Which US Cities Should I Visit?

[Wilfrid]

Funny stuff, thanks.

Not a summer trip, more what should I do over the next two or three years rather than just carry on going to the places I know I like. 

[hollywood]

3 hours ago, Wilfrid said:

I have negative feelings about Arkansas. Am I wrong?

It has the colorful Ozark Mountains, hot springs, Walmart World HQ, good fishing and phony fake touristy diamond mines.

[Wilfrid]

I was named after a diamond mine. Hopefully not a fake touristy one, but hey it wasn't my choice.

[hollywood]

10 minutes ago, Wilfrid said:

I was named after a diamond mine. Hopefully not a fake touristy one, but hey it wasn't my choice.

 

[StephanieL]

15 hours ago, Wilfrid said:

I was named after a diamond mine. Hopefully not a fake touristy one, but hey it wasn't my choice.

If it's the one in South Africa I'm thinking of, it's definitely real.

[hollywood]

Some thoughts about art and dining in Texas. (I'd forgotten Phil Collins' Alamo obsession.)  https://bradluen.substack.com/p/semipop-lifestyle-art-and-architecture?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=37906&post_id=165429622&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=2d3od9&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

[Steve R.]

As someone who lived there for 6 or so years back when, I'll put my "late to the party" recommendation in for St. Louis.  Not only is it the "Gateway to the West" and right on the Mason-Dixon Line, leading to some interesting historical sites, but the architecture (& workmanship) in the inner city neighborhoods is fascinating.  Lots of music history, lots of "community" & lots of good food at all price ranges and ethnicities.  Some people even like the pizza.

[MitchW]

And some even like Ted Drewes!

[Wilfrid]

I long wanted to go there. Thanks.

[relbbaddoof]

Much of the US is now unvisitable, pretend as we may that things are hunky dory for those of us with the correct amounts of cash and the correct complexions.

[hollywood]

3 hours ago, Wilfrid said:

I long wanted to go there. Thanks.

The humidity can be pretty brutal in the summer.

[StephanieL]

18 hours ago, relbbaddoof said:

Much of the US is now unvisitable, pretend as we may that things are hunky dory for those of us with the correct amounts of cash and the correct complexions.

Too true.

[backyardchef]

On 7/16/2025 at 10:43 AM, Steve R. said:

 Some people even like the pizza.

Deservedly so.

[Wilfrid]

I culled a top 20 from the thread. Or rather 19. I added Buffalo because it was on my original list of places I had visited, which is a complete lie. What was I thinking? Realistically, I don't expect to go to all of these. My job now is to reduce the list by checking which cities have a lot of the things I like to do.

Albuquerque

Birmingham

Buffalo

Burlington

Detroit

Houston

Knoxville

Lake Tahoe

Lexington

Madison/Milwaukee

Palm Springs

Pittsburgh

Portland (Ore.)

Provincetown

Richmond

St Augustine

St Louis

San Antonio

Santa Fe

Tucson

 

[Evelyn]

When are you planning to travel?

 

[Wilfrid]

This is a wish list for the next few years. If not now, when?

Of course, I want to go back to New Orleans, San Francisco etc as well.

[StephanieL]

Lake Tahoe isn't a city per se, though you could have fun tootling around the lake and going into Reno and Truckee.

[MitchW]

Just a few notes on a few of the places above - places I've been to, obviously.

Albuquerque - 3 or 4 times. Why?  If you do go, The Frontier is a must, as is Duran's.

Santa Fe - on the other hand, a lovely place.  You gotta drive to get there.

Richmond - good museum,  a little nicer than I expected.  A long weekend is plenty.

Pittsburgh -  2 or 3 times. Excellent museums, National Aviary is a must if you're at all a fan of birds, and a bit prettier than I expected.

Madison/Milwaukee - not a bad duo, especially if coming from Chicago.  And paying one's respects to Otis Redding is a worthy thing.

Lake Tahoe - many times, mostly during ski season. Even though I don't ski, I did gamble back in the day.  The lake is gorgeous.

Knoxville - pretty little town, but probably best combined with somewhere else like Memphis or Murfreesboro (for the 'cue). Assuming you've been to Nashville.

Burlington - 5+ times.  We like it, right on the lake it's lovely. And from there, a mere 100 miles to Montreal!

Provincetown - you should know it's not a city, just a town. Very artsy, very queer, very crowded in the summer.  But it's the end of this continent, it's freakin' gorgeous, and there is nowhere else quite like it (Key West is as close to it as I've seen, but I avoid Florida now that my parents are gone).

If you do get to Provincetown, this may be of some help...and our niece and nephew get not one, but two mentions for their two places!

The Top Restaurants in Provincetown Right Now

[backyardchef]

3 hours ago, MitchW said:

 

If you do get to Provincetown, this may be of some help...and our niece and nephew get not one, but two mentions for their two places!

The Top Restaurants in Provincetown Right Now

Pop and Dutch and....Ladyslipper! 

Edited August 11, 2025 by backyardchef

[MitchW]

16 minutes ago, backyardchef said:

Pop and Dutch and....Ladyslipper! 

Yep - they've cut back the Pop + Dutch hours to only lunch (no more breakfast) and Ladyslipper is 6 days a week (closed Mondays). the plan is for Ladyslipper to remain open almost year-round, with obviously reduced hours in the winter (like maybe only weekends).

Evidently, Ladyslipper is rocking.  We hope to go up mid-October (already have our res at the Red Inn), but maybe we'll move it to Thanksgiving. Remains to be seen.

 

Edited August 11, 2025 by MitchW

[Wilfrid]

@MitchW All very useful.

I have been trying to remember the details of a trip up the Massachussetts coast, probably summer of 2021. We were out of lockdown but a lot of people were still masked. I know we stopped at Plymouth and Gloucester, and I'm sure we explored some of Cape Cod but probably not all the way to Provincetown.

Of course, someone was driving. That kind of trip is tricky by bus/train/ferry.

Quote

Santa Fe - on the other hand, a lovely place.  You gotta drive to get there.

Looks like the solution for me would be to combine it with Albuquerque, about an hour away by train.

[MitchW]

18 minutes ago, Wilfrid said:

@MitchW All very useful.

I have been trying to remember the details of a trip up the Massachussetts coast, probably summer of 2021. We were out of lockdown but a lot of people were still masked. I know we stopped at Plymouth and Gloucester, and I'm sure we explored some of Cape Cod but probably not all the way to Provincetown.

Of course, someone was driving. That kind of trip is tricky by bus/train/ferry.

Looks like the solution for me would be to combine it with Albuquerque, about an hour away by train.

I actually like Gloucester a lot - and a little further up, Newburyport and Rockport as well (that's Cape Ann).  Good art colony in Gloucester.  I think if you went all the way out to Provincetown, or even as far as Wellfleet, I think you'd remember.

If you do get to ABQ, don't go all breaking bad on us.

[hollywood]

Here's a museum to visit outside Albuquerque.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Museum_of_Nuclear_Science_%26_History

[MitchW]

And this is kinda cool too...Petroglyph National Monument, as is the Pueblo Cultural Center.

[Wilfrid]

Why didn't Louisville make the list? Nothing to do there?