Michigan is in the Great Lakes region, and it forms two land promontories that jut out into Lakes Michigan, Huron and Eyrie, having lakes to three sides and Indiana and Ohio to the south.

The State Capital is Lansing and here at East Lansing is where you can find Michigan State University. Also at Lansing is the R E Olds Transportation Museum that pays tribute to the Oldsmobiles of the 30s. Production continues today.

The beaches of Lake Michigan Shore are sought out by tourists, who base themselves at Saugatuck in order to tour the area. The Michigan Maritime Museum can be found here and records the history of the Great Lakes shipbuilding, fishing and shipping industries.

Lovers of the Great Outdoors are drawn to the rugged wilderness of the Upper Peninsula, the north of which borders Lake Superior. It was this wild region that inspired Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to write The Song of Hiawatha. The cliffs of Pictured Rocks can be viewed from a boat – trips are organised at Munsing. Or else you can head for the hiking trails of Porcupine.

Detroit, by far the largest city, 80 miles from Lansing can be found in the more populous Lower Peninsula. It is a Skyscraper City ringed with factories and manufacturing industry, especially car manufacturers. Nicknamed Motown, Motor City or Car Capital of the World, all the major car manufacturers of the world have their headquarters based here.

On the Detroit River, opposite the Canadian city of Windsor, Detroit is a busy industrial port whose waterfront has seen total redevelopment to create a new Downtown. The Headquarters of General Motors, the Renaissance Centre takes pride of place. In 1903 Henry Ford set up his car manufacturing business and the Ford Motor Company has just kept growing. There is a Henry Ford Museum at Greenfield Village Dearborn where you can learn about the company’s historic leap to world leadership and also get to admire the vintage cars on display.

Another Ford, the 38th President of the United States, Gerald R Ford, is also remembered in Michigan. He grew up in the town of Grand Rapids on the Grand River and the Gerald R Ford Museum of Grand Rapids traces his career. Grand Rapids is where the timber yards and water powered mills once stood. Furniture made here was very much in demand.

In the city’s Institute of Arts, the huge mural “Detroit Industry”, consisting of 27 fresco panels, by Diego Rivera, provokes comment that varies according to which side of centre your political views may lean. It certainly makes a statement and is pretty compulsive viewing.

Borders, the book chain, started in Detroit, as did Motown, the record label company. The Motown Historical Museum features the original recording studio, the early equipment used, photographs and memorabilia. This African American controlled business produced a highly successful label and your visit is both a trip down memory lane and a reminder of that success.
Visitors are welcomed at the University of Michigan campus in the prettily named town of Ann Arbor, west of the city. Visitors congregate in the Hart Plaza of Detroit where concerts and festivals take place throughout the summer months and where the annual International Jazz Festival is held.

The white clapboard Old Mission Point Lighthouse on the Old Mission Peninsula draws visitors who enjoy the drive there through tranquil cherry orchards and sand dunes.
Getting There

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County International Airport is 32 kilometres from the city centre of Detroit

For current visa requirements visit www.projectvisa.com

For information about the weather in Michigan visit www.worldweather.org