Without a doubt, I am living in one of the most exciting cities on earth. New York City has it all: great food, great theater, great vistas and great neighborhoods. What is happening now in the town of my birth is that folks who come to usually visit the isle of Manhattan are discovering great places in the other boroughs like Carroll Gardens in Brooklyn, the wonderful restaurants in Astoria, Queens, the gardens at Wave Hill in the Bronx and Snug Harbor and the Chinese Scholars' Garden in my own borough of Staten Island. I have always thought of New York as a great international city, which it is, but there are many great American cities that offer much to visitors, and, as usual, I have my list:
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| Quincy Market |
1. Boston: Some of the best seafood and Italian cuisine can be had in Boston, but be warned! It is a walking city. Driving in Boston should be avoided at all costs! The streets are narrow and meander around willy-nilly making no sense whatsoever. I have gotten lost there in a car more than I would like to remember. But...using the subway is easy and efficient. It will take you wherever you want to go. And do go to Quincy Market! If I go to Boston, I usually take Amtrak.
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| DuPont Circle |
2. Washington, DC is a delight! It is a great museum city and also has an efficient subway system. Dupont Circle is a fun place to stay and there are nice restaurants nearby. During the week there are mostly government folks milling about, but on the weekends hotel rooms can be had for reasonable money. I have yet to run into Clair or Frank Underwood, but I daresay, "House of Cards" has done more for tourism to the DC area than anything I can think of in my lifetime.
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| Mall of America |
3. Minneapolis-St Paul, I think of them in tandem, although, they each have a different vibe. I would suggest you NOT visit in winter, which can be dicey, but spring and autumn are delightful. You can see some great regional theater and major league sports in a user friendly city. Oh, Mall of America is there; a wondrous and wonderful thing in and of itself!
4. Miami is a tropical delight! There is definitely a Cuban vibe that can't be denied, but there is also a hint of exiled New Yorkers who are into great cheesecake and latkes...and the beaches are lovely. Eating or partying in South Beach is an experience in and of itself.
| Pike's Public Market Seattle |
5. Seattle is a laid back wonder with great salmon, fresh produce and what seems like a coffee shop on every corner. The Pike Place Market is not to be missed. I had one of the best lobster rolls ever in one of the restaurants there. The ride on Seattle's Great Wheel at Pier 57 on Elliott Bay is fun and a precursor to the proposed Observation Wheel scheduled to open in two years within walking distance of my apartment. It is, however, less expensive than the proposed NY Wheel will be, and is a great way to see the city from a different angle. Try to do this around sunset.
River Walk/San Antonio
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6. San Antonio was a great surprise. I attended a meeting there in March and enjoyed it immensely! The River Walk was fun, and the city itself is easily walkable with many interesting things to see and do. I bought a nice piece of art glass from a dealer there which is sitting happily in my living room overlooking NY harbor.
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| Café Du Monde |
7. Chicago is, in my humble opinion, the quintessential great American city: great steaks, great deep dish pizza, great museums, great urban architecture, and great municipal art! The Navy Pier's conversion into a tourist destination was a masterful idea. I have never had a bad meal in Chicago from high end restaurants to local neighborhood joints...great cuisine!
8. New Orleans....what can one say? I have been there pre- and post-Katrina, and am happy to see that this place is rebounding. And the food???? Excellent! Whether you are having breakfast at Brennan's, where they invented Bananas Foster, or dipping your beignets in chicory coffee at Café du Monde, there is never a disappointing culinary moment.
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| Naval Aviation Museum/Pensacola |
9. Las Vegas is not high on my favorite lists, but it did have one of the most unusual museums I have ever seen...The Liberace Museum was in a strip mall in Vegas. It contained his collection of pianos, including one owned by George Gershwin, his costumes, cars, photos with other celebrities, including my favorite of the maestro with Pope John Paul II making faces into the camera,and the world's largest rhinestone. Sad to say, it closed in 2010, but every once in a while the foundation that owns the collection does "Pop Up" exhibits at hotels on the strip. Keep an eye out for them.
10. Pensacola is like a bit of the islands on the Florida panhandle. Its sugar white sand beaches are a wonder to behold. The National Naval Aviation Museum is located on the Naval Aviation Station in Pensacola; it is the largest museum of its type in the world and is a fascinating visit. I have been there twice and enjoyed it immensely...of course it helped that both times I was with a group of retired Navy guys who had served on the same aircraft carrier.
| Lee, Jackson, Davis |
Oh my, I forgot Atlanta! Wonderful Contemporary Art Museum and the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library! ...and an unexpected excellent German restaurant in Cumming where my brother-in-law lives! The rapid transit system is very nice as well. If you are interested in history, you can go to "Stone Mountain" where one will find a bas relief sculpture of Confederate military leaders...the War of Northern Aggression is memorialized here, and the ironic fact that the granite that forms the Lincoln Memorial was quarried here in Georgia...poetic justice? Perhaps.
I have been to LA , but am unimpressed.
I have been to LA , but am unimpressed.
There are other cities in the USA that I am wont to visit: Charleston, Savannah, San Francisco, and Salt Lake City. Please share your impressions and direct me to your own hidden gems.
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