tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20503056.post7038468532403982065..comments2023-10-16T11:27:03.599-04:00Comments on Ralph's Place: Traverse CityRalphhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16618874766251321861noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20503056.post-27249703215268823732007-08-31T08:50:00.000-04:002007-08-31T08:50:00.000-04:00Doc:There were a couple of local brewhouses that a...Doc:<BR/><BR/>There were a couple of local brewhouses that apparently were serving their own stuff on tap. Not quite the family atmosphere we were looking for and I couldn't find much local stuff in the stores-although there were a ton of stores selling beer, wine, and spirits, even designated "party stores" that also sold lottery tickets and jerky, which is apparently is a bit of a staple up that way. Also, as I mentioned, the people selling this stuff were extremely friendly. Maggie described entering a store to buy something as falling into a "black hole," as you couldn't get out of there without a "where ya' from?" "what are ya' doing up here?" series of quesitons. <BR/><BR/>The place just has a real solid, tourist infrastructure in place. I guess I'm getting back to that, as I reflect on the editorial that ran in today's time, touting the great "job" benefits associated with the horse track. I hope these are really long-term gains, and that we can build up this same sort of tourist-friendly attitude and infrastructure in Erie. <BR/><BR/>One thing that Traverse City had was a very accessible Visitor's Center, that was packed on a mid-Friday morning, with people getting information about the area. I don't know that Erie has such a thing, and if they do, it's sure not very well publicized, although I did read that the state was thinking of cutting our tourism bureau's (or something like that)budget by $10,000, which can't be good I wouldn't think...Ralphhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16618874766251321861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20503056.post-90543065159305491422007-08-30T13:45:00.000-04:002007-08-30T13:45:00.000-04:00Nice travelogue. Thanks for sharing.Do they have ...Nice travelogue. Thanks for sharing.<BR/><BR/>Do they have any good beer up there?<BR/><BR/>DocDr. Downinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16057337879095636133noreply@blogger.com