The Two Faces of Michigan

Michigan is a state with a split personality. First you have the industrial, blue collar areas where you'll find the well-known cities of Detroit, Lansing, Flint, and Kalamazoo. Kalamazoo is fun to say, isn't it? But hiding up north is the other face of Michigan, the Upper Peninsula.

To live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, you must have an eye for beauty. Of course given the tranquil surroundings consisting of lakes, waterfalls, and forests, finding the beauty in this stunning area is fairly easy to do. You can start lakeside where the "U.P." offers 1,700-miles shorelines from three Great Lakes: Superior, Michigan, and Huron.

Surrounding the lakes are gorgeous forests of cedar trees, but interspersed are trees that offer breathtaking foliage in the autumn including, black gum, black ash, red maple, and pin oaks. My favorite tree is plentiful in the U.P. as well, the sometimes a nuisance box elder which releases the whirly-gig helicopter seeds that children love to gather and throw into the air.

Another favorite of kids and adults alike is a food introduced to the area by Cornish miners. If you have ever wondered what a meat pie would taste like, try munching on a pasty (pronounced pass tee). The flavorful turnover is filled with chicken, venison, pork, hamburger, and sometimes pizza. You can make a pasty at home, but none will ever be as incredible as those made in the UP.

Perhaps the biggest and best surprise is the fact that housing is incredibly affordable in the UP. You can easily find a home for under $50,000, but even some of the nicest with wood floors, tile counters, and numerous bedrooms can cost well under $150,000. For under $200,000, houses on the lake are easily obtainable with architecture ranging from stone fronts to A-frames. Real estate priced over $250,000 range from older wooden houses with a lot of lake-frontage to gorgeous new brick construction with all the modern features.

If you prefer low maintenance real estate, condominiums can be easily found in the Yooper state. They too overlook lakes, rivers, or are convenient to the tourist areas where most jobs can be found. The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is truly a hidden diamond whose beauty and affordability shine.

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