30 Dates. 30 Days. 30 Cities.

I was intrigued by Detroit in many ways… My date did an exceptional job of showing me around a place I’d never before gotten the pleasure of exploring.  I’ll be honest though, it’s a dump over there, and I think everyone recognizes that.  However this doesn’t have to be a reason for concern, and can instead be an amazing opportunity.  Smart, inspiring, business savvy young people could make a new Detroit.  Begin the momentum to get people caring again about the city.  My date is one of these individuals who hasn’t given up on Detroit and I seriously applaud him for that.  I hope the city does get exciting new businesses, “out of the box” thinking, youthful innovative leadership, and serious investments in infrastructure.  I would help if I could, and it starts by me telling my story… Detroit can be a City of the Future.  I’m sure of it!  -Kev

My date in Detroit used a phrase I instantaneously fell in love with: Ruin Porn.  Our destination was the Packard Auto Factory, a now completely abandoned ginormous building in Detroit that sits derelict and disgusting.  However it is amazingly fascinating to see with your own eyes and spend time in its various structures.  My mind raced with opportunities for what this site could be in the future if an entrepreneurial individual was able to get his hands on it.  I don’t consider myself much of a pornographer, but I had to try it out.  See if I could capture some of the essence of the Packard Factory as it sits today.  Enjoy! -Kevin

SCHVITZ!  When I was much younger and still trying to get my sea legs after coming out of the closet I wasn’t really a fan of nudity.  I was uncomfortable in locker rooms, shy around partners, and insisted on turning the lights off during moments of intimacy.  What exactly was I afraid of?  To this day I’m not really sure what it was… but like so many things evolved in me over time (food tastes, toleration of touts, sandals as shoes) this too passed into the history of my time before traveling.  The rest of the world is extremely comfortable with nudity in comparison to the U.S. leaving foreign travelers free to explore different forms of cultural expression without any clothes on.  In Japan the traditional Onsen is a place of physical and spiritual fulfillment (mind out of the gutter please).  They are usually carefully constructed buildings adjacent to natural hot springs allowing for a unique bathing experience (clothing not an option).  The traditional Turkish Bath (or Hamam) is a custom still practiced all throughout Europe and represents a cleansing and peaceful experience.  The Russian bath is a more masculine, brutish, but still meant to be therapeutic environment.  I’ve participated in all these forms of bathing many times… they’re all amazing experiences but comfortability with nakedness is a must.  What I had never done before Detroit was have such an experience here in America (frankly I didn’t even know you could have this kind of traditional, in this case Jewish, bath without it being some sort of Steamworks Operation… not quite the same thing).  My date was definitely apprehensive about having this be a part of our time together.  He pulled up next to the building and cautiously described what was involved without knowing quite how I would react.  ”Of course,” I said.  It will be a new experience for me to see what this is like in the States.
Was it a respectful SCHVITZing?  Absolutely, my date was a perfect gentleman at all times and I’m very glad he had the balls to include this as part of our date.  Yes we saw each other’s junk, and that was different from any of the other dates I had on this journey.  But it reminded me that I’m much happier now being content with nakedness.  Nudity is fun!  And that’s how I’ll close out that subject… -Kev

There are several derelict structures around the city of Detroit owned by a gentleman named Manuel J. Moroun (Matty Moroun).  He gets to rent them out to movie studios for action films while in the interim they sit as eyesores contributing to the city’s rundown reputation.  But there’s one very functional portion of Detroit (and Winsor, Canada for that matter) which Matty also owns and controls: the Ambassador Bridge.  This 81 year old span is one of only two border crossings in the entire nation in private ownership.  My questions are these.  What happens if the aging Matty decides to close the busiest daily border crossing to Canada?  Should the linkage between two countries be owned by a citizen of only one of those countries?  What if it were owned by a Canadian… would America tolerate that?  Just something to think about (you folks know how much I dig philosophical, economic, and political questions)  -Kev

That is a Heritage Oak tree standing next to that poorly dressed man.  After the Detroit cycling tour my date and I hopped in a city truck and went off to do some manual labor.  When I first say the tree all set up and ready to plan two thoughts went through my head, one:  this is so amazing that I’ll get to participate in making Detroit just “that much” better by adding some new life to the city, two:  oh my god that tree is dead.  Luckily for Detroit and for the tree I wasn’t close enough to see that it was a deciduous oak tree and therefore in the winter will have no leaves (close call on that one!).  Next came a little bit of amateur archaeology.  My date and I began digging a two and a half foot deep hole for the tree, and with each layer of clay and mud removed we seemed to discover new (and not exciting) pieces of trash from years gone by:  bottle tops, shards of glass, old pieces of sidewalk, and even the plastic sizing strip you find on clothes at Old Navy telling you it’s a 34 extra long.  When the tree was in the ground I got to do something else I’d never done before, open the nearby fire hydrant.  10 gallons of rusty brown water for my new tree, for Detroit’s new tree.  So somewhere in the central areas of Detroit is a freshly planted oak tree with a “30 Dates” stamp on the tree guard (I won’t tell you where it is so we can keep the location safe).  To my date I say “thank you so much” for allowing me to give something back to one of the cities that have been my hosts on this trip.  This makes up for the vandalizing in Pensacola!  -Kev

There is a street in Detroit called Heidelberg street, housing and extra-housing one of the world’s only indoor/outdoor/living museums.  It’s a testament to the vision of Tyree Guyton who first envisioned the initial painted dots of the project in 1986 as a colorful response to the urban blight which paralyzed the local neighborhood.  Today the street and it’s “colorful” nature is a world recognized tourist attraction with art pieces lining the block too numerous and odd to describe.  Two mayors have tried to have the project demolished (for reasons I can’t possibly imagine) but the main attractions on Heidelberg Street survive.  More individuals like Tyree need to step up in the 21st century and proclaim that they won’t let Detroit be consumed by neglect, mismanagement, and human failings.  We need more stuffed animal trees!  -Kev

Who knew Detroit has so many casinos?  They have 3 to be precise, and my date chose to meet me at one for a specific yet not easily predictable reason.  After we exited the parking structure of MotorCity Casino we turn around a huge concrete slab by a small dumpster to find parked bicycles in the “bicycle parking lot.”  He proposed that we ride around the city for a tour of modern day Detroit at 50 degrees.  I was up for the challenge despite not having ridden a bike in years, and slightly fearing the cold.  Our first stop was the “in process” metropolitan kitty:A sculpture by a local artist trying to make a walkway more accessible to pedestrians.  It was a great way to start our tour because there would be several doses of blight and neglect to come.  This was a way to showcase revitalization, clever thinking, and kitty spunk!  Next was the old Detroit ball field and it’s somewhat rundown state.  A bidding war over how NOT to continue with the space the field once occupied has left the site derelict and unkept.  Lunch at Mudgie’s where I ate a do it yourself sandwich and my partner in crime for the day ate something random he selected off the menu.  Fun times!  We rode past Corktown (a historic district from olden day Detroit), past the iconic GM building, along the riverfront, past the construction, under the bridge, and through the woods.  We hit up two Urban Farming areas that had sprung up in east Detroit, followed by my personal favorite:  The Heidelberg Project. This project is an artistic approach at bringing attention to urban blight.  Following the Heidelberg madness (love it) was a trip to possible the most exciting place I’ve visited all trip.  The abandoned Packard Automobile plant… one of the largest derelict buildings in all the world: Next was a bike to the wealthier and very nice neighborhood of Indian Village.  It was such an amazing contrast to rows of vacant lots and windowless homes.  We pressed on to the riverwalk for a breather and an attempt to use the self-cleaning electronic toilets failed in large distended bladders.  We passed a Playhouse, one of only four that survive today.  Giving Detroit some much needed culture and arts entertainment the playhouse group is an all male members only troop which puts on amateur performances for it’s brethren and guests. Our final stop was a gentrification tour of an old black neighborhood which was “reclaimed” for the masses.  I personally found it dull and ugly.  Trash had built up to a level of “hey, where’s the garbage man, this is not mafia run Sicily!”  And as the chill began to frost the tips of my eyelashes it was time to end the bike tour.  What a fascinating way to see Detroit.  I’m glad my date thought of it.  -Kev