Other sights in North America
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El Panchán
El Panchán is a legendary travelers’ hangout, set in a patch of dense rainforest. It’s the epicenter of Palenque’s alternative scene and home to a bohemian bunch of Mexican and foreign residents and wanderers, including a number of archaeologists and anthropologists. Once ranchland, the area has been reforested by the remarkable Morales family, some of whom are among the leading archaeological experts on Palenque. El Panchán has several (fairly rustic) places to stay, a couple of restaurants, a set of sinuous streams rippling their way through every part of the property, nightly entertainment, a meditation temple, a temascal (pre-Hispanic steam bath) and a constant strea…
reviewed
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Blanton Museum of Art
A big university with a big endowment is bound to have a big art collection, and now, finally, it has a suitable building to show it off properly. Ranking among the best university art collections in the USA, the Blanton showcases a variety of styles. It doesn’t go very in-depth into any of them, but then again you’re bound to find something of interest. Especially striking is the installment of Missao/Missoes [How to Build Cathedrals] – which involves 600,000 pennies, 800 communion wafers and 2000 cattle bones.
reviewed
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Butchart Gardens
With all the rugged natural beauty in British Columbia, it’s a bit ironic that one of the province’s top tourism draws is the 20 hectares of elaborate manicured foliage at Butchart Gardens, 21km north of Victoria in Brentwood Bay. With its year-round kaleidoscope of colors, the grounds are divided into separate garden areas – the tranquil Japanese Garden is a favorite. Summer can be crowded but the Saturday-night fireworks display (July and August) makes it all worthwhile.
reviewed
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Mt Tamalpais State Park
Mt Tamalpais State Park encompasses 6300 acres of parklands, plus over 200 miles of trails; get a map and don't miss East Peak. Panoramic Hwy climbs from Hwy 1 through the park to Stinson Beach, a mellow seaside town with a great beach. Park headquarters are at Pantoll Station, the nexus of many trails and location of a wooded first-come, first-served campground.
reviewed
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Lotusland
Book ahead for Lotusland, the legacy of eccentric Madame Ganna Walska; two-hour walking tours take in rare botanical species.
reviewed
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Telegraph Ave
Telegraph Ave is undeniably the throbbing heart of studentville in Berkeley, pumping out a sidewalk-flow of students and shoppers, vagrants and vendors, brisk walkers and sluggish strollers, those trying to squeeze their way out and those who never seem to leave. The frenetic energy buzzing from the university's Sather Gate on any given day is a mix of youthful post-hippies reminiscing about days before their time and young hipsters who sneer at tie-dyed nostalgia.
Ponytailed panhandlers press you for change, and street stalls hawk everything from crystals to bumper stickers to self-published books. It's all very interesting, but the street is also immensely useful to any…
reviewed
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International Boulevard
Formerly known as E 14th St and once a neglected part of town, International Blvd is now a great place to stroll on a Sunday afternoon. Latino and Asian immigrants have turned it into a 3-mile carnival of food and festivities. You'll find an impressive fleet of excellent taco trucks parked along Fruitvale Ave or at the corner of High St and International Blvd. The Bay Area's best pho (Vietnamese noodle soup) joints are just blocks away.
Mexican and Central American restaurants rub elbows with Vietnamese. Dive bars selling cheap beer and margaritas open their doors here and there. Families out for the paseo, squads of young men, bevies of young women, strolling musicians …
reviewed
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Nelson Algren House
You can’t go inside, but on the third floor of this apartment building writer Nelson Algren created some of his greatest works about life in the once down-and-out neighborhood. He won the 1950 National Book Award for his novel The Man with the Golden Arm, set on Division St near Milwaukee Ave (about a half-mile southeast). A Walk on the Wild Side contains the classic advice: ‘Never play cards with a man called Doc. Never eat at a place called Mom’s. Never sleep with a woman whose troubles are worse than your own.’ And his short Chicago: City on the Make summarizes 120 years of thorny local history and is the definitive read on the city’s character.
reviewed
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Carlsbad Caverns National Park
- New Mexico, USA
- Sights › Other
Scores of wondrous caves hide under the hills at this unique national park, which covers 73 sq miles. The cavern formations are an ethereal wonderland of stalactites and fantastical geological features. You can ride an elevator from the visitor center or take a 2-mile subterranean walk from the cave mouth to the Big Room, an underground chamber 1800ft long, 255ft high and over 800ft below the surface. For claustrophobics and those prone to panic attacks, the chamber and the elevator ride down to it (which descends the length of the Empire State Building in under a minute) may be a less than enjoyable experience.
reviewed
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Hermitage
The former home of seventh president Andrew Jackson, the Hermitage lies 15 miles east of downtown. The 1000-acre plantation is a peek into what life was like for a Mid-South gentleman farmer in the 19th century. Tour the Federal-style brick mansion, now a furnished house museum with costumed interpreters, and see Jackson's original 1804 log cabin and the old slave quarters (Jackson was a lifelong supporter of slavery, at times owning up to 150 slaves; a special exhibit tells their stories). The arcadian gardens and grounds are lovely to wander, though somewhat marred by the highway passing nearby.
reviewed
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Reserva de la Biosfera El Pinacate y Gran Desierto de Altar
North and northwest of Puerto Peñasco extends the massive, 7145-sq-km Reserva de la Biosfera El Pinacate y Gran Desierto de Altar. The reserve comprises the 5000-sq-km Gran Desierto de Altar, with dunes up to 200m high; and the Sierra El Pinacate area with majestic volcanic mountains, nine giant extinct craters, 400-plus ash cones, and petrified lava flows. It’s a surreal and astonishing landscape with an extreme climate. You can access the dunes area at the new, solar-powered visitors center, about 8km west of Km 73 on Hwy 8 (some 25km from Puerto Peñasco).
reviewed
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Mammoth Cave National Park
With the longest cave system on earth, Mammoth Cave National Park has some 300 miles of surveyed passageways. Mammoth is at least three times bigger than any other known cave, with vast interior cathedrals, bottomless pits, and strange, undulating rock formations. The caves have been used for prehistoric mineral gathering, as a source of saltpeter for gunpowder and as a tuberculosis hospital. Tourists started visiting around 1810 and guided tours have been offered since the 1830s. The area became a national park in 1926 and now brings nearly two million visitors each year.
reviewed
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Downtown Berkeley
Berkeley's downtown, which centers on Shattuck Ave between University Ave and Dwight Way, has far fewer traces of the city's tie-dyed reputation. The area has emerged as a bustling area with numerous shops and restaurants, restored public buildings and a burgeoning arts district. At the center of that district are the acclaimed thespian stomping grounds of the Berkeley Repertory Theatre and the Aurora Theatre Company; nearby are several good movie houses.
reviewed
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Santa Monica State Beach
There are endless ways to play on the 3.5-mile blanket of strand stretching from Venice Beach in the south to Will Rogers State Beach in the north. To reserve time on a beach volley-ball court, call and confirm applicable fees. For cerebral pursuits, settle in at a first-come first-served chess table at Chess Park, just south of the Santa Monica pier. As of October 2006, smoking is no longer permitted on Santa Monica beaches.
reviewed
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Fort Langley National Historic Site
A fortified trading post since 1827, this is where James Douglas announced the creation of British Columbia in 1858, giving the site a legitimate claim to being the province’s birthplace. With costumed re-enacters, re-created artisan workshops and a gold-panning area that’s very popular with kids – they also enjoy charging around the wooden battlements – this is an ideal place for families who want to add a little education to their trips.
reviewed
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Muir Woods
Wander among an ancient stand of the world's tallest trees in 550-acre Muir Woods, 12 miles north of the Golden Gate. The easy 1-mile Main Trail Loop leads past thousand-year-old redwoods at Cathedral Grove and returns via Bohemian Grove. Come midweek to avoid crowds; otherwise arrive early morning or late afternoon. Take Hwy 101 to the Hwy 1 exit, and follow the signs. No camping or picnicking is permitted.
reviewed
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Valley of Fire State Park
The Valley of Fire State Park; is a masterpiece of Southwest desert scenery with psychedelic sandstone carved by wind and water (Atlatl Rock has Native American petroglyphs, too). Detour to White Domes, passing Rainbow Vista and the side road to Fire Canyon and Silica Dome (where Star Trek’s Captain Kirk perished).
reviewed
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Chinatown
Oakland’s Chinatown is much smaller than its San Francisco sister, but bustles with commerce. English is infrequent and tourists few. Oaklanders argue that its Chinese restaurants are more authentic than those in San Francisco’s Chinatown. We’d prefer to take this argument on a case-by-case basis; otherwise it’s a draw.
reviewed
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San Pablo Ave
San Pablo Ave was formerly US Rte 40, the main thoroughfare from the east before I-80 came along. The area north of University Ave is still lined with a few older motels, diners and atmospheric dive bars with neon signs. South of University Ave are pockets of trendiness, such as the short stretch of gift shops and cafés around Dwight Way.
reviewed
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Piedmont Ave
North of downtown Oakland, Broadway becomes a lengthy strip of car dealerships called Broadway Auto Row. Just past that is Piedmont Ave, wall-to-wall antique stores, coffeehouses, fine restaurants and an art cinema. At the end of Piedmont Ave, Mountain View Cemetery is perhaps the most serene and lovely man-made landscape in all the East Bay.
reviewed
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Royal BC Museum
The excellent Royal BC Museum is the best in the province and should be a highlight of any visit here. It’s an evocative introduction to the prehistoric and human history of the region – the old woolly mammoth diorama still packs a punch. Don’t miss the museum’s stirring First Nations gallery and pioneer town re-creation.
reviewed
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Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) Library & Museum
History buffs aren’t the only ones who can find something of interest at the LBJ Library & Museum. There are some fascinating mementos from the 36th US president, including his presidential limo, a moon rock, and gifts from heads of state (‘Why, thank you Chiang Kai-shek, for this lovely Chinese tomb sculpture!’).
reviewed
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Isle Royale National Park
Totally free of vehicles and roads, Isle Royale National Park, a 210-sq-mile island in Lake Superior, is certainly the place to go for peace and quiet. It gets fewer visitors in a year than Yellowstone National Park gets in a day, which means the packs of wolves and moose creeping through the forest are all yours.
reviewed
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Ikea Water Taxi
When in the area it's worth considering hopping on the Ikea water taxi operated by the Swedish furniture store from Pier 11 (six blocks south of South Street Seaport) to its store in Red Hook, Brooklyn. Besides offering the chance to get out on the water and take in breathtaking views of the city, it's free.
reviewed
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Miracle of America Museum
The mind-boggling Miracle of America Museum, located just 2 miles south of Polson, is worth seeing. At turns random and fascinating, it consists of 5 acres cluttered with the leftovers of American history. Wander past weird artifacts including the biggest buffalo (now stuffed) ever recorded in Montana.
reviewed
