Introducing My College Town: Mount Pleasant, Michigan, Mount Pleasant, Michigan

When I was a Central Michigan University student living in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, I never considered my college town a tourist destination.

A decade later — as a travel writer and a Central Michigan alumna — I see Mt. Pleasant as exactly that.

Posing for the iconic graduation day photo by the Central Michigan University seal in May 2008, I had no idea my journalism education and semester abroad in Germany would eventually lead to this crazy, amazing career in travel blogging. 

My alma mater is the fourth largest public university in Michigan with more than 20,000 students on campus. It’s also home to a three-year-old College of Medicine.

Naturally, the university attracts visitors. Prospective students visit with their parents to tour campus. Students’ families book hotel stays for freshman orientation, residence hall move-in day, and graduation. Spectators fill CMU’s athletic facilities to watch NCAA Division I sports. And, this weekend, proud alumni will return to town sporting Maroon and Gold for the annual Homecoming festivities. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).