Things to Do in Flint

Since May 2008, Wheelhouse Detroit has been offering its customers a healthy and highly efficient new way to see Motown, with guided bike tours traversing the terrains and trails of Detroit. More than 80 bicycle tours are scheduled for the upcoming months, with new tours regularly added. On the Belle Isle tour on Saturday, May 21, pedaling explorers will cruise around Detroit's famed architectural archipelago, surveying sights such as the aquarium and Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse. Guides will discuss the history behind the area's famous statues, such as Alpheus Starkey Williams, who served as a Union general in the Civil War before tragically being turned to stone.

Saginaw Art Museum gathers both contemporary and classic art in a brick-clad Gregorian Revival mansion that itself is a historical treasure. Originally designed in 1903 by Charles Adams Platt as the Ring family home, the building’s exquisite interior includes dark butternut wood paneling and decorative moldings. Filling the rooms is the museum’s permanent collection of paintings, prints, textiles, and sculptures from American, European, and Asian artists; African artifacts and masks; Native American art; and American and Mexican folk art. A library complements the art collection with more than 1,200 books and periodicals discussing art, as well as Leonardo da Vinci's handmade comic book depicting him as a superhero.

A roster of ever-changing current exhibitions includes showcases of forged metal sculptures, contemporary nature paintings, and the recurring Art in the Heart of the City's ART 4 ALL Exhibitions, which showcase works by local Michigan artists. Visitors peruse temporary exhibits in the exhibition wing gallery, an ultramodern glass-covered hall, or teach flowering plants how to spell “Matisse” in a formal outdoors garden.

To continue arts education outside the gallery, staffers organize themed art history and technique classes for all ages, as well as docent-led tours. They also helm the interactive Visionarea, a gallery space where children delve into art-making, science experiments, and the works of famous artists.

The sage-like city prowlers of Inside Detroit lead groups of tourists and natives through Detroit's history-rich hubs, charming watering holes, and evolving cultural centers. Walking tours bring urban nomads through the major landmarks of Detroit's downtown, such as the underground railroad's Second Baptist Church and the 40-story Guardian Building, an Aztec-inspired architectural masterpiece built during the 1920s, when it was thought to guard the city from hay fever.

Vibrant colors coat walls surrounding the glossy rinks at ERDU Skate-A-Rama , where experienced staff members monitor skaters of all ages in a family-friendly environment. Equipped with rented wheels, skaters glide along smooth surfaces under colorful lights to the beat of lively music. Their family members, perched along the rink's perimeter, watch or take bets on who can do a figure eight the fastest.

Skaters can take a break from four-wheeled footwear to play arcade games at some locations or silence rumbling stomachs with bites of pizza or other snacks, such as cones from the ice-cream shop, at ERDU Skate-a-Rama, which serves up swirls of soft serve doused with fudge.

The fourth-annual Passion for Fashion show cultivates a wintry celebration of elegance and holiday goodwill. Models strut down the catwalk robed in the latest flowing fashions from top local designers, stepping in time to the energizing dance music that DJs sprinkle into the air. As guests remark on the beauty of the designs, the vision of the hairstylists, and the unerring ability of each model to turn before walking off the edge of the runway, guests nibble on hors d'oeuvres and sip cocktails from a cash bar. Portions of the evening's proceeds go to benefit the Adopt-A-Refugee Family Program, which works to empower and assist families displaced by conflict.

With more than 30 interactive exhibits and activities, Kids 'N' Stuff Children's Museum provides a safe environment for youngsters to exercise their imaginations and bodies. A veritable microcosm of the world lives between the museum's walls. For instance, a grocery exhibit stocked with produce and frozen goods allows children to fill up their carts, run the checkout lane, and refuse expired coupons. An 8'x16' climbing wall challenges youth to literally reach for new heights of achievement, and an art room equipped with an accessible easel and large-handled paintbrushes invites them to figuratively jump for the sky. As a further enticement to the arts, a drama area encourages wee ones to create puppet shows and dress up in costumes.

Kids 'N' Stuff Children's Museum coordinates with area schools to incorporate and add to the themes from the local education curriculum, helping to reinforce the most important lessons kids are learning. Like NASA's recruitment department, this nonprofit's focus is on children aged 10 months to 10 years.