The Great Lakes are among the most underrated tourist destinations in the US. Take Lake Superior, for example. Today I walked along the Lake in Duluth, Minnesota and watched gigantic ships come into the harbor. In certain ways, it felt more like the Pacific Northwest than the Midwest.
Of course, there are some aspects of this area that remind you of where you are:
1. Most of the conversations you overhear are about hockey, even though it’s not hockey season for another few months.
2. People here think that the best way to prepare freshly caught fish is to dip it in batter and deep fry it.
3. The guest services people at the hotels often refuse tips, responding to your gesture as if you have just offered them a bribe to help you remove a body from your room.
Other aspects of Duluth and Lake Superior are more sea-like and cosmopolitan. The lakefront area of downtown is filled with cool bars and live music venues. Students from UMD (University of Minnesota Duluth) give this strip a youthful vibe. And then there are the cruises, sea gulls, the port, the brick buildings, and all the other things that you might find in a mid-sized port town on either of the coasts. I’ll have more from this freshwater sea later in the week.