First day there Andi had Pop-pop break out the bikes for a rather brisk bike ride. Through out the stay, there were various drives around about. The next few photos are various houses in the town/village of Frankfort. 
This house is in process of being painted. According to Pop, it has been a long process to get this far, but it has been worth the wait. Hopefully the homeowners (who I think are summer residents) get a lot more done this year. I'd love to see it done all the way! 
Above- a design on a house. I wonder if they have a family quilt with the same pattern?Below- Frankfort is an old logging town...I'm not sure what folks do now to survive (besides make a VERY long commute to the nearest city). Anyway, it's an old logging town, so lots of Victorian style houses.
Above: A non-descript house. Except of course it is lavender....made me a bit home sick for Japan. 
Above- I had asked for a canoe ride. One of the few water going vessels that don't make me sea-sick. Since it was still cold, the rivers weren't totally free of ice. But Frankfort Bay was. The above was taken about midway through the trip.Below, well that was the beginning. Andi was NOT enthused about canoeing at all. Even though she had never done it before. And yes, she is sitting backwards...long story short. Got Andi in, told her which way to face. I had requested the front...got in, thought the space was a little cramped. About then, heard a loud sigh from my dad as he announced I was directionally challenged. No really, it was operator errors on both our parts. As a result I ended up with the back end, and Andi facing me. We did get her turned around eventually, but not til after she realized the "ship" wasn't going to sink.
See that happy face? She wanted to keep going. But I think I was wearing Pop-pop out. As I was supposed to be doing the steering...but I kept taking pictures, I think he had to work a little harder up there on the front end. Oops! 
But everybody made it out safe and dry, and big smiles all around. Andi now wants to do more canoeing! yippee! (I really do enjoy it) 
Next up is a trip to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. This is where my dad was assistant superintendent for about 10 years (before retiring after 30 years of service in the National Park Service) The main attraction is this giant sand dune that once upon a time may have resembled a sleeping bear.anyway, this is Andi at the start of the climb.
(the website provides some nice sunny pictures....it is usually a bit bleak looking before things turn green)
And there she goes! It is a little steep at times. But most of the hard work is because of walking in sand. She never even hesitated...off she went, bounding along. Apparently she has no problems with her lungs!
I got her to pause briefly at the first flat area, so that I could catch up....then off she flew for the next ridge.
Above we are overlooking Little Glen Lake (Big Glen is, of course, the next one over) This is the only lake you will see from this side of the dune climb. To get a view of Lake Michigan, is about a 4 mile trek across more dunes. I lived there (Empire Michigan) for 4 or 5 years, never did get to Lake Michigan via that route. It was much easier to just drive down the road.
The best part is the run down! This is just the first little part. She paused briefly for a photo op with Pop-pop...
And then the next thing I knew, she was down at the car. How does she do that? It's like the sand didn't even bother her!
Next up, a trip to the beach via the easy route...drive to it. Remember, go to that website for some nice sunny pictures. Though I do find it restful and peaceful even in a chilly fog. The first steps to the beach were a bit tentative for Andi. Even though we didn't witness the tsunami in Japan, she knows what it did. She was a bit leery about approaching the lake. Patience and talking, and we got there. I'm hoping she'll be ok with seeing the beaches in Japan again.
That's my Pop above, and below, well that's my Andi....doing what she loves...monkeying around.
Above: The old Coast Guard station located across the bay from Frankfort in Elberta.
Pop and Rose (his wife) took us for a drive up to Mackinaw to see the Mackinac (pronounced Mackinaw) bridge. This is what connects the main body of Michigan with the Upper Peninsula (the part that hangs over from Wisconsin....quick run to the maps....you know you want to) It was sunny on the drive up. But fog persisted around the lake.
And there she goes! It is a little steep at times. But most of the hard work is because of walking in sand. She never even hesitated...off she went, bounding along. Apparently she has no problems with her lungs! 
I got her to pause briefly at the first flat area, so that I could catch up....then off she flew for the next ridge. 
Above we are overlooking Little Glen Lake (Big Glen is, of course, the next one over) This is the only lake you will see from this side of the dune climb. To get a view of Lake Michigan, is about a 4 mile trek across more dunes. I lived there (Empire Michigan) for 4 or 5 years, never did get to Lake Michigan via that route. It was much easier to just drive down the road. 
The best part is the run down! This is just the first little part. She paused briefly for a photo op with Pop-pop... 
And then the next thing I knew, she was down at the car. How does she do that? It's like the sand didn't even bother her! 
Next up, a trip to the beach via the easy route...drive to it. Remember, go to that website for some nice sunny pictures. Though I do find it restful and peaceful even in a chilly fog. The first steps to the beach were a bit tentative for Andi. Even though we didn't witness the tsunami in Japan, she knows what it did. She was a bit leery about approaching the lake. Patience and talking, and we got there. I'm hoping she'll be ok with seeing the beaches in Japan again. 
That's my Pop above, and below, well that's my Andi....doing what she loves...monkeying around. 
Above: The old Coast Guard station located across the bay from Frankfort in Elberta.Below: The Frankfort lighthouse at sunset.
Pop and Rose (his wife) took us for a drive up to Mackinaw to see the Mackinac (pronounced Mackinaw) bridge. This is what connects the main body of Michigan with the Upper Peninsula (the part that hangs over from Wisconsin....quick run to the maps....you know you want to) It was sunny on the drive up. But fog persisted around the lake.http://www.mackinacbridge.org/
Andi practicing her "karate kid" moves. (though she has never seen the original movie)
A house nearby....get a load of the front entryway!
Driving around Mackinac City.
From there we drove to Cross Village. It's a nice little stop. Not really sure what they are known for. Though Pop and Rose have a restaurant there they like to go to, called the Legs Inn. They weren't open yet, but I did find a bit of history.....(you're going to be so tired at the end of this trip) http://www.legsinn.com/history.html
Plus, Andi spotted the "bear". It was really pretty, and very friendly!
Below: One of the old churches in town.
Next stop on this road trip was "The Cross in the Woods". Really very pretty. We missed the gift shop, but did make a mad dash through the chapel area in search of a restroom. It was a bit of a blur (the chapel that is....and no, the dash wasn't for me...but a little person who had iced tea at dinner....ummm, go figure)
Andi practicing her "karate kid" moves. (though she has never seen the original movie) 
A house nearby....get a load of the front entryway! 
Driving around Mackinac City. 
From there we drove to Cross Village. It's a nice little stop. Not really sure what they are known for. Though Pop and Rose have a restaurant there they like to go to, called the Legs Inn. They weren't open yet, but I did find a bit of history.....(you're going to be so tired at the end of this trip) http://www.legsinn.com/history.html 
Plus, Andi spotted the "bear". It was really pretty, and very friendly! 
Below: One of the old churches in town. 
Next stop on this road trip was "The Cross in the Woods". Really very pretty. We missed the gift shop, but did make a mad dash through the chapel area in search of a restroom. It was a bit of a blur (the chapel that is....and no, the dash wasn't for me...but a little person who had iced tea at dinner....ummm, go figure)http://www.crossinthewoods.com/
And now, for some more art. Across the street from my dad is "the bottle trees". The artist is Peggy Knorr (I have no web info for her at this time). She finds these bottles at antique stores and makes the trees.
They are really very pretty....and perhaps will inspire me to try to make one of my own. Probably won't end up looking as nice. The one below is an old bedspring, a work in progress.
And that brings us to the end of our Michigan trip. (though trust me, there are MANY more pictures that haven't been shown...I shall save those for any future "dry" spells)
And now, for some more art. Across the street from my dad is "the bottle trees". The artist is Peggy Knorr (I have no web info for her at this time). She finds these bottles at antique stores and makes the trees. 
They are really very pretty....and perhaps will inspire me to try to make one of my own. Probably won't end up looking as nice. The one below is an old bedspring, a work in progress. 
And that brings us to the end of our Michigan trip. (though trust me, there are MANY more pictures that haven't been shown...I shall save those for any future "dry" spells)Now, on the 17th of April, we await word as to how when we will be returning home to Japan. We know we will go (the evacuation orders are lifted) it's just a matter of when. I'm hoping to be notified as to when, and then go make a trip to San Diego to see more family.
It will be good to go home though, we do miss our corner of the world.
