USA Tourist Attractions
New York
They don't come any bigger than the Big Apple - king of the hill, top
of the heap,
New York,
New York. No other city is arrogant enough to
dub itself Capital of the World and no other city could carry it off.
New York is a densely packed mass of humanity - seven million people
in 309 sq miles (800 sq km) - and that's just Manhattan, only a part
of greater
New York City. All this living on top of one another makes
the New Yorker a special kind of person. Although it's hard to put a
finger on what makes
New York buzz, it's the city's hyperactive rush
that really draws people here.
In a city that is so much a part of the global subconscious, it's pretty
hard to pick a few highlights - wherever you go you'll feel like you've
been there before. For iconic value, you can't surpass the Statue of
Liberty, the Empire State Building, Central Park or Times Square. The
Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the world's top museums, and the
Museum of Modern Art isn't far behind. Bookshops, food, theater, shopping,
people: it doesn't really matter what you do or where you go in
New York because the city itself is an in-your-face, exhilarating experience.
New York's famous hustle and bustle was abruptly cut short on September
11, 2001, when a terrorist attack in the form of two hijacked passenger
aircraft razed the gleaming twin towers of the World Trade Center. Thousands
of people were killed in the worst terrorist act ever on US soil.
New York is currently in a state of shock. Whether this makes way for anger,
disillusionment or optimism is yet to be seen. In the meantime, this
spectacular city has a great deal of work ahead of it as it tries to
rebuild its business district and its confidence.
San Francisco
Even people who hate the United States love
San Francisco. It has a
self-effacing flutter of the eyelids so blatantly missing from brassy
New York and plastic
LA, an atmosphere of gentile chic mixed with offbeat
innovation. This is a place that breeds alternatives: It's the home
of the Beat Generation, flower power, student protest and gay pride.
One of the country's most attractive cities,
San Francisco boasts foggy,
hilly streets that provide gorgeous views of
San Francisco Bay and its
famous bridges. This is a mosaic of a city, a big picture made from
the colorful tiles of the Latino Mission, gay Castro, bustling Chinatown,
clubby SoMa, hippie Haight-Ashbury and Italian North Beach. Fisherman's
Wharf is the epicenter of tourist kitsch and the gateway to Alcatraz,
while Union Square is where the classy shoppers congregate.
Los Angeles
It's possible that
Los Angeles is a figment of its own imagination.
No other city studies itself so intently - on film, television or in
glossy magazines.
LA is a monster of a city, a tangle of freeways and
sprawling suburbs where anyone without a car is considered intellectually
impaired. This is where the American Dream is manufactured, and if you're
not prepared to embrace the dream you'll doubtless find
LA filthy, irritating,
frightening or just plain dumb. But if you long to stand in the footsteps
of stars and breathe their hallowed air, you've come to the right place.
In this town, chefs are household names and nobodies erect billboard
shrines to themselves.
LA is a feast of fame-associated sights - cruise
Sunset Strip, walk Rodeo Drive or Hollywood Boulevard, be seen on Melrose
or Venice Beach, gawk at babes in Malibu or poke your nose through the
gates of Beverly Hills. No one does a theme park like the Angelenos:
Disneyland is the mother of them all, and Universal Studios turned its
back lot into a thrill ride years ago. When the glitz starts coming
out your ears, head for the almost-reality of Little Tokyo and El Pueblo
de Los Angeles or Pasadena's Huntington Gardens.
Miami
Fat old people in Bermuda shorts, street stabbings, Cuban plots, drug
dealers, sneakers without socks and an excess of pink -
Miami is none
of these things. Desperately redefining itself,
Miami (and in particular,
South Beach) has declared itself the Most Fabulous Spot in the US. As
evidence, it cites the recently restored pastel-riot of the Deco District,
a friendly neighborhood feel and a fledgling art and culture scene looking
for a sunny alternative to
New York. And of course there's
Miami Beach
itself, a glorious stretch of white sand lapped by clear blue water.
The heart of all this newfound fashionableness is Ocean Drive, flanked
on the east by the city's hippest beach and the west by a string of
sidewalk cafes. This is where the late Gianni Versace lived, and his
acolytes still throng here to pose waifishly over rocket salad.
Miami
also has the world's most beautiful swimming hole, the Venetian Pool,
one of the world's best zoos and a bunch of expat Cuban elder statesmen
playing dominoes in M?ximo G?mez Park. In stark contrast with the hedonistic
lightheartedness of the rest of
Miami, the Holocaust Memorial is one
of the most exquisite and moving monuments you'll ever visit.
New Orleans
If
New York makes you nervous, you'll hate
New Orleans. Others will
find that the sleazy touch of danger in the air is what makes this Southern
city so compelling. A steamy brew of zydeco, voodoo, gumbo and antebellum
ambience,
New Orleans grows on you like a strangler vine - you might
as well lie back and enjoy it. Most people know
New Orleans for its
parties, particularly the orgiastic indulgence of Mardi Gras or the
year-round bacchanal on Bourbon Street. But if crowds and alcohol poisoning
aren't your thing, don't despair. Aficionados of historic architecture
will exult in the crowded French Quarter and grandiose Garden District,
while those with a hankering to take history home will adore the antique
shops of Royal Street.
New Orleans has a tendency to bring folks out
in a rash of Lestatesque gothic brooding - have a wander among the city's
ornate aboveground cemeteries or shed a tear for Jeff Buckley on a ferry
cruise of the Mississippi River, then forget your troubles with some
crawfish, cool jazz and a mint julep.
Washington DC
The City of
Washington in the District of Columbia is a far more dynamic,
attractive town than most government cities. It has overcome countless
challenges, from near-abandonment by Congress after the War of 1812
to the world's highest murder rate in the 1980s, to emerge as one of
the USA's top tourist attractions. Monuments to federal puissance, such
as the Capitol, Supreme Court, White House and
Washington Monument are
designed to impress visitors, while such historical structures as the
Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, FDR Memorial and Vietnam Wall
are sometimes exultant, sometimes sobering reminders of the past. The
nation's capital also boasts one of the world's premiere research organizations,
the titanic Smithsonian Institution, all of whose museums are free to
the public. And when you're ready for the real
Washington, the city
behind the federal city, be sure to visit the cultural and culinary
attractions of such neighborhoods as Georgetown, Adams-Morgan, Dupont
Circle and Shaw & the New U District.
A short drive away from the city are Mount Vernon, George Washington's
manor, and Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's quirky home. Area day trips
include numerous Civil War sites and colonial towns, such as Williamsburg
and Jamestown.
Philadelphia
Independence was declared and the Constitution signed in
Philadelphia,
one of the USA's most historic towns. The place to start exploring is
Independence Hall, where the USA was born amid the debates of the Continental
Congresses. On the grounds is the Liberty Bell, an enduring emblem that
was coopted by abolitionists as an antislavery symbol. Benjamin Franklin's
presence pervades the town, from his home in Old
Philadelphia through
Benjamin Franklin Parkway, home to several city museums, galleries and
gardens, to the University of Pennsylvania, which he founded. When you're
tired and hungry from all that walking around, hop a cab to South
Philadelphia
and grab a splendid specimen of
Philadelphia's gift to the culinary
world, the cheesesteak.
Boston
Eminently walkable, achingly historic and all in all a splendid town,
Philadelphia sizzles with the energy of a huge student population and a thriving
local economy. Its cobblestone streets are home to the Freedom Trail,
which links dozens of colonial and Revolutionary sites. The heart of
the city is the expansive
Philadelphia Common, a year-round delight, abutted
by the Public Garden. A short walk away are bustling Faneuil Hall and
Downtown Crossing - where to get your grub on and where to empty your
wallet and fill your shopping bags, respectively. To the west are Landsdowne
St, the heart of
Philadelphia's nightlife scene, and storied Fenway Park,
while across the river in Cambridge lie two of the USA's most famous
universities: Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
