Detroit

The night before we actually entered Detroit proper we attended a Sierra Club meeting in Troy, a suburb of Detroit.  The reason we attended was the speaker - Kami Pothukuchi.  Heavily involved in Detroit urban food production as an educator, policy maker, and from what we've heard a stubborn and influential individual, we were impressed by her brief update on the latest news about Detroit.  A few words exchanged after her presentation helped to point us in the right direction for our visit the next day.

Driving into the city we hopped off the highway and started making our way through the neighborhoods.  Even after seeing photos and films, the deserted and often burned homes standing alone on desolate blocks evoked powerful emotion.  Moving further into downtown Detroit the contrast between bustling downtown activity and the previous neighborhood ruins created an unsettling juxtaposition.

We made our first foray into the world of couchsurfing.org on this stop and it ended up being a great way to stay.  Our hosts Jenny and Nick were super hospitable and their loft on the river was a spot that would be pretty tough to beat.  Nick took us on a bike tour along the recently constructed River Walk, up into Midtown, along Cass street for a snack stop at Avalon (an organic bakery and a key part of the urban agriculture movement), and then on to the hidden 4th Street. We parted ways and continued riding through the City checking out community gardens that seemed to be sprouting up everywhere we went.

A ride on the People Mover gave us a unique second story view of the city.  It's hard to know how much practical transportation this transit is providing - a clockwise circle around the downtown doesn't seem to provide too many direct connections.  However, we did see a mix of tourists and local Detroiters making use of it.

We were able to volunteer on Earthworks Urban Farm on Saturday morning.  The farm was started in 1997 as an extension of the Capuchin Soup Kitchen and has grown into a "beautiful food system through education, inspiration, and community development" that spans more than 20 lots over several city blocks.  A three hour session of sifting and spreading compost with fellow volunteers flew by and we were thankful that the program manager Patrick was willing to chat with us for a while afterward and give us a tour of the farm.

Still smelling of compost, we rode over to the Heidelberg Project to take in the unique creation of Tyree Guyton.  Words can't explain, so we'll let pictures speak for themselves.

Our next stop was the bustling Eastern Market where flower sellers hollered end of the day prices, farmers boasted the freshest asparagus around, and eager customers purchased.  We grabbed some onions, garlic, and mushrooms to pair with the canned tomatoes so kindly sent with us from Riverbound Farm and turned it into a fresh and delicious pasta dinner.

We got some night life in by poaching a Lauryn Hill show from a hill next to Chene Park Amphitheater and tasting some of the local brews at the Atwater Brewery.

Sunday provided the opportunity to visit the St. Bonaventure Monastery morning service - this Capuchin Monastery actually started the soup kitchen that Earthworks grew out of. We wrapped up our far-too-brief Detroit experience with a drive to Belle Isle for skyline pics of this incredibly interesting city.

DETROIT PICTURES