Archive for the ‘North America’ Category
Travel destinations to enjoy with your kids
If you have children, you might enjoy this recent article based on the book “500 Places to Take Your Kids Before They Grow Up.” The book covers travel spots around the globe, while this smaller piece focuses just on the United States. But there is no shortage of ideas, from volcanoes in Hawaii to mountain drives in Colorado, and from a natural history museum to a sports hall of fame.
Iconic American homes
If you enjoy architecture or historic homes, then you’ll appreciate this recent feature on HGTV’s FrontDoor website about 10 of the most iconic homes in the United States. Sure, the White House is there, but so are homes designed by Thomas Jefferson and Frank Lloyd Wright and such entertainer mansions as Graceland and Neverland. Here [...]
Civil rights and African American history sites for MLK Day
Today is a holiday in the United States – Martin Luther King Day, which celebrates the life and legacy of the great civil rights leader, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 and was assassinated in 1968. It’s a good time to explore some of the historic sites that were key to King’s life, to this country’s civil [...]
On the American road with Paul Theroux
Are you a fan of the American travel writer Paul Theroux? Do you like road trips? Then you may appreciate this article from Smithsonian Magazine, written by Theroux and titled “Taking the Great American Road Trip.” Theroux writes about taking a cross-country road trip recently for the first time in his life, which is somewhat surprising for [...]
Best North American cities for music lovers
Recently, I showed you a road trip that delved into the roots of American music, with destinations connected to the birth of jazz, blues, soul, bluegrass, country and rock ‘n roll. But what about contemporary music? What are the best cities in North America today for music lovers? The Society of American Travel Writers recently [...]
Best American cities for backpacking
Quite often we find ourselves so focused on places to travel abroad that it’s easy to forget about interesting travel destinations in our own backyard. Or at the very least, we find it difficult to see our own country as a foreign tourist would see it. That’s why I was intrigued by this recent article [...]
Yes, botanical gardens in the desert
It’s difficult to shake the popular image of the desert as a barren, lifeless place, coated in sand and scorched by an unrelenting sun. Well, perhaps the part about the sun is true, at least during the summer months, but the desert of the American Southwest actually abounds with a surprising variety of plant life. [...]
Ancient civilizations in the American Midwest
When one thinks of ancient civilizations in the Americas, it tends to be of those societies that left behind spectacular ruins. The Incas of Peru, the Mayans of Mexico and Central America, or even the Pueblo people of the U.S. Southwest who built the cliff dwellings of Mesa Verde. Not many minds conjure up images [...]
LA beaches and Alaskan train rides
It’s all too easy sometimes to focus on all of the interesting travel destinations abroad and to miss some of the equally interesting locations in our own country. That point was driven home by two recent travel features in different newspapers. First, the Boston Globe raved about West Coast beaches in this article. Or, specifically, [...]
The call of the Alaskan wild
Ever fantasized about getting far away from it all? It’s hard to get much further away than a 10-day rafting trip above the Arctic Circle through the remote Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, so that’s where Paula Stone recently headed with her husband. She wrote about their experiences for the Washington Post. But my biggest source [...]
Quest journeys by Greyhound
Holland Carter had an interesting piece in the NY Times recently, in which he reminisced about a Greyhound bus trip he took across a good portion of the U.S. in the 1960s when he was still a teenager. The story is a worthwhile read for Cotter’s descriptions of American life as viewed from the road a [...]
The American road trip
The American road trip is a classic journey. Many is the person who has either completed or dreamed of a drive across the United States. The latest such individual is Matt Gross, who reported on his cross-country driving adventures for the NY Times. Here is an excerpt from the tail end of his journey: “Nothing but [...]
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