Saugatuck Venetian Weekend 2011

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Every year, the Saugatuck community throws a rather large Venetian celebration that just keeps getting bigger and bigger every year.  The fireworks over the Kalamazoo harbor in Saugatuck on Saturday evening are the cummulation of the weekend ‘s events, but the boat parade, street activities and more are all part of what make up this huge annual event that so many attend each year.  While there are many Saugatuck events, this is by far one of the largest and most popular.

Rainy and cool brief spell

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After the extreme heat of just a week ago, it is hard to believe that our bed and breakfast guests were wearing sweatshirts and coats today.  But that is exactly what happened as the weather cooled down briefly for the day along with some stormy and rainy weather.  It’s nice to have one or two days like this in the Saugatuck Michigan area in the middle of summer in order to cool things down, give us all a break from the heat and to provide our landscape, yards and fields with some rain.

Bed and breakfast guests enjoy Saugatuck gazebos, parks

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Yesterday more than one of our bed and breakfast couples took time to bring a lunch or picnic basket to the gazebos in downtown Saugatuck along the Kalamazoo harbor.  The parks in Saugatuck itself are not huge by any means, but they are just large enough to enjoy a bit of quiet time along the water in the midst of a very bustling little resort town here in West Michigan.

Busy traffic days in Southwest Michigan in summer time

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One thing’s for sure this time of year we definitely can tell that the state of Michigan has a lot of tourism in the summer months.  Today as I left the bed and breakfast to run some errands in South Haven and Holland, it was very noticeable that the traffic was much heavier than normal going down the local highways and along the lake front.  Even in Holland where the traffic is pretty steadily busy on a Saturday, it was noticeable that the recreational vehicles and other tourist traffic were contributing to our heavier than normal busy roadways.

Bed and breakfast plants and flowers

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The past few days of extreme temperatures and humidity sure have taken a toll on lots of things in much of the country, least of which is our plants and flowers around the bed and breakfast.  They all seem to droop in the morning hours but then spring back up again every late afternoon.  It seems as though it is their way of saying “We don’t care!”  It’s amazing just how resilient some of our flowers and plants are as this heat continues this week.

Saugatuck’s Red Dock visit on the water

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Today we took a few minutes out of our day to go to the nearby Red Dock located between Saugatuck and Douglas on the Kalamazoo River.  Although it was a very hot day, it was still nice at the Red Dock as the Lake breezes could be felt in the harbor as we sat at their picnic tables for our lunch.  Always a fun and relaxing time, many folks miss this little gem of a spot.  It’s almost like being on a barge in a Jamaciian village with the reggae music and drinks flowing like you were in a tropical part of the world.

Repeat bed and breakfast guests

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Some of our guest rooms for this week are being occupied all week long by some of our many repeat guests.  It is always good to see returning guests and to catch up with them.  They appreciate coming back to familiar surroundings and Innkeepers (us) as well.  Having these repeat guests reminds me that this is our ninth season of Innkeeping….hard to believe that we have been the Innkeepers of the Kingsley House bed and breakfast for that many years already.  Kind of make us feel old.  🙂

Lake Michigan a cool place to be today

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With summer’s intense temperatures dipping down on West Michigan, the lakefront and activities on Lake Michigan itself are looking very attractive to our bed and breakfast guests.  What is usually the warmest part of the summer is definitely holding true this year and many of the Inn romantic couples have decided to getaway from the Inland activities today to explore the sailboats, paddleboats and just plain wading in the waters along Lake Michigan today.

Saugatuck parking at a premium

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One of the things that guests to the Saugatuck area notice this time of year is that parking in the downtown Saugatuck vicinity is at a premium.  Just today, some of our bed and breakfast guests were asking for hints and tips on where and how to park in town.  There is parking at the Saugatuck school parking lots (and shuttles) as well as a few lots in the downtown area itself.  But for the most part, many of our Inn guests choose to fight for those oh so treasured parking spots on the streets.

Summer sales a sign of the time

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Today as I took a break from the bed and breakfast just long enough to go into nearby Holland Michigan, I was beginning to realize just what time of year it was already by the clothing sales racks.  All summer merchandise apparently is now on sale, which was good timing for me as I needed pick up some more shorts as a part of my attire at breakfast time at the Inn.  How on earth does time keep flying by us,  especially the older we get?