A few months ago, Neal told me he’d need to go to Michigan 2 weekends in September to promote his latest book, which should be out early 2020! He said he’d be gone both weekends but would come back to DC in between and I thought, “no way Jose! I’m coming with you!”.
We were VERY fortunate to have Neal’s parents come to DC to watch out kids and just like that, we were going on our first solo vacation since having kids! A trip for just us. Not to see family and not to see friends, it was just about us!
Neal flew up to Ann Arbor, Michigan on Friday, September 27 and then I met up with him on Sunday, September 29. Neal picked me up from Detroit and then we drove up to our VRBO off Torch Lake in Northwestern Michigan.
We took our time driving up to Torch Lake. We grabbed lunch with a dear friend of mine, just north of Detroit and then stopped at a few markets along the way. It was my first time in Michigan and boy was I in love!
Our VRBO was just perfect! This 2 bedroom condo was just off on Torch Lake and slept 4. The back of the condo had a covered porch, which I essentially lived on. The swing, the lake view, the changing leaves… it was heaven!
After getting settled in Neal and I went for a long walk. It was good getting more time to just talk. We walked a few miles and then made our way down to the lake.
A theme you’ll see as I recap our trip is just how amazing the lake water is in Michigan. The water was crystal clear and just gorgeous!
For dinner, we went to Pearl’s New Orleans Kitchen, which was absolutely amazing!! The service was outstanding and the food was sooooo good! I had my first (3) of many beers that trip, enjoying 3 Michigan beers.
For dinner I had a salad with cherries, blue cheese, pecans, and blackened white fish, as well as a side of hush puppies. The food was so delicious!
Our first day in Michigan was lots of fun. It was the perfect transition into our 7 days away from DC!
