Independence Day: DETROIT

Having the 4th of July on a Wednesday this year kind of threw things off. I decided awhile ago that I wanted to go somewhere for the 4th, since I have been in DC for the last six 4th of July celebrations. Not that I don't love watching the fireworks over the monuments of our nation's capitol, because I really do (and I did miss it), but I just wanted to try something new. So, Detroit it was. I hadn't been to Comerica Park yet, and I didn't think that I'd actually go to Detroit on a 'vacation' so when I found $88 roundtrip tickets, Jenny and I jumped on it. We left bright and early (or before bright...) and drove to Baltimore and hopped on a plane ... there were a surprising amount of people flying on the 4th of July! Go figure - I thought we were the only crazy ones that would do that. Apparently not. We arrived in Detroit about 10:30am, got our rental car, checked into the hotel, and headed downtown for the Comerica Taste Fest. And a pretend tour of the Ford factory ...
The Taste Fest was basically a street festival of restaurants around the Detroit area. We sampled some of Detroit's finest cuisine - and had our first sample of sweet potato pie as well as sweet potato ice cream (hmmm ... I don't think I'll be having that again). They did have the best tamales I have had in a long time (I don't know that Detroit is known for its Mexican food, but it sure was good)! Of course half the fun of those festivals is the people watching ... and there were certainly some interesting things going on! After the taste fest, it started to sprinkle a bit (it was very cloudy and overcast), so we decided to go see a movie - inside, out of the rain (and since weather.com had predicted thunderstorms off and on throughout the day, we hoped they were on their way now, not during the game!), so we went to see the new Die Hard movie. When we came out of the theather - sunshine. :)

We drove to the Detroit temple - which is a smaller temple that shares the parking lot with the stake center next door - of course it was closed since it was a holiday, but we wanted to see it anyway - and we had some time to kill, so it was a nice little detour.

There was a spot on the street across from the stadium to park in, but we weren't sure if it was legit or not. The other parking lots we'd seen were $15 or $20 so it didn't seem like we could just park there for free. I asked the man sitting on his truck in front of us, and he said it was no big deal, it was in front of a courthouse and they were closed for the day ... so we took our chances ... we were very scared after the game about the prospect of not having a car, but luckily it was still there and we didn't even pay for it. Comerica Park. Awesome. I didn't really know what to expect, but if I had any expectations, they were far exceeded. Its like a little piece of heaven in the less-than-desirable city of Detroit. We immediately knew we were going to like it when we walked up and saw the sign in front -

It was a beautiful sight :) The outside of the ballpark was great, and everyone was donning their Tigers gear. It kind of reminded me of Fenway, with the brick walls and flags surrounding the park. We walked around to the other side to pick up our tickets and then headed in. Inside was fabulous too ... there were all kinds of things to do ... a kid's paradise. Batting cages, shops, a carousel, and even a ferris wheel with baseball-shaped seats!









We walked around for a little while since we had some time to kill before the game, so we did a little exploring and found some fun things at Comerica Park.

The Tigers were playing the Cleveland Indians that night, so that combined with the fact that it was the 4th of July lead to a full ballpark. So full, in fact, that our seats that were just a few rows from the top, were taken! So we sat closer to the front of our section, in a row that was (luckily) mostly empty. We thought for sure a family would come and kick us out of our seats, but that never happened. We definitley had some good entertainment both on and off the field ... I have a video of the lady sitting in front of us who danced and cheered more than anyone I have ever seen at a game ... I can't get it to download right now though.
About halfway through the game, three guys came and sat next to us, since the row was still free. They stayed, then went to the bar, then came back. A few minutes after they returned, the one sitting by me (well, there was one empty seat between us) turns to me and says "hey how old are you?" I asked how old he thought I was and he said "that's why I'm asking, my friend and I have a bet going..." I told him to guess, and he said "20?" I laughed and said no. "21?" Nope. "22?" Sorry ... "how old are you??" I told him 27 and he was surprised, and then also sad that he'd lost the bet. I asked how old he was ... I guessed 23, and he said "I love you!!" He was 22, but typically "gets 17" ... sounds familiar! ha ha Anyway, we talked off and on throughout the rest of the game (more off than on) and he introduced himself - Kenny. He'd actually just finished a two-month internship in DC last week. He asked how long we were in town, and was kind of disappointed to find out that we were leaving first thing in the morning. Kind of funny.
The game was great. We ate quite possibly the largest nacho concoction I have ever had in my life, enjoyed the ambiance, and the Tigers won, despite a threat by the Indians. Everyone was happy - Detroit fans are loyal and cheered for the home team. After the game the grounds crew prepared for the fireworks. About this time, Kenny leans over to me and says "hey if you need someone to hold your hand during the fireworks, just let me know." Um ... ok ... I said "yeah I might get scared" and he said "well in the case, you should just move your purse so I can come sit next to you." I should have just done it - it would have been funny - and then he probably would have won another bet with his friends. ha ha The fireworks were pretty lame, but I must say it couldn't have been a better backdrop for the fireworks - as the announcer said at the game "thanks for celebrating America's birthday with America's favorite pastime." I couldn't agree more!