Subject: Report 1, Eastern USA, Canada 
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 2002 07:34:59 -0700 (PDT) 
From: "Sirman"  

After announcing an exotic world tour, the USA may not be
the place to start, but I just drowe 1,500 miles from Miami
to Washington, DC and thought I should give you a rundown. 
This distance is about the same as driving from Melbourne
(perhaps Tasmania) to Darwin, or Sydney to Cairns in
Australia, or our Pacha Tour of the entire Western Turkey,
or Istanbul to Belgium in Europe.  (I am typing this fast
at the library, so overlook the typos, etc.)

The Eastern USA is the most populated part of the USA and
also the greenest.  The major geographic feature are the
Appalachian mountain range, including the Great Smoky
Mountains of Tennessee, the Blue Ridge Mountains of
Southern West Virginia and Virginia, the Shenendoah Valley
in Virginia . . . many lakes, rivers, caverns, and what
have you . . . reaching all the way up to New York.  Unlike
the Rockies further west (Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and
the Canadian Rockies around Banff) and the Sierra Nevada
Mountains along the West Coast, the Appalachian range is
much older and almost entirely wooded.  This is a huge
area; so let's highlight the parts worth seeing--or reading
about.

But before doing this, let us also point out a few facts
about the USA.  Unlike Canada and Australia say with 24 and
19 million populations, the USA with 280 million people is
crowded, the roads are congested, the cities are often
haphazard in design; public transportation is poor compared
to any other industrialized nation; the USA can be
dangerous; and with the exception of (parts of) New York,
Washington, DC, Miami, San Francisco, and San Diego,
American cities and towns are among the ugliest, most
redundant (boring), and people/walker-unfriendly in the
world.  So while there may be gems to see in almost every
city and all parts of the country, getting there is too
much of a hassle for the average tourist and often not
really worth it.

Let me also announce at the outset that I am an unofficial
authority on the USA and Canada: I circled the country
twice, took all Amtrak trains, crossed the country
(driving) some 40 times (east<->west and north<->south); I
have visited almost all national and state parks; know all
major cities; lived in a dozen of them coast-to-coast,
passed thru the majority of small towns.  Much of this also
applies to Canada, except the very northern parts, Yukon,
and Alaska (USA) on top.  (I will tour Yukon and Alaska
soon.)

1) MIAMI (Week to 10 days). To me, this is the prettiest,
the most exotic and cosmopolitan area of the USA.  And it
has the prettiest female models in the world. If you had
say 10 days in Eastern USA, there is really only one place
to spend it: from a base in Miami Beach.  This would
include:

a) tours of Coral Gables (Home of Univ. of Miami), Coconut
Grove (both in Miami), and Miami Beach.

b) drive to Key West--about 4 hours of island-hopping,
incl. a 7-mile bridge.

c) Drive along the scenic coastal route A1A (or Collins
Ave. on which I live) from the South Pointe (where it
starts) 70 miles north to Palm Beach to get an idea of the
unique beauty of this area.

d) In Palm Beach, you would turn inland to Interstate 95,
take it south until you come to the exit of Interstate 75
West near Fort Lauderdale.  This route is also called the
Alligator Alley and crooses thru the Big Cypress National
Park/Swamp.  About an hour of driving west on it, there is
a sign that says Rt. 329 south to Everglade City.  That
quaint route passes thru the very unique Everglades--River
of Grass of which Big Cypress park is part of--and
sugarcane fields and connects 30 min later to the Tamiami
Trail.  Turn East (back to Miami) there and stop at any one
of the air boat rides along the way to really appreciate
the geography.

e) Back in Miami Beach, enjoy the remaining days at the
beach anywhere from the pier on the south to 44th street on
the north where the famous Fountainbleu Hilton is located. 
The new Loew Hotel on 14th Street has the best location in
Miami Beach, because it is a walking distance to the beach,
the SoBe bars and night clubs, and Lincoln Mall, and
Washington Ave. bars and night clubs.

f) You should take a taxi to the Bayside in Miami one
evening and enjoy the food, live music/dance there.

g) You should consider a 3-day cruise to the Caribbean.  I
would recommend Tortolla (British Virgin Islands) and the
US Virgin Islands as the most scenic.

h) The nudist public beach is at the Hallendale Beach about
30 min. north, but you can find topless girls are
everywhere on the beach.

2) NE CANADA (2 weeks to a month).  This would be my second
choice on East N. America.  Fly to Toronto, take a tour,
rent a car, drive north to Ottawa, Montreal (city tour),
then Quebec; circle the St. Lawrence river from its East
side all the way around, take the ferry to Prince Edward
Islands--Movie Anne of Green Gables--back to mainland, east
to Nova Scotia, south to Halifax, around Yarmouth to Digby,
ferry there to Saint John, south to USA on coastal Route 1,
thru Boston and the beautiful Cape Cod to New York--take at
least the city tour, museums, Central Park, South Port. 
The one-hour drive to Atlantic City (New Jersey) is worth
it, also walk say a mile or 2 on the Board Walk, say along
Donald Trump's Taj Mahal Casino.  Then turn North to
Canada, west to Niagara Falls.  Enjoy its beauty from the
(much nicer) Canadian side, return to Toronto.  

3) Washington, DC (a week).  Is still my primary hometown
in that I spent more years in DC than at any other place. 
The DC is also one of the prettiest cities not only in USA
but in the World.  Here are the highlights:

a) The Mall refers to the parks around the various
memorials.  Do this on a Saturday and/or Sunday, say from
10 am when it is warm to as late as you want.  If it is and
of March, 1st week of April, the entire area will be
adorned by cherry blossoms.  It is a sight to behold.

b) an afternoon and even at Georgetown, all the way down to
the Potomac River south from M-Street, a few blocks north
from M-St. on Wisconsin Ave.  This is one of the richest
parts of the USA with best shops, restaurants, what have
you, and many young people from Georgetown Univ. nearby.  

c) an afternoon at Dupont Circle and up a few blocks on
Connecticut Ave.  This is the most Bohemian part of DC full
of cafes and shops.  You might also consider Adams Morgan
section for a night out at an ethnic restaurant with
friends and/or your date.

d) To get an idea of the beauty of the Eastern USA, take a
drive along Skyline Drive thru the Shenandoah Park.  If you
do this in October you will see the covered by every
imaginable shade of yellow, brown, red, orange, and green. 
The park is about an hours drive west from DC.

4) As far as Southeast USA, Atlanta, Georgia is the largest
city there but quite congested inside and around.  The
Peachtree Boulevard the the main strip there and the
Underground (of shops and restaurants) is the place to be. 
You may also want to visit the Cinerama there that depicts
the Civil War in life-like setting of sounds and lights.

b) I would prefer the coastal areas of Southeast,
easpecially around Charleston, South Carolina and Savanah,
Georgia.  Getting to these places you will also pass thru
one of the most beautiful geographic settings of the East:
Cape Hatteras, a long drive along the coast.

5) This covers the Eastern USA.  Oh there are many other
beautiful spots and highways on the East.  For example, The
Pennesylvania Turnpike is one of the most scenic highways
in USA, but again, for most visitors it leads to nowhere
interesting.

The entire central region from coastal East to about
Colorado--about 1200 miles--is (to me) redundant; offers
nothing spectacular.  However the states of Montana,
Wyoming, and South Dakota are very scenic and much less
congested.  (These are all Northcentral states north of
Colorado.) Some of the most beautiful national parks are in
this area, like the Yellowstone, Glacier Park, Mt.
Rushmore, the huge (ongoing) Crazy Horse Monument, and
surely the Canadian Rockies around Banff National Park in
Canada.

6) As far as Western USA, I'll report about it when I get
to Los Angeles.  I lived in San Diego, La Jolla, Los
Angeles, and San Francisco and know the Western USA almost
as well as Eastern USA.  By the way, if you wanted to cross
the USA east to west or vice versa, I would recommend the
southern-most route the most, on Interstate 10, form
Northern Florida.  I'll descrive this route in more detail
in my next report.

I hope you will find these reports useful.  Today, I am on
my way to Morocco and southern Spain.  Bye.