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Final Day in Detroit: From Peaks to a Mountain Range

Author


Chloe

22nd of July, 2017

Category


Detroit '17

Today marked our last full day in Detroit. We started the day by going to a local bagel place (Detroit Institute of Bagels) for breakfast where we got our fill of rosemary olive oil bagels before heading to a park for our last group learning activities. We spent nearly 3 hours discussing nuggets of wisdom, how to spread the word when we return home, and how Detroit affected us and the people we helped. Then it began to rain which was annoying; however, it symbolized the bittersweet ending to our amazing week. After our discussion, we went to the Eastern Market. We ventured throughout the complex, buying random foods for ourselves and family members, and visiting a letter press. After all of our adventuring was done, we split into groups to talk to different vendors about where their food comes from, what they do with the extra food, and the different ways in which people can pay. There is a system used where people who can’t afford to pay full price can use tokens or cards in exchange for the produce (called the Bridge Card system).Vendors will then turn these tokens in at the end of the day for the equivalent amount of cash (plus a little extra incentive).However, only fresh produce vendors can be bridge card certified to encourage healthy eating and buying. In the afternoon we visited the Detroit Institute of Art and the African Bead Museum. We saw the Diego Rivera murals and talked to the founder of the bead museum. He spoke to us about how people who come into contact with something unfamiliar can have a negative, “pigeon-hole” perception of that new thing, how art can break your reality, and how he came to own these hundred-year old beads from various African tribes- along with what those beads meant. Post-museums, we returned to the hostel and quickly got ready for dinner before walking over to an amazing BBQ restaurant (Slow’s BBQ) for dinner and finally visiting the choo-choo stop (the old train station)! We spent the rest of the time walking around and enjoying our last night in the wonderful city of Detroit.
We’re all very sad that this trip is ending. This is my third SStS trip and my third and last domestic trip. Before each trip I think about what I believe the trip will bring, and each year my expectations have been greatly exceeded. This year, I thought I knew what was going to happen because my brother went to Detroit last year and I was a domestic trip veteran. However, it was completely different and so much better than anything I imagined. I love these trips because I get to make great friends, and this year we created a family. SStS is a part of my family now, and Detroit has only grown that family. I will cherish these memories. This trip is special to me for so many reasons, and I just know that these people and this work will stay with me in all of my endeavors. Here’s to all the peaks that led to our Detroit 2017 mountain range.

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