by Gail Hennessey

Created on: July 22, 2009   Last Updated: April 18, 2011

Travel Back in Time to Michigan's Mackinac Island and the Grand Hotel

A movie brought me to Mackinac Island. Ever since watching the 1980 movie, Somewhere in Time, starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour, set and filmed on the island, I've wanted to see the Grand Hotel and sit on what is called the world's largest porch.

This summer, my husband and I traveled to Mackinac Island(pronounced Mackinawe) an idyllic place where the clippity cloppity of horse hooves replaces the sounds of motorized vehicles. The island, approximately 2500 acres, is two miles wide and three miles long, and is home to about 500 year round residences. Native Americans who first came upon the island, thought the island looked like the back of a giant turtle and gave it its name, Michilimackinac, meaning "land of the great turtle".

We arrived at Michigan's Mackinaw City, on the Lower Peninsula, where we took a ferry ride across to the island. Another port to the island is at St. Ignace, on the Upper Peninsula. The $48 dollar round trip fee included free parking for the duration of our stay on the island. The ferry rides,which depart every half hour, take less than 18 minutes. On arrival to Mackinac Island, a porter will deliver your baggage to your hotel or bed and breakfast. It is customary to give a $2 tip for each bag that is scurried to your hotel via bicycle. Depending on the location of your accommodations and if you don't wish to walk, horse carriage taxis are available to take you to your destination. On the dock, bales and bales of hay and several trucks loaded with goods wait to be unloaded onto horse drawn wagons. Other than an ambulance, fire truck,and police car that are on the island, in case of emergency, no other motorized vehicles are allowed on the streets. However, a visitor will rarely see any of these vehicles during their stay! Golfers need not worry as golf carts ARE allowed on the course, however, there is one warning. To reach the second nine, you are NOT allowed to drive over the road, violators will be fined. A horse drawn carriage waits to take you and your clubs across to the second nine where you can pick up another cart to complete your round of golf.

There are two main streets on Mackinac Island, Main St, where most of the restaurant, bicycle rentals,hotels and souvenir shops are located. Market Street is where historical buildings, the U.S. Post Office, medical building, a working blacksmith(for the 500 or so horses), galleries and unique

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