Foreign Exchange
The United States seems to be peppered with its fair share of cities, small towns and municipalities named for well-known European counterparts. Berlin, Cambridge, Glasgow and Troy top the popularity list in multiple locations from Maine to Mississippi. Not to be outdone, the following five domestic cities are deserving of more than a passing glance.
• Aberdeen, Wash.
experiencewa.com
• Moscow, Idaho
www.moscowchamber.com
• Old Town Florence, Ore.
oldtownflorence.com
• Rome, Ga.
romegeorgia.com
• Vienna, Va.
viennnava.gov
• York, Maine
gatewaytomaine.org
Even as the Euro tumbles against the dollar, a trip to the Continent still can be a stretch for any budget to pull off. Throw in the hassles of international travel — limited seat availability, long lines at security, baggage fees, and passport and visa worries — and the glamour can dull rather fast. Time to get patriotic and stick closer to home.
A number of American cities, named for their more famed European counterparts, offer a surprising array of unique attractions, hometown festivals and events, which are sure to satisfy even the most experienced globetrotter.
> ATHENS, GA.Athens Convention & Visitors Bureau
visitathensga.com
This city that sits just below the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains is home to the University of Georgia; America's first garden club; and the Georgia Antebellum Trail, a 100-mile course through seven communities that escaped General William T. Sherman's burning march through Atlanta during the Civil War.
Called the Classic City because of its name and multiple neoclassical-style buildings, Athens also has snagged its fair share of accolades and awards in recent years, including number 33 on Popular Science magazine's 2008 tally of America's 50 greenest cities and a citation as one of America's Dozen Distinct Destinations by the National Trust for Historic Preservation in January 2009.
Six new hotels will add 554 guest rooms to the city by year's end, increasing the existing room count to 2,200. Among the newcomers are a 130-room Hotel Indigo, a 100-room SpringHill Suites, an 82-room Country Inn & Suites and an 80-room La Quinta Inn.
The city offers a multitude of cultural and outdoor attractions, as well as a lively music scene, thanks in large part to the 32,000 university students who make up much of the population. Two homegrown bands to achieve international fame are R.E.M and the B-52s.
Group options: Three miles south of the University of Georgia campus, the State Botanical Garden of Georgia (uga.edu/botgarden) features more than 300 acres of specialty gardens, winding trails and a three-story tropical conservatory visitors center, available for private events.
The University of Georgia Performing Arts Center (uga.edu/pac) includes two superb concert venues: the 1,100-seat Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall and the 360-seat Ramsey Concert Hall.
Don't miss: Try the Southern classic Lowcountry Frogmore stew of Georgia shrimp, fingerling potatoes, leeks, corn, and spicy andouille sausage in leek and tomato broth as served at the Five and Ten restaurant (fiveandten.com).
> VENICE, CALIF.LA Inc., The Los Angeles Convention & Visitors Bureau
discoverlosangeles.com
This artsy beach community, set between haute neighbors Santa Monica and Marina del Rey, might not have the magnificent cultural attractions of its Italian namesake, but it has just about everything else, including canals, sidewalk cafés, street musicians, galleries and trendy boutiques.
In 1905, tobacco millionaire Abbot Kinney purchased a two-mile stretch of coast 14 miles west of Los Angeles, dug several miles of canals to drain its marshlands, built a pier, a restaurant and a dance hall, and opened the Venice of America. Today, this Los Angeles neighborhood with a population of 34,000 is a vibrant and eclectic destination, where ocean views form the backdrop to open-air shopping.
Planners have plenty of options in neighboring Santa Monica, where several luxury properties have popped up in recent years, including the 71-room Hotel Shangri-La, which reopened its doors in January following a $30 million renovation.
Group options: No visit to Venice is complete without a stroll down Ocean Front Walk, where vendors line the boardwalk and there is no shortage of gawking and shopping. This is the place where tattoo parlors, magicians, mimes and musicians jostle for attention with souvenir shops, tiny cafés and funky clothing stores.
For more upscale shopping, head to Abbot Kinney Boulevard, which teems with trendy clothing boutiques, shoe shops, galleries and restaurants, as well as unique housewares and elegant furniture showrooms.
Don't miss: For a traditional Venice Beach experience — and a chance to blend in with the locals — rent skates or a bicycle from one of the myriad vendors and explore the boardwalk on wheels.
> DUBLIN, OHIODublin Convention & Visitors Bureau
irishisanattitude.com
This thriving suburb of 23,000, just 20 minutes northwest of Columbus, prides itself on its Irish heritage. In fact, the town's official marketing slogan is "Irish is an attitude," and its Irish Festival, named one of the top 100 events in North America by the American Bus Association in 2005, is one of the country's largest.
Dubliners love to participate in outdoor activities. The city has a total of 38 parks and 77 miles of integrated bike paths. Every year, thousands of golf fans gather to witness the game's top professionals take to the greens in the annual PGA Memorial Tournament, hosted by Jack Nicklaus at the Muirfield Village Golf Club.
Group options: With its brick-lined sidewalks, Historic Dublin — a National Historic District — is on the banks of the Scioto River, where the city was originally established around 1810, making it one of the oldest communities in Central Ohio. Two authentic Irish pubs are worth stopping in for a pint and a taste of the Old Country: the Dublin Village Tavern and Brazenhead (hdrestaurants.com).
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Fletcher Coffman Homestead (dublinohiohistoricalsociety.org), which was constructed in the early 1860s, has been restored to its original period look. Wander the Heritage Gardens blooming with heirloom and antique interpretive plantings of the late 1800s, then tour the barn, which houses authentic 19th-century farm machinery.
Don't miss: Marvel at the 109 ears of concrete corn, each 5 to 6 feet tall, standing in a local field. The exhibit is part of the Dublin Arts Council's Art in Public Spaces program (dublinarts.org).
> PARIS, TEXASParis Visitors and Convention Council
paristexas.com
It might not be home to the Louvre Museum or fancy, three-star Michelin eateries, but this Texan town, 100 miles northeast of Dallas in Lamar County's Red River Valley, does have a 65-foot replica of the famed Eiffel Tower — capped with a giant, red cowboy hat.
This domestic Paris claims two distinct honors: It was named Best Small Town in Texas by Kevin Heubusch in his 1998 book, The New Rating Guide to Life in America's Small Cities, and it served as the namesake locus for director Wim Wenders' Paris, Texas (1984), about a man who wanders out of the desert after being lost for four years (alas, the film was not actually shot on location).
Group options: Paris features a steady stream of fairs, festivals and events, which make it a great daylong excursion for groups in Dallas looking to experience a slice of the Lone Star State's Southern charms.
The Paris Rodeo and Horse Club (parisrodeo.org) organizes a yearlong lineup of barrel racing and rodeo events, the highlight of which is the annual summer rodeo championship, now in its 51st year.
Every July, pedal pushers can join 800 like-minded aficionados in the Tour de Paris, a 15K to 100K cycling event through scenic Lamar County, which coincides with the famed Tour de France. Twenty miles southwest of Paris, Cooper Lake is considered one of the region's hottest fishing spots.
Development plans for the Cooper Lake Center (cooperlakecenter.com), which hosts musical festivals, include a restored log house, an outdoor theater and a Native American
village.
Don't miss: On Lamar Avenue, Scholl Bros. Bar-B-Que (908-739-8080) made Texas Monthly's prestigious ranking of the top 50 barbecue joints in the June 2008 issue. As the magazine noted, "The ribs are prepared in the region's signature style, using a sugary wet rub, in a mesquite-and-pecan-fed gas smoker."
> ST. PETERSBURG, FLA.St. Petersburg/Clearwater Area Convention & Visitors Bureau
floridasbeach.com
At first glance, this city perched on a peninsula on Florida's west coast, bordered by the Gulf of Mexico to the west and Tampa Bay to the east, might appear not to have much in common with the much larger Russian version on the Baltic Sea, besides its proximity to water.
And yet...even with its beautiful shoreline, cosmopolitan St. Petersburg is hardly your average beach destination. Sure there is plenty of opportunity for sailing, deep-sea fishing and golfing (the area offers more than 50 courses), but there also are cultural and historical attractions, award-winning museums, art galleries and a vibrant arts community.
Group options: Consistently rated the top museum in the American South by Michelin Guide (three stars), the downtown Salvador Dali Museum (salvadordalimuseum.org) houses the world's most comprehensive collection of works by the late Spanish surrealist. Last December, the museum broke ground on a 66,450-square-foot expansion to enhance its community offerings.
On the city's downtown waterfront, the Museum of Fine Arts (fine-arts.org) holds the largest collection of artworks to be found on Florida's west coast, from Roman antiquities to 19th- and 20th-century American and European paintings and photography, as well as a sculpture garden.
The Florida Holocaust Museum (flhm2.org) offers a permanent collection of works of art and memorabilia from all over the world about the Holocaust and other recorded genocides.
Don't miss: The St. Petersburg Pier (stpetepier.com), a city landmark since 1899, offers sweeping views of nearby Tampa Bay's coastline from its huge outdoor observation deck. The five-story glass building houses an aquarium, restaurants and shops. Outdoors, visitors can feed the pelicans, rent paddleboats or take a boat tour of the bay.