Solo After-Work Activities in Ann Arbor
October 8, 2017 10:01 AM   Subscribe

I am starting a work-from home gig with a company in Ann Arbor, MI in a couple of weeks. Part of the job will involve travel to the mothership for about a week a quarter. What are some fun things to do in Ann Arbor on weekdays between quitting time and bedtime? (Snowflake details within.)

Notes and restrictions:
  • I don’t drink.
  • I normally won’t have a car. I do have Zipcar but i’d prefer not to mess with the logistics given my limited time.
  • My home base will be the downtown Residence Inn.
  • I normally won’t be there on weekends but I am doing a two-week stint to start so I will have one weekend coming up.
  • Bonus question: a cheap, beginner-friendly yoga studio would be nice to find.
posted by murphy slaw to Travel & Transportation around Ann Arbor, MI (15 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: The Zell Visiting Writers Series is hosted by the University of Michigan, free, and open to the public. Usually a few big names in a relatively intimate setting - Joyce Carol Oates will be in town in a few weeks. Readings are usually held on Thursdays at around 5:30. You can also hear MFA students (poets and fiction writers) on a lot of Friday evenings, if you're into that.
posted by pretentious illiterate at 10:11 AM on October 8, 2017 [1 favorite]


Best answer: The Michigan Theater is downtown if you like less mainstream movies. They have cool series too. Mondays in October, they’re showing classic monster movies.

Annarborobserver.com is the site for checking out what events are going on.
posted by FencingGal at 10:31 AM on October 8, 2017


Also, if you’re a member of your local YMCA, the Ann Arbor Y participates in a reciprocal membership program. It’s near downtown.

And check out the U of M music school website for recitals by students and faculty. These can be really excellent. It’s not near downtown, but you could probably take a U of M bus to get there.
posted by FencingGal at 10:40 AM on October 8, 2017


I would take a book and go eat at Zingerman’s deli every night.
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 10:40 AM on October 8, 2017 [4 favorites]


Best answer: bab's underground has tournament pool tables in outstanding condition. and terrific appetizers.
posted by j_curiouser at 11:21 AM on October 8, 2017


look for most of the fairy doors.
posted by brujita at 11:22 AM on October 8, 2017 [1 favorite]


Best answer: http://theropeyogacollective.com/

I used to go here as a total beginner. It was really fun. The teacher was an electrical engineering professor.
posted by ohio at 12:18 PM on October 8, 2017


Best answer: If you get a nice warm weekend for the one weekend you say you'll be there, you can have a quite pleasant time renting a canoe from the canoe livery at Delhi Metropark (a few miles northwest of town.) They'll take you and a canoe upstream to one of the other metroparks and you can have a leisurely float/paddle excursion down the Huron River while admiring fall foliage. Not much canoe expertise is needed; the river is calm and shallow and in most places if you capsize you can simply stand up and walk the canoe back to shore. Be sure to stop at the cider mill in Dexter (I presume it still operates, though I guess actually it's been years since I've done this..) for cider and fresh doughnuts.
posted by Nerd of the North at 12:21 PM on October 8, 2017


Response by poster: All of these suggestions are excellent . Speaking of getting around, is ther a good place to rent bicycles?
posted by murphy slaw at 4:09 PM on October 8, 2017


It's been years since I moved from Ann Arbor but I remember the swing dance groups fondly (I was a newbie, and warmly welcomed).
posted by bettafish at 4:13 PM on October 8, 2017 [1 favorite]


Best answer: There is a Arborbike share with racks downtown. Good public buses and UM buses are easy - check out AATA for bus info. Mark's Carts - food cart court behind Downtown Home & Garden is fun - we've had meet-ups there in the past... Check the observer's online calendar for cool stuff happening. The Ark is a downtown mainly folk music performance venue. The canoe liveries have very limited stuff now that it's fall but within the city this is what's still open. Bunch of good museums on campus - the art museum has a bunch of evening hours.
posted by leslies at 7:20 PM on October 8, 2017


Best answer: Kerrytown Market and Shops is a quaint, small collection of unique shops and eateries that is very fun if you like to eat and window shop. It's open until 7PM on weekdays and according to Google is a 7 minute walk from your hotel.
posted by quiet_musings at 7:36 PM on October 8, 2017 [1 favorite]


Best answer: Nichols Arboretum is about a 30 minute walk from your hotel, and since the leaves are starting to turn it's going to be especially stunning. (If you decide to go, type in Nichols Arboretum Peony Garden to get google maps to take you to the closest entrance near the visitor center.)

All of the University of Michigan lectures, openings, performances, exhibitions, etc. are going to show up on the main calendar. There is an absolute ton of stuff going on that isn't just for students :)
posted by Mouse Army at 6:11 AM on October 9, 2017


Best answer: I'm always late to the party but I'll second several of the suggestions here, including the Ark and the Arb. The Ann Arbor School of Yoga is only a couple of blocks from the Residence Inn, but might be too pricey for drop ins. Zingerman's is definitely worth a visit (it's President Obama's go-to when he's in town!) but eating there every night would bankrupt you!

You should not miss eating at Frita Batidos. Kerrytown Concert House is another venue for music, theater, and art. If you find yourself in need of some self-care, Core Therapeutic Massage is excellent.

If coffee is your thing, you can't do better than Mighty Good Coffee...main location just around the corner from the RI.

If you like Korean food, Ann Arbor is the kind of place where not only can you get it, but you can have a favorite bibimbap. I personally love the stone bowl at Teriyaki Time in Kerrytown, but others swear by Kosmos (in the Kerrytown shops)...both easy walking distance.

Ann Arbor has a lot of quirky little spots unique to the city - Braun Court, Kerrytown, the aforementioned fairy doors, Detroit Street, spinning the Cube on the UM Diag, etc. From where you are at, it is a pretty walkable city.
posted by Preserver at 9:30 AM on October 12, 2017


Response by poster: Thanks, y'all. I just saw the Mummy at the Michigan Theater and I've got a laundry list of stuff to check out in my downtime.

Be sure to stop at the cider mill in Dexter (I presume it still operates, though I guess actually it's been years since I've done this..) for cider and fresh doughnuts

I lived in East Lansing for a year in kindergarten (my dad was doing a sabbatical at MSU) and one of my strongest sense memories was getting fresh pumpkin doughnuts and cider at a local mill.

I'll be sure to check this out but I place the blame on you entirely if I fall into a reverie and end up writing my own A La Recherche du Temps Perdu.
posted by murphy slaw at 8:15 PM on October 16, 2017 [1 favorite]


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