) and a gigantic bowl of nachos for my friend.

We were there when the Piston's were hosting (and stomping by a small margin) the Sixers. Every shot the entire crowded place reacted to. It was pretty cool, but I was kind of hoping the Sixers would win. ;)

After that, we came back to our hotel to regroup, and then we were off through Downtown for a tour of the rich coast line, Jefferson / Lakeshore Drive. We got through the city surprising easy, then got onto our road. It reminded a lot of Lakeshore Drive in Chicago overlooking Lake Michigan. You know there's a giant body of water not 20 feet from where you are driving sucking up all available light like a giant sponge. You can see the void out of the corner of your eyes and it gives somewhat of a claustrophobic feeling, sensing that the darkness will suck you up.

We took the road all the way up through to 16 Mile Rd. and Metropolitan Beach / Metro Beach Golf Club. On the way North, we caught glimpses of all the extemely extravagant mansions and enormous yachts. We didn't really get to focus on anything in particular because there was so much stimuli. On the way back though, we actually got out and stopped by Grosse Pointe Yacht Club and got out and looked at the towering seaward behemoths. I would have liked to have taken some pictures with my digital camera, but the batteries chose that time to go dead. :( We drove back past all of the private storage warehouses and repair shops and came upon a wondrous marina surrounding us. I would have liked to have gotten out and walked about, but there was a security 'jeep' tailing us, which we almost ran into because my friend wasn't paying much attention to his driving. We decided we'd seen enough and kept on back South on Jefferson.

We slowed up and paid more attention on the way back to the awe-inspiring mansions in Grosse Pointe Shores and actually drove down the side-streets lined with them. Every single house was incredible. I've never seen such extravagance and beauty. I'd like to come back during light, but it most likely wouldn't be as 'inviting'.

We kept going on Jefferson and passed through downtown and right by the Renaissance Center / GM Headquarters (amazing!) and the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, then by a huge structure on the left (Old Mariner's Church?) and a gate house of some kind, both of which looked very old and intricate. Then, because of all the construction and rejuvination of Downtown Detroit, we had to use the GPS device again.

On the way back on I-94W, we just cranked up the some Tiesto and got consumed by the beats. What a fun and spontaneous night! I'm looking forward to more of this.

Detroit Day 2: Boring night

Well, we really didn't do anything like I had hoped we would. We are only going to be up here until Thursday, so we are running out of time to do activities. I hadn't done as much research about areas, but with the Nextel GPS-capable phone we were given to use while here, it makes finding our way around much easier.

Because most of the activites I am interested in doing involve places where their hours are only until 5 or 6PM, that places a HUGE limit on what we can do, because the earliest our free time starts is around 5.

Detroit is one of the most rundown cities in the country and even the locals are afraid of roaming around Downtown. They'd rather, and have told us to, go across the Canadian border to go clubbin'. The only thing is neither of us has our birth certificate and/or passport with us, so Canada looks to be out of the question. I would like to check out some of the old, still grand skyscrapers like the old 1922 GM Building and the Fisher Building. Then, there's the Renaissance Center and the new GM offices, which houses GM World. I had thought of integrating our downtown visit in one day, including riding the "People Mover".

After, when we were free, we worked out in the cardio room, then came back and showered (not together, of course!) and ate at an Lebanese restaurant nearby (my first time; reminded me a lot of Greek souvlakis, which I love!). Then, we regrouped back at our room, and decided that tonight would just have to be our 'recon' night.

We ended up taking 94 East to get to Downtown because I was interested in possibly taking photos of the Ambassador Bridge and after that, scouting out Downtown, though not actually going anywhere yet. We didn't get to get close enough to the bridge to get out and snap some photos off (the roads are a little confusing), but we did drive past Comerica Park (the new Tiger's ballpark) on the way through downtown. We passed by a venue where Bruce Springsteen was playing with his tour bus and several limos parked in front, including the longest Hummer H2 limo I've seen. On the same block, Audioslave was also playing at a seperate venue, as well. We also found out where the Bleu Room Experience is located (which was most likely closed anyway. We didn't really go anywhere in the downtown 'block', and went straight back to good ol' I-75 (familiar to us back home) and headed back to our hotel. On the way back, we had considered briefly venturing up towards Pontiac to see if we could find Space, but decided not to and instead stopped at a convenient Krispy Kreme and got sick off sugary temptations. While at our 'pad, we talked outside for a bit, and watched a movie on the telly.

Now, it's rather late and I'm here writing a HUGE post on my blog, while I remember all this. :)

Here's a somewhat organized, though preliminary list of what I'm interested in seeing while up here in the Big D:

• Downtown Detroit / People Mover (Mon-Thur 7AM-11PM, Price $0.50)
  
  West Grand Boulevard between 22nd Ave. and Cass St.
  
  Fisher Building
  
  1922 GM Building
  
  Renaissance Center / GM World (100 Renaissance Center, Level A)
  
  Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-9 p.m.
  
  
• Eastern Market
  
  Mon.-Sat. 5 a.m.-5 p.m.
  
  Corner of Russell Street and Gratiot, Detroit, MI 48207
  
  
• Henry Ford Museum / Greenfield Village
  
  9:30AM-5PM Price $26 both , $13 HFM, $19 GV
  
  20900 Oakwood Blvd, Dearborn, MI
  
  
• Belle Isle (Park) / Belle Isle Aquarium
  
  Daily 6 a.m.-10 p.m.
  
  or Detroit Zoo
  
  Daily 10AM-5PM
  
  8450 W. 10 Mile Road, Royal Oak, MI 48068
  
  
• Poletown / Greektown / Corktown / Mexicantown / etc...
  
  
• Hart Plaza
  
  1 Hart Plaza, Jefferson at Woodward, Detroit, MI 48226
  
  
• Grosse Pointe / Edsel Ford House
  
  April – December: Tues–Sat, 10am–4pm; Sun noon-4pm
  
  1100 Lake Shore Road, Grosse Pointe Shores
  
  
• Tom's Oyster Bar
  
  L Mon.-Sat. 11 a.m.-4 p.m., D Mon.-Thu. 4-11 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 4 p.m.-midnight, Sun. 5-10 p.m.
  
  15402 Mack Ave., Grosse Pointe Park, MI 48224
  
  
• Walter P. Chrysler Museum
  
  Tue-Sat 10AM-6PM Price $6
  
  1 Chrysler Drive, Auburn Hills, MI 48326
  
  
• Detroit Historical Museum / (Automotive Hall of Fame?)
  
  Open daily 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Price $6 adults
  
  21400 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn, MI 48124
  
  
• Fisher Mansion
  
  Price $6
  
  383 Lenox St., Detroit (Located near E. Jefferson Ave. and Dickerson)
  
  
• 
  
• Blue Room Experience
  
  1540 Woodward Ave., Detroit, MI 48226
  
  
• Space
  
  15 S. Saginaw, Pontiac, MI 48342
  
  
• Sky Club
  
  Wed.-Thu. 8PM-2AM; Fri.-Sat. 7PM-2AM; Sun. 9PM-2AM Price $5 cover
  
  404 S. Lafayette Drive (above Sangria restaurant), Royal Oak, MI 48067
  
  Thur.
  
  
• Canada Trip (?) / Ambassador Bridge / Detroit-Windsor Tunnel
  

Detroit Day 2: Tired

I couldn't get much sleep last night and am ragged right now. I think it had something to do with working out at the hotel's gym and taking a supplement too late.

Anyway, earlier last night, Weather.com had today's weather up here as Rain/Snow showers, but right now it's 58° F and partly cloudy. That's much nicer than they had previously predicted. That just goes to show that meteorology is still not an exact science. Nicer weather should definitely make this trip much more enjoyable.

Detroit Day 1: First day in D!

Well, I'm here in Detroit right now sitting comfortably in my room. I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to connect to the internet, but this hotel has graciously supplied a wireless bridge that I got to work with WinXP lickety-split.

I've never messed with a WLAN, but it was surprisingly easy. I still wish I had a decent laptop (just powerful enough to do email, run swiftly, and be light and portable. I'd still love to have a TabletPC, if only they were less expensive. I'd rather have a powerful desktop than spend a grand on a laptop that is too static, too propietary, and obsolete in a year or two. I only spent about $500 on the raw components that make up my current desktop and I'm super pleased getting mostly new and powerful features and not spending a bundle.

I'll be taking some pictures and then transfering them to this PC, so if I take the time to get an account with 'Hello!" or something (the only, or rather "preferred", according to Google) to post pictures on your blog, I'll post some up on here.

I'll try to write at least once a day on here (more for posterity for my own sake) and when my memories are still fresh in my mind. Stay tuned...

Detroit trip!

Well, it's been a while since I posted last on here. I'm going with a friend to Detroit and will be gone all next week. The only thing is that I checked the weather and for some reason the weather had to turn sour. :(

I'm trying to figure out what we're going to be doing, but there are a couple cool clubs and places to visit up there, that I will see if possible. I'd like to check out Club Space in Detroit, maybe Bleu Room (there's a Gabriel and Dresden show there next Sat.). I'm thinking about also visiting the Henry Ford museum while there. My cousins and there family used to live up in Pontiac (or near there) and I visited them up there once when I was young. The things I remember now are playing Super Mario Bros. and Duck Hunt on their NES, watching Short Circuit on cable, and driving by the Silver Dome (weird the things that are burned into your memory).

Dan's return.

Well, my little brother is home from his school right now (to visit my older brother who recently had a stroke which almost crippled him, and to celebrate his birthday). He isn't going to be home for very long and I'd like every second to be rewarding, but real-life doesn't work that way. I'm glad just to see him and share some games with him, but he's more restless. We watched the Ultimate Fighter live show last Sat. and were impressed, though really only by the second fight (damn, you guys are tough!). Ok, I just woke up, so it's either wake up or back to bed (I'm an insomniac, so I think I know which it will be...).

back from Anderson

I got back yesterday from visiting my cousin and his parents in Anderson, IN this past weekend. It was fun and I got a chance to hang out, talk and play some games. I had meant to bring my camera, but I had forgotten. I also wish I had picked up some more sleep, even if sleeping on the floor didn't seem very appealing.

SC : CT

Wow, I got Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (Xbox) on Tue. and haven't really stopped playing it since. GREAT game! The single player missions are great and the online co-op is absolutely amazing. I should be getting it for my computer to play at max detail soon.