Day 2 from Holland

Like I said yesterday we were going to a different country. On our way, we drove up along the shore of Eastern Lake Michigan. We didn't see much water, but managed to stop at this county park and walk down to the lakeside. It was beautiful!

The sand was very fine and powdery and the water was almost warm enough to swim in. All you could see was sand beach from one end to the other. We also stopped at a roadside stand and got some sour pie cherries and Bing cherries to have as a snack along the way. Alas, we had to journey on to our main destination.

Yes, here we are in Holland! Well, Holland, Michigan. You see my parents preferred to take us on educational-type trips when we were children, so I never got to go to the normal touristy spots that most children go to. Against Linda's better judgement (she had been here) we went. It was everything one would expect, and more!

We went to Nelis' Dutch Village

I truly felt like I had been transported back to Holland! As you can see, everything is so authentic looking. Even down to the pristine canals.

There were some pretty flowers. Unfortunately, we missed the tulip season.

We also went to DeKlomp Wooden Shoe and Delft Factory

Miles of wonderful Dutch items. 

The best thing about Holland was deBeoer's. We arrived in time for lunch. We had croquettes with pea soup and bread with gouda cheese.

Delicious! For dessert we shared these:

Also delicious. 

Alas, it was time to leave the wonderful town of Holland which is showing the effects of the economy like everywhere else. There was a huge outlet mall right next to the Dutch village that was basically empty. The Dutch places weren't too busy either. I guess people just don't appreciate the Holland way of life anymore. Maybe they need to open up an Amsterdam-style coffee shop!

Our destination was Lansing. It is fun to see the capitols of different states. We stayed at the Radisson downtown. The room was nice but nothing like our Blue Chip room. The downtown area was very nice and clean and modern looking. We went to visit the capitol first as it was only two blocks from our hotel and getting near closing time. 

The capitol closed at 5:30 and we made it out at 5:25. Afterward, we took a walk around the downtown area. We wanted to go somewhere and have a beer or something and then maybe find someplace to eat. We ended up at the Nuthouse Sports Grill. It was a nice bar that was right across from two sports arenas. We decided not to eat there and pursued our quest. In the end, we had pie at Grand Traverse Pie Company. It was very good. We ended up ordering pizza in our room from Cottage Inn Pizza-forgettable. Oh well!

We managed to stay up long enough to watch America's Got Talent (everything's an hour later on Eastern Time) and drifted off in our Sleep Number bed.