Awesome Urban Travel Bag - Mountainsmith + Discount

I call myself an itinerant writer because, unlike many independent journalists, I don't work out of my home nor do I write in an office. I much prefer a more natural environment, preferably sitting outside on the waterfront in lower Manhattan or in one of the city's many hidden green spaces or, if it's inclement, in a cafe or atrium bathed in natural light. As a result of my wanderings, I carry around a load of stuff including my laptop, extra batteries, power cord, portable printer (I don't always carry this, though), iPod, an e-reader, files, books, notebooks, and more. It can really weight me down. So when Mountainsmith -- a company whose products I have long used and have blogged about extensively -- asked me to test out one of their urban backpacks, the Cruiser, I jumped at the opportunity. Here's what I found:

The pack easily fits my laptop (max size is 15") in a protective neoprene sleeve in one of the two main zippered compartments. This rest of this main compartment is further divided so that I slipped my bulky files and large notebooks including legal pads in one part and in the other section I placed my batteries, power cord, e-reader and printer. The middle zippered compartment -- where I keep my books, magazines and tape recorder -- contains several small pockets for my pens, cell phone, iPod, camera as well as a fleece-lined sunglass case and a mini zippered pocket where I put my business card case. On the front of the pack is a diagonal zippered compartment where I put things I need to grab immediately, such as my house keys, sunscreen, tiny first aid kit, and small memo pad.

Because I'm only 5'2" I'm thrilled that the Cruiser fits my compact torso. Most times a heavy-loaded pack will hang down to my butt making it very uncomfortable to tote a heavy load. That's not the case with the Cruiser which has very comfy foam shoulder straps, a sternum strap which also helps distribute the load, and foam backpanels that provides some pretty good airflow on my back. In fact, I've been testing out this pack for the past month in New York City where the temperatures have been sweltering and I found the pack as comfortable as possible under these conditions. This weekend I walked three miles briskly both on Saturday and Sunday carrying a full load in the humid temperatures and my back wasn't a sweaty mess as might've happened with backpacks that press against your torso. Nor did I suffer any back strain as often happens with a pack that doesn't carry a heavy load well.

The Cruiser has two water bottle pockets on each side and I use one to store a little umbrella because the weather this summer in NYC included unexpected thunderstorms almost daily. Another nice feature is a little rubber haul handle on the top of the pack which I use regularly when yanking my bag off the floor of buses and subways, instead of pulling on the shoulder straps as I normally would. And below the diagonal zipper is another rubber loop where I could attach my keys if I needed to.

The only thing I'm not thrilled about is that the pack is a little too snug to additionally pack clothes and toiletries for my multi-day trips. (I tried it out on a four-day trip to Cedar Key, Florida but I had to severely trim what I brought along in order to fit everything.) Though the pack has two compression straps that keep everything snug, I opened them all the way but still couldn't fit the slim number of clothes I needed for the trip in addition to my work gear. So my recommendation is that the Cruiser is perfect for the urban road warrior. It looks and feel good, and fits everything you need if you want your backpack to double as your desk.

And, if you are interested in purchasing this bag or any other cool Mountainsmith gear, they generously are offering my readers 20% on all purchases from today until August 6 if you use this discount code: JTTA20 on the Mountainsmith website. My Mountainsmith backpack and fanny pack have long been the only bags I travel with and the reason I never check luggage, even when I'm on a 6+ week journey.

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Florida's Hidden Retreat

It's hard to believe that there are still hidden corners in Florida, a state I've criss crossed extensively. Yet, I just returned from Cedar Key that harks back to the Florida of maybe 50 years ago. But what was even more curious was that every single person I spoke with before my trip thought Cedar Key was part of the Florida Keys on the east coast. In fact, Cedar Key is on the west coast -- so, clearly, not part of the Keys. And given that there are no water parks, or beach resorts, and that it's one hour from Gainesville or two hours from Tampa, it's understandable why Cedar Key is off the radar.



The island of Cedar Key is one of 17 barrier islands, many of which are part of the pristine Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge.




Here's what I found and did:

1. Cedar Key is the farmed clam capital of the U.S. We enjoyed healthy, plump and juicy clams served in myriad ways

2. Kayaking along shallow salt marshes and marine estuaries

3. Plenty of bird watching possibilities, including shore birds like ibis, heron and egret

4. Bold sunsets that I never tired of watching

5. Roads where I rarely saw cars, making it perfect for renting a bike and pedaling around to the museums, old cemetery, petite landing strip and across the bridges linking four of the isles

6. Several state reserves, like the Cedar Key Scrub State Reserve, where I could walk sandy trails bordered by lush foliage and spy curious animal tracks

7. Wandering the town of Cedar Key to check out the arts and crafts shops where I talked with painters and sculptors

8. Taking a historic walking tour of the town that's dotted with buildings dating to the 19th century


My base for this five-day trip was the Cedar Key Bed & Breakfast, a yellow pine, two story 19th century dwelling just steps from the water. Here I knew I had just stepped into another world when owner Alice Phillips greeted me saying "We don't lock our doors here." To a native New Yorker, this couldn't have sounded more alien. But every night we found the door to the inn's public rooms unlocked. There we could raid the ever-present cookie jar for chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin cookies, M & Ms, or biscotti.



The town is oh, so walkable. So at night, we'd wander from dinner down the streets where everything shuts down at 9:30 pm to find our inn along a dark residential lane rimmed in tiny lights. What a welcome sight.

My room, the Honeymoon Cottage, one of the 7 rooms and 2 suites at this B & B -- was plenty quaint and comfy with thick bathrobes, a clawfoot tub, rose detailing, lace curtains and antique accoutrements.

But the key selling point of this room is the views of the garden with the 500-year-old live oak tree. As a New Yorker where views of nature are in short supply, I couldn't get enough of this one.

The backyard garden is where I spent much of my down time listening to the tinkling water fountain or watching the butterflies flitting about the blooming flowers. I often curled up with a book on the patio that fronts the backyard. And, despite the fact that the area drips with heat and humidity in the summer -- conditions I happen to love -- the patio was comfortable with its fans blowing a cooling breeze.

Every morning we were treated to fresh fruit salad, cinnamon raisin toast and bagels, yogurt and an ever-changing hot breakfast. The cream cheese omelet with chives was plenty flavorful. So was the French toast with nutmeg, and breakfast burrito with bacon and cheese. My favorite: the light-as-clouds pancakes. (I have a thing for pancakes that float off the plate; and these were so fluffy that I could've tied them down.)

The breakfast room, like the rest of the inn and Cedar Key in general, was like stepping back in time. An antique type phone and clock hung on the walls as did a framed set of the well-known Donax brushes that were made from local saw palmetto plants.

Alice and Bill, her husband and co-owner, keep a wall of DVDs, CDs and books to occupy anyone who can't find enough to do in and around the islands.

I spent five days here and I could've easily have spent another five or more. It's not every day that you find a warm, friendly place where the owners take such great care in providing their guests with everything they need for an enjoyable stay. They knew I'm very type A and I wanted to know everything there was to do and see and they didn't disappoint. They gave me the insider info on the best restaurant to eat chowder and who serves the best Key lime pie. They suggested who I should kayak with because I'm a novice kayaker as well as who gives one of the best boat tours in the area.

But even more important were the other guests who checked into the Cedar Key B & B. I rarely hold long conversations with guests at breakfast. But here I found people who were smart, interesting and welcoming who had a love of nature. And many of them had either been here before or, if not, they knew they'd return again. And I'll be one of them, too.

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Savvy Packing With Only A Purse

You probably all know by now that no matter how long I'm on the road, I don't check luggage. Everything, from my very complete first-aid kit to my high-performance clothes -- that can take me from the beach to the bar, from walking tours in Istanbul to biking trips in Norway -- goes in my carry-on bag from Mountainsmith. And my personal item is a Mountainsmith fanny pack that converts to a shoulder bag -- it contains my camera, notebook, tape recorder, reading material and so forth.

So you can imagine my surprise when I heard that, as of August 1, 2010, Spirit Airlines will be charging $45 for a carry-on bag. I was determined to never travel on Spirit. That lasted until I just was forced to buy a ticket on Spirit for an assignment in Atlanta, Georgia, and Montgomery, Alabama. I was going to be traveling before August, so there was no chance of them hitting me with a carry-on bag charge. But I took this as the opportunity to do a test run: pack everything for a five-night trip in a purse. Yes, you read correctly: a purse.

In August, Spirit will allow you to bring a personal item that measures no bigger than 16"x14"x12" on board for free. To me, that could easily translate into a purse.

And already, there's been plenty of advice in the media on how to pack like a pro.

1. The New York Times provided a slide show showing a flight attendant rolling her clothes into a small carry-on bag. (In the accompanying article in the New York Times, other advice from flight crews included bringing a lot of black items and carefully deciding what you really need on a trip).

2. SmarterTravel recommended:
• wearing clothes with lots of pockets
• packing clothes that don't wrinkle
• forgoing lots of toiletries that you can get at your hotel anyway
• using compression bags

And there are travel writers and bloggers that I admire for, among other things, their savvy packing strategies, like Andrew Evans who recently traveled for 10 weeks by bus from Washington, DC to Antarctica. Here's what he packed.

But my goal was to only carry a purse. I dug out one from my closet that's simply constructed, contains several pockets, is made of almost indestructible material and measures 15"x14"5" so it would work with the Spirit Airlines personal item criteria. And, because, clearly I couldn't get five nights of clothing and accessories into just a purse, I would wear the rest of the clothes on board. It sounds comical, but I was able to do it so successfully that if you were sitting next to me, you'd never know that I was wearing seven tops (plus a vest) and two pairs of pants. Actually, it's not a whole lot different from the many layers of clothing women wore every day in the 18th century. Check out this slide show of how they did it.

Watch my slide show that documents what I packed, what I was wearing when I boarded the plane and the multitude of outfits I had for my five-night trip. (Actually, there were plenty more mix and match options than I provided in the slide show.)




I have to admit that carrying only a purse was quite freeing, because it forced me to be even more thrifty with what I brought, paring everything down to the bare essentials that would still allow me to look somewhat stylish.

Many of the items I packed were wickable, quick drying clothes that didn't wrinkle. Among the pieces of high-tech clothing that I especially depended on are manufactured by: Mountain Hardwear, ExOfficio, SmartWool and Icebreaker which I've blogged about many times before.

Everything I wore was in a neutral color, which makes it easier to mix and match. And the materials were all light-weight. I love the dresses I bought at a small New York City-based boutique called Pookie & Sebastian. No, the fabrics are not high-tech, nor were they made of merino wool, like the Icebreaker dress I adore and blogged about. But the dresses are light weight, they pack small, they don't wrinkle and they paired well with other high-tech items I brought along. Plus, they fit with my color scheme. And, because I love clothes that are convertable, e.g. pants that become shorts or long sleeve shirts that become short sleeve, I especially loved the black dress I packed that transformed into at least three different dresses as well as a blouse that I could wear with my tights.

Another item I can't live without is my XUBAZ, a scarf with hidden pockets -- another item that I've blogged about. It's light weight and works well whether it's warm or cool outside and, because it has pockets, it doubles as a hidden purse, of sorts. After all, who would steal a scarf?

Having a multitude of pockets in my clothes is key to carrying a lot of gear. And I had a total of 18 pockets in the clothing I wore on the plane: 8 pockets in my photo vest, 4 in my scarf, 1 in my Mountain Hardwear hoodie and 5 in my Mountain Hardwear pants. So, in case I wanted to remove some items from my purse and carry them on me, there was plenty of room.

My itty bitty black purse that I packed with my clothes contained my notebook, pens, credit cards, money, and camera. (It has several deep zip compartments that fit all these items.)

The three zip lock bags you see in the slide show were divided this way: one contained liquids such as shampoo, toothpaste, sunscreen, first aid gels/liquids like cortisone cream and anti-itch ointments; one contained makeup (a luxury for me but I had room, so why not), and the third had vitamin supplements plus non-liquid first-aid supplies/toiletries, such as band-aids, blister pads, gauze, toothbrush, and dental floss.

Given that the spring weather in Atlanta and the surrounding areas would be cool at night and warmish during the day, I had layers that would work for almost anything: from hot days to even cold nights. (I carried a small, light weight Mountain Hardwear rain jacket draped over my arm in case of rain -- but this isn't pictured in the slide show.) And, because I'd be running around the cities during the day, visiting museums, parks and gardens and meeting public relations people, and going to nice restaurants and bars at night, I had clothes that worked for all these occasions.

As far as shoes, the only ones I had were the ones on my feet, by Keen and, again, ones I've blogged about before. (I wore them in black, of course.) They're comfortable for lots of walking during the day and they work well at night too.

In case you're wondering if I was hot on the plane wearing seven tops (plus a vest) and two pairs of pants, the answer is no. I'm always cold anyway unless the temperature is above 75 or so.

This was only a test run to see if I could easily get around the Spirit Airline carry-on charge. I don't ever intend to fly on Spirit again -- aside from carry-on fees, their new planes have seats that don't recline at all -- but at least I know that if I'm forced to travel for five nights, in a pinch, a purse makes a great carry-on bag for me.

Travel Tips

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More Travel Tips-What To Wear

If I told you I'm walking all over New York City today where it's in the high 80s while wearing a wool dress, you'd probably think I was crazy. In fact, I'm being the savvy traverler. A company that I adore, Icebreaker, just sent me two merino wool items to test out. One is a tank top and the other is a dress, both in black, of course, because in New York we seem to gravitate to that color palette.

I only recommend products that I'm particularly found of and I bought their hoodie ages ago and can't live without it, whether I'm in Madrid or in Iceland. It always provides a warm, comfortable layer and looks good at night, too, when paired with a skirt or jeans. In fact, I've blogged about this hoodie before in a travel tip post of mine.)


Most people associate wool with a scratchy factor and with being bulky and overly hot. And who would think of wearing such a fabric during a sweltering New York City summer? In fact, Icebreaker manufactures different merino wool fabric weights and the ones that make up these two items are some of the thinnest. But no Icebreaker product is every scratchy or uncomfortable. In fact, it's so comfortable, you may not want to take it off.

But why wear wool when it's warm? For one thing, these specific products keep you cool when it's warm out by wicking away sweat and body heat. So none of that sticky feeling you get when wearing cotton or some synthetics after racing around the city all day while carrying a heavy backpack, which I often do. In addition, I'm also running in and out of highly air conditioned venues and a/c makes me shiver, but not when I'm wearing Icebreaker.

Yesterday I wore the Retreat Tank Emu which has a lovely floral-type pattern. It's their lightest weight fabric. And it kept me cool during one of our hottest and most humid days we've had so far. Plus, it looked great for a networking event I had at night where I paired it with black capri pants and black sandals. Some of my friends felt the fabric and thought it was silk, that's how thin and luxurious it feels.

Today it's another hot day, though not as humid, and I'm wearing the Villa dress which is just a wee bit thicker than the Tank's fabric. I've been comfortable all day while I walked a total of three miles in the heat all over the city as I went from meeting to meeting. I'm also carrying my Icebreakder hoodie to put over the dress in case it gets a little cooler at night. But aside from all this cool functionality, the dress fits well, looks sophisticated, perfect for the boardroom or the bar.

And aside from all these fab features, these two items pack small and don't wrinkle. And that's important because, as many of you know, I never check luggage when I travel.

I'll be traveling to Florida soon and I'll be taking my two new favorite Icebreaker items with me, even though I'm told that the temperatures are rising above 95!

Travel Tips

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A Gem of a Hotel in Amsterdam

For me, it's always a delight when I find a hotel that allows me to feel like I'm outdoors while still enjoying the luxury of a boutique property. That's what I found at Hotel Pulitzer in the old quarter of Amsterdam. Basically down the street from the Anne Frank House and overlooking two scenic canals, Prinsengracht and Keizersgracht, the location can't be beat.


But one of the things that makes this property so endearing is that the hotel is made up of 25 merchant houses that date from the 17th and 18th centuries. They're all connected by a series of mostly glass-enclosed corridors that lead to my favorite hotel feature: several leafy courtyards.

As I roamed around the hotel, I strolled along corridors that zigged and zagged, and then climbed up and down short sets of sometimes steep stairs, all understandable given the different character of the more than two dozen different structures that comprise this eccentric but elegant accommodation. The rooms in the front of the property have wood floors and low ceilings and are completely different from those in the rear which come with wall-to-wall carpeting and high ceilings.

For those who love sunlight like me, room #326 will be your favorite -- you've got a view down into one of the garden courtyards and the light simply pours in.

A good way to start the day is to visit the hotel's espresso shop for a cappuccino. (You can imagine my surprise when I didn't have to ask for skin milk; that's all they serve!) Then take your steaming cup into the light-filled leafy courtyard that has a pergola draped with wisteria, stone benches, bronzes and a water feature. I sat at one of the tall tables and planned out my day from my perch.

Across the corridor from this courtyard is a shady garden with ivy coated tree trunks and tulips. From here you have a good view of the church at the rear of the property. This garden is usually peaceful unless there is a group of business people hosting a breakfast meeting there. (Luckily, I had the place to myself.)

Interestingly, the corridors also double as mini-art galleries displaying some contemporary works by local artists.

The breakfast buffet is a real treat with an array of different breads, cheeses, fresh fruits, smoked fish, yogurts and more. But, among these offerings, I most enjoyed the creamy yogurt that came in small glass jars. This was an organic yogurt and I have to say one of the tastiest yogurts I've ever sampled. Of course, eating breakfast next to the glass windows overlooking the canal front where you can see the sitting waking up and locals pedals past made it all the more picturesque.

The restaurant, Keizergracht 238, also serves lunch and dinner and is most noted now for it's grilled dishes -- they even cook everything on a lava grill. From grilled halibut and king prawns to grilled veal and corn-fed chicken breast, they've got something for everyone. (And they even label their menu with low-cal and low-fat options -- something I don't often find on my European travels.) In nice weather you can enjoy a meal in one of the courtyards.

Hotel Pulitzer -- named for the owner whose great great grandfather established the eponymous prize -- is loaded with history. Part of the hotel is an old pharmacy with the interior dating to the early 19th century. And, should you want to hop aboard a boat for a canal cruise, the hotel has their own teak and brass vessel dating from 1909 and the same boat that Winston Churchill once traveled in when he visited Amsterdam.

I can't wait to return to Amsterdam and stay a few more days at the Hotel Pulitzer. Once you stay there, it's hard to stay anywhere else in the city.

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Tips for 24 Hours in Brussels

Sometimes when I'm traveling, I only have one day to spend in a large city. That's what happened recently on my trip to Brussels. And yet, I often have an amazing ability to pack in as much as possible into a single day by having the day's itinerary plotted out precisely the night before, both on a map -- with everything color coded for the time different venues open -- and in my notebook where I note the best way to get everywhere, including metro, bus, walking or taxi. Yes, it's all very organized but that's what happens when you only have a day to see Brussels. Here's what I managed to fit into 10 hours:

1. Place du Petit Sablon -- a petite neo-Renaissance-style park with bronze statuary, wrought iron balustrades and plenty of ivy. It's worth sitting on one of the benches listening to the tinkling water. You'll feel far from the traffic, though it's literally as the park's doorstep.


2. Sculpture Garden of the Fine Arts Museum -- it's curious that only school groups seem to visit this tiny strip of verdancy that's literally adjacent to one of Brussels' most prominent museums. This garden sits on the site of the city's first botanical garden from the 18th century. I walked along the thin path under locust, linden, maple and plane trees, checking out the statuary that all have a female theme. (One of the works is "Bathing Beauty" by A. Maillot.)


3. The Belvue Museum isn't far away, but clearly I didn't have time to visit. What I did check out is the museum's lovely outdoor terrace where you can sit amongst the shrubbery and sip a fruit juice under an umbrella.

4. Across the street is yet another green space -- Brussels is chock a block full of leafy swaths -- called Brussels Park. But instead of joining the school groups along the main paths, I found a series of tiny gates leading to small pockets of forestland. Not a sole could be bound in these shady retreats.

5. The Magritte Museum deserves a full day, or at least the entire morning, to adequately explore the works of one of my favorite surrealists. Everything is arranged chronologically. But during my brief visit, I'd have to say that among my favorite works are the series of paintings titled The Dominion of Light.

6. I also could've spent most of the day in the Musical Instruments Museum but that couldn't happen either. Instead, I checked out a few exhibits but found this place quite addictive. Once you don the infrared headphones, all you have to do is stand in front of a display and you'll automatically hear the sounds of that instrument. The museum's collection is one of the largest in the world and includes both antique and contemporary exhibits. Just think: they've got 58 different types of wind instruments.

7. On the top of this gorgeous Art Nouveau building is Restaurant du MIM. This is a low-key eatery with one of the most expansive views around. The gazpacho soup with salad is an inexpensive, hearty and tasty choice.

8. I'm a very big fan of contemporary art so I didn't want to miss visiting the Xavier Hufkens Gallery
where in the white-on-white interior I explored the fantastical works of David Altmejd, a Canadian artist who puts together disparate objects. In his most recent exhibit, multicolored thread formed a dragon-like creature sitting in a plexiglass cube as well as the heart and liver of a plexiglass human.

9. You can't leave Brussels without visiting the Comic Strip Centre where I found it hard to pull myself away from a special exhibit on Tove Jansson, the creator of The Mommins. These curious little creatures that occupy numerous comic strips and books are plenty eccentric. But even if these odd forest-dwelling characters -- many that resemble white hippos -- don't interest you, the prestigious collection of comic strips will.

10. I had some difficulty getting the taxi to figure out where Parc d'Egmont was located. That's because you can only access this small park via three narrow alleys. But once inside, I found I had the place almost to myself with just a few locals wandering the paths, past a bronze of Peter Pan and the neo-classical orangery where they serve lunch and brunch of the weekends.

11. L'Atelier Yves Mattagne is a perfect place for dinner though not relaxing in the true sense of the word. That's because it's a combination cooking class and dining experience. Everyone is broken up into groups and set to work at one of four stations to dish out the dinner menu for the evening. Because I love being active, this was a perfect way to end a very frenetic day. Using the executive chef's menu -- and it changes from night to night, though we worked with Belgian cuisine -- we sliced potatoes, diced leeks, whipped cream, whisked in truffle oil and topped the chocolate tarts with raspberries.

Things To Do

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Panama Beyond the Canal

For many people, a trip to Panama City isn't complete without visiting the Canal. Having transited the Canal and blogged about learning about its inner workings, I would agree. But I found in my Panama City wanderings, I also found that there were many green spaces as well as other gems that had nothing to do with the Canal. The green spaces, in particular, seemed little visited. Which is one reason why I sought them out. I recently wrote a piece on Eight Cool Things to do in Panama City for GoNOMAD that involve walking, biking or hiking or present interesting cultural offerings. You'll find out where you can roam around the ruins of old Panama City, rent a bicycle to peddle along a car-free waterside lane, or hike through an urban jungle with plenty of bird watching opportunities.

Things To Do

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Top Travel Tips-Downloadable E-Book

From reading my many posts, you've probably come away with some useful travel tips, including my secret packing tips, how to stay healthy on the road, and the best sites in my fave travel destinations. Since I'm on the road 90+ days a year, I've accumulated tips that help make my travels safe, healthy, efficient and worry-free. But now you can read travel tips from not just me but also over 150 other top travel bloggers? We've all contributed some of our top travel tips to a downloadable e-book. Aside from picking up a wealth of practical information, you'll be able to contribute to a charitable cause. That's because $1 from each sale goes to Charity: Water where as little as $20 is enough to help one person get clean drinking water for 20 years. Click on the Best Travel Tips icon on the right to download this e-book.

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Touring Civil Rights Sites

The 1950s and 1960s aren't so distant in our history as a nation. But when I recently told some colleagues that I was visiting civil rights national parks down south, they had no idea what I was talking about. After all, they asked, what do national parks have to do with civil rights? The National Park Service not only protects the grand scenic vistas that we typically associate them with, but also sites that need to be preserved because they are key in our American identity. And the civil rights sites in Atlanta and Alabama fall into this category. Here is what I found:

1. You could easily spend the day at the Martin Luther King Historic Site in downtown Atlanta. Probably, one of the most memorable parts of the visit was listening to his speeches in the half-hour video in the Visitor's Center as well as standing not far from the original mule-drawn wagon that transported his casket during the funeral. From there, you can gaze all the way to the King Center across the street where his tomb and that of his wife, Coretta Scott King, sit side by side above a reflecting pool.

The site also has a petite rose garden where you can see peace poems written by children. Make sure you have time to tour the adjacent preservation district in this neighborhood, Sweet Auburn that was once home to a very well-to-do African American population. One of the Queen Anne style houses is the birth home of MLK -- it's definitely worth making a reservation for the visit. You'll be able to roam from room to room and hear stories of what board games MLK liked to play in the living room -- it was Monopoly; learn that adults and children sat and talked together at meal time, something that was unusual at that time; and see MLK's favorite room, the kitchen, where he would sit and eat his grandmother's home cooking.


2. Anyone who loves airplanes will delight in the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site that honors the all-Black squadrons of Airmen who were active in World War II. At this time, only Hangar 1 is open, but there's a wealth of artifacts here to keep you occupied. And this place isn't just for adults. Kids will enjoy trying to fold a silk parachute into a pack.

There are plenty of audio displays to listen to, mostly of Airmen or their instructors -- something that really makes the place come alive. You'll hear how the instructors put the men through a closet cockpit flight simulator so that they could learn to fly by instruments only. As one instructor said, "I can introduce rough air and make him pretty miserable...You can crack that thing and he [pilot] just steps out."

3. The Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail runs from Montgomery, Alabama to Selma with plenty of civil rights sites in both cities as well as a museum (The Lowndes County Voting Rights Trail Interpretive Center) in the middle and signs to other sites along the way. The 54-mile trail honors the African-Americans who sought their civil rights and, after two unsuccessful tries -- the first being the infamous Bloody Sunday -- finally made it to Montgomery to present their grievances to Governor George Wallace. Montgomery makes a good stop-over city to do the entire trail. And though the trail can be done in a day, to truly get the most out of it, you should spend a day doing all the sights just in Montgomery, and reserve an additional day to doing the Interpretive Center and the sites in Selma.


The woman who's most emblematic of civil rights movement may very well be Rosa Parks, who refused to give up her seat to a white person on a Montgomery bus. And, though most of us may think we know the story, the museum that pays tribute to her is a must-see. Not only does it provide a dramatic re-enactment of the bus incident that puts you right there, but the rest of the museum provides plenty of details that I know I didn't learn in high school history class. These include how, once Rosa Parks was arrested, the people had only 4 days to print off flyers to mobilize their people for the Montgomery Bus Boycott. (And it's wasn't done by xeroxing, either, but by mimeograph machines.)

Another stop that's mandatory is the Dexter Parsonage , the house where MLK and his wife lived when he was pastor of the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church in Montgomery. You have to make a reservation but, again, the visit is memorable, especially because of the guide, Shirley Cherry, who knows plenty of what went on in this house, including on the porch where you can still see the damage from the bomb that exploded while Dr. King's wife and baby were in the house.

After all of these museums, you may think why visit yet another one: the Voting Rights Trail Interpretive Center. That would be a mistake. Again, a wealth of information awaits, with plenty of surprises. For example, the video here is extremely emotional as it provides interviews with actual participants of the marches. And I learned that the center is on land where many African-Americans were forced to camp because they were thrown out of their houses after they had registered to vote. The exhibits provide artifacts from the marches, including photos of Bloody Sunday. Outside you can walk a short loop where signage explains the spot where the marchers passed and what the harsh reality of daily life in the tent was like.

On the south side of the Edmund Petus Bridge that leads into Selma and where the state troopers and sheriff's deputies waited to assail the marchers with tear gas and batons, you'll find the new location for the National Voting Rights Museum. Yes, another museum and another must visit in my book because there is no redundancy among all these venues. They all add to the story. Here you'll see actual quotes written on the wall from participants as well as some of the threatening utterances from the troopers. You'll also find shoe prints from the foot soldiers, the marchers themselves, who were by far, not the leaders; they were the ordinary people that were firm in their commitment to the cause for equality.

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