Jaunted

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TSA's New 'Chat-down' Security Expands to Detroit Airport

We really don't want to be those travel bloggers. The ones who reflexively complain about everything TSA does just because it's really easy to pick on TSA. We try to be fair about moron passengers, we take pains to explain why TSA agents sometimes have to conduct intrusive inspections, and we give the agency credit when they improve their security protocols.

But the more we read about TSA's shift to Israel-style airport security inspections—which are now being called "chat-downs" by journalists and politicians, because naming things is fun—the more worried we get. This is the agency's new SPOT program, where agents ask you personal questions while you wait in line, and then they try to read your body language to determine whether you're making things up. We haven't quite figured out what's wrong but we're pretty sure we don't like it.

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Movie Set Travel / Chasing Michigan / Real Steel / Ides Of March / Michigan Travel / George Clooney / → All Tags

Two Made-in-Michigan Movies Will Battle It Out at the Box Office This Weekend

Real Steel and The Ides of March will battle it out that the box office this weekend, and even though the two movies seem like they couldn't be more different, they actually have one thing in common; they were both filmed in Detroit.

Real Steel, a family-friendly sci-fi flick set in the future when giant robots face off in the Robot Boxing League, was filmed at various locations around Detroit. Some notable spots are the Detroit Fire Department Headquarters (which was transformed into a boxing ring), the COBO Center, the Parkway Motel near Holly, MI, and Joe Louis Arena.

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Jason Segel, John Krasinski and Emily Blunt Eat Up Michigan for 'Five Year Engagement'

Funnyman Jason Segel, along with co-stars Emily Blunt (and her husband John Krasinski), Alison Brie, Chris Pratt, and producer Judd Apatow, have been eating their way through Michigan while filming Five Year Engagement.

The movie, about the ups and downs of an engaged couple, is filming at several restaurants in and around Detroit these past couple of weeks. Today and tomorrow, they will be filming at Randy’s Roadside Bar-B-Que on US-12 in Brooklyn, MI, which is known for serving smoked meat sandwiches, starting from $4.75.

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Demi and Ashton Stick Together in Michigan Despite Affair Rumors

Demi Moore has her hands full. Right now, she's shooting a new movie, The Reasonable Bunch, in Michigan while dealing with rumors that her husband, Ashton Kutcher, cheated on her and, as if that wasn't enough, she's also been working as an advocate to help end human trafficking.

This is Demi's second time in Michigan in a matter of months. Over the summer, she was working in Detroit on the movie LOL with Miley Cyrus, and while she was away, rumor has it Ashton hooked up with a 22-year-old girl.

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Five Things to Do on Your Layover at: Detroit-Metro Airport

We’ve all had layovers that were a little longer than initially expected. Mechanical delays, weather emergencies, and all kinds of other issues make that tight 45-minute connection turn into something extraordinary. We can’t get promise your flight will depart on time, but we can offer some time killers at the airport.

Five picks for spending a few extra hours within the McNamara terminal at Detroit-Metro Airport:

· Sushi Stop:
Delta uses Detroit as a gateway to the East, so it’s not surprising that you can start your vacation or business trip with a little sushi right in the terminal. Sora has all your sashimi favorites, but they also have plenty of noodle bowls for those long cold Michigan winters. Prices are somewhat reasonable, but the best thing is that the place isn’t gross. There’s no prepackaged fake crab rolls here, and we’d even say it’s actually pretty darn good considering its location. It’s near gate A35 near the gates typically used for Tokyo-bound flights.

· Work On Your Fitness:
DTW's McNamara terminal makes the airport one of our favorites, but you still might want to take a break from all the hustle and bustle of the terminal. During longer layovers make your way to the Westin hotel that’s right in the airport. It has its own entrance not too far from the center of Concourse A, and they’d be happy to have you inside to test out their treadmills, weights, and elliptical machines. Along with providing an escape from the terminal the hotel offers day passes to the gym for just $15. It’s worth it if you’re a little more ambitious than us—we’re usually the ones in line for a cookie and frappuccino.

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Don't Wear a White Shirt to This Michigan Food Fest

Head to the shores of Lake Michigan in a couple weeks, because the blueberry harvest is rolling into town. South Haven, Michigan is dedicating a whole weekend to one of the country’s best summer crops, and they’re pretty good at it since this is the 47th year for the festival.

This year’s National Blueberry Festival runs from August 12 to 15, and organizers are expecting at least 50,000 berry fans. Sure blueberries have loads of antioxidants and other good-for-you things, but we’re ready for the blueberry pancake breakfasts and blueberry bake-off. We’re sure all the healthy stuff can shine through the loads of sugar and butter.

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Take the David Arquette Tour of Michigan as He Films 'Scream 4'

David Arquette is loving his summer in Michigan, and he's not afraid to tweet all about it. The actor is staying in Ann Arbor with his wife and co-star, Courtney Cox, while they film Scream 4 at various locations around the state.

When he's not on the set, David is out and about trying all that Ann Arbor has to offer, and he's passing on his favorite things to his Twitter followers. So far, he's had breakfast at The Broken Egg in Ann Arbor, which called "the best breakfast in town", he's played games at Pinball Pete's, he took Courteney on a date night at their "favorite restaurant EVE in Ann Arbor" and had lunch at Zingerman's Deli, which he says, "ROCKS."

David likes the state so much that he even designed a t-shirt in its honor. Arquette, along with Ben Harper and David Bedwell, owns a clothing line called Propr, and their new line includes a shout out to MI. Arquette says the new t-shirt is, “more of a graphic T that features (University of) Michigan football colors and cool numbers 1837, the date when Michigan became a state,” he says. “It’s got a really fun feel. It’s a nice nod to the great state of Michigan.”

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Graffiti Rocks are a Hidden Attraction at Detroit's Metro Airport

On your next trip through Detroit’s Metro Airport you might want to take a couple minutes to leave your mark for future passengers. There’s always the option of ruining the bathroom stall with a little bit of graffiti, but frequent flyers and families have found a better place to leave their mark within the McNamara Terminal.

If you’re connecting through the airport thanks to the comfort of a regional jet—you might be somewhere within Concourse B. Even if you’re not, make your way to the end of the hall towards Gate 21, and you’ll stumble upon a few potted trees trying their best to get a little sunlight. Look down towards their trunks and you’ll find this awesome collection of graffiti rocks.

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Become the Game in the Henry Ford Museum's Interactive 'Play' Exhibit

If you love playing chess with those life-size pieces that require you to push them with your body weight, Michigan's Henry Ford Museum has a new larger-than-life exhibit that will fit you perfectly.

The museum, which showcases American ideas and innovations, is featuring "Play," a family-oriented exhibit that encourages visitors to play it up big. We're talking all-body interactive versions of games that not only will engage your brain power, but your physical power, too. Plus, the games teach you about the importance of teamwork.

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Obama Zips to Two Different Ends of the Country in Two Days

Two weekends ago, President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle headed to Asheville, NC for a little R&R, but this weekend he made up double time for that by flying to two different parts of the country for two very different reasons.

First stop was Ann Arbor, Michigan to give the graduation commencement speech at the University of Michigan and to accept an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Too bad the most he saw of the place was the stadium and Detroit Metro Airport. Do you know who gave the commencement address at our college graduation? Studs Terkel. While Studs was a great man, he didn't jet-set nearly as much as Obama does.

Obama's second stop, after the jump

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Allegiant Air Sets Up Some New Digs In Michigan And They're Hiring

It’s been a few months since we checked out what’s going on with Allegiant Air, and things seem to be going well since they kicked some crying kids off one of their planes. The airline is continuing to bring in the cash, and there are probably a few suits that are pumped over the airline’s increased load factor. The cheap fares and no frills service are clearly getting plenty of butts into the seats.

With success comes expansion and Allegiant is looking to bring some of the low cost love to Grand Rapids, Michigan. They already had several flights coming and going per day, but now they have formally set up a new base there. The newest flight option out of The Wolverine State is Myrtle Beach. Love it or hate it the South Carolina uh, hotspot, will be a lot warmer than things up north when the flights kick off on April 30. We’d probably still prefer one of their Florida options like Tampa or Orlando—but that’s just us.

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If Michael Cera Can Tour Detroit's Abandoned Train Station, We Wanna Go Too

Actor Micheal Cera, who took a break for a second from hanging out with his new posse The Cast of Jersey Shore, recently told MTV, "I've done a lot of stuff I'm really ashamed of" and when asked if it was illegal, he replied, "Yeah. And I'd rather not elaborate on that." Well, we know of at least one illegal activity Cera participated in while filming Youth in Revolt in Detroit—trespassing.

On Tuesday night he told Jimmy Fallon about a little trek he took through Detroit's abandoned train station. "We went in the abandoned train station, which you know about, we went in it, it was one of the scariest...There's this train station in Detroit that was designed by the guy that did Grand Central, y'know, that guy," he explained. "So its a beautiful structure and like, huge, but its been abandoned since '85 or something so its just filled with rubble and broken windows and we were in there because we were with a local who had gone in there since he was a kid, and well, we were in there we heard gun shots. So it sounded like the gun shots were coming from the bottom of the staircase we were descending and it was terrifying, but I think they were actually outside. So someone got shot and it was terrifying." Then he added the disclaimer: "don't go there, its not a tourist attraction or anything."

Of course, as soon as someone says, "don't go there", we're dying to check it out...

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