| Michigan is a state with a split personality. First you | | | | have ever wondered what a meat pie would taste |
| have the industrial, blue collar areas where you'll find | | | | like, try munching on a pasty (pronounced pass tee). |
| the well-known cities of Detroit, Lansing, Flint, and | | | | The flavorful turnover is filled with chicken, venison, |
| Kalamazoo. Kalamazoo is fun to say, isn't it? But | | | | pork, hamburger, and sometimes pizza. You can |
| hiding up north is the other face of Michigan, the | | | | make a pasty at home, but none will ever be as |
| Upper Peninsula. | | | | incredible as those made in the UP. |
| To live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, you must | | | | Perhaps the biggest and best surprise is the fact that |
| have an eye for beauty. Of course given the tranquil | | | | housing is incredibly affordable in the UP. You can |
| surroundings consisting of lakes, waterfalls, and | | | | easily find a home for under $50,000, but even some |
| forests, finding the beauty in this stunning area is | | | | of the nicest with wood floors, tile counters, and |
| fairly easy to do. You can start lakeside where the | | | | numerous bedrooms can cost well under $150,000. |
| "U.P." offers 1,700-miles shorelines from three Great | | | | For under $200,000, houses on the lake are easily |
| Lakes: Superior, Michigan, and Huron. | | | | obtainable with architecture ranging from stone |
| Surrounding the lakes are gorgeous forests of cedar | | | | fronts to A-frames. Real estate priced over $250,000 |
| trees, but interspersed are trees that offer | | | | range from older wooden houses with a lot of |
| breathtaking foliage in the autumn including, black | | | | lake-frontage to gorgeous new brick construction |
| gum, black ash, red maple, and pin oaks. My favorite | | | | with all the modern features. |
| tree is plentiful in the U.P. as well, the sometimes a | | | | If you prefer low maintenance real estate, |
| nuisance box elder which releases the whirlygig | | | | condominiums can be easily found in the Yooper |
| helicopter seeds that children love to gather and | | | | state. They too overlook lakes, rivers, or are |
| throw into the air. | | | | convenient to the tourist areas where most jobs can |
| Another favorite of kids and adults alike is a food | | | | be found. The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is truly a |
| introduced to the area by Cornish miners. If you | | | | hidden diamond whose beauty and affordability shine. |