#35 Ann Arbor Stories: Walking Tour #1

This first Ann Arbor Stories walking tour is intended to be listened to while actually exploring a few city blocks in downtown Ann Arbor. It takes listeners from the corner of Huron and Fourth, outside the Embassy Hotel all the way to the corner of Liberty and Ashley and the C. Walker Building. There’s no right or wrong way to experience this story. Ideally, you’ll stroll along the same streets we’re talking about, looking at the same buildings we’re describing and letting your mind wander back in time. But you could still listen to this in your car or at home and check these sites out in person later. Use Google street view. We're not telling you how to consume your media.

Music by Frontier Ruckus.

Listener warning: This episode contains references to sex, pornography, murder, riots, death, ghosts, gay bars and bankers.

For those of you who want to experience this podcast at ground level, a few tips:

First, if you’re not standing at the corner of Huron and Fourth Street, then get there before you start the episode. This walking tour will take you from this point to the corner of Liberty and Ashley. It’s not a long walk, but you will have to cross some streets and some of the sidewalks might be busy so please please please keep your head up and be aware of your surroundings, as tempting as it may be to submit fully to my words and the siren of history.

It’s often easier to see some of the taller buildings from the opposite side of the street, but it’s up to you on how you want to do this. Get up close to the building and touch the old brick, or step back and peer up into the sky. Maybe both. But watch out for cars and people - we're serious, we don’t want anyone getting hurt.

One last thing. If it’s the summer of 2017 and you’re playing the AADL Summer Game, three of the locations on this walking tour have signs in the window that get into the history of those spots and have special game codes that can be inputted at play.aadl.org for points. Visit the AADL website and search for Ann Arbor Stories for more details.

Go at your own pace. Pause, rewind, stop halfway through for a drink at a famous establishment. This is your walking tour, not ours. Enjoy.