by Janet Grischy

Created on: January 31, 2009   Last Updated: April 18, 2011

America is a land of wide open spaces and glorious sights. A vacation here includes a sampling of our history for citizens and a look at an exciting vital young country for those who come to visit us. Here are some of our most shining attractions:

San Francisco

San Francisco is perfect for strolling. The Embarcadero stretches along the bay, full of people enjoying water views. There are charming works of art on display, and the Ferry Building holds quaint shops and cafes. Ferries still leave from near here to travel the bay.

A sidetrip from the Embarcadero goes up the Greenwich Steps to the top of Telegraph Hill. It's legally a street, but you'll feel as if you are exploring a secret byway. Hilly San Francisco has many public stairways to explore.

On the northern edge of the city, another promenade stretches past marshes and windsurfers to Fort Point. This walk can be extended to cross the Golden Gate Bridge. Spring and fall are the best seasons for walking in San Francisco.

Marfa Texas

The films No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood, and Giant were made in Marfa. It's in west Texas, between the Davis Mountains
and Big Bend. Amtrak passes through, but without stopping. A famous New York artist, Donald Judd, installed his art here starting in 1971. Many other artists work here now, and other art has been permanently installed in this small town.

Visiting isolated Marfa is a step off teh beaten path, and some believe it does have supernatural occurrences. The Marfa Lights, east of town, bob around, dance, and merge. The city has installed a viewing platform.

Tallgrass Prairie

The tall grass prairie is almost gone. Rich soil that nourished wild grasses grows corn and wheat now. The bison are gone as well, and most of their hunters. But in the Flint Hills of Kansas, a bit of the old ways is preserved in the Tallgrass Prairie National Park, about 85 miles northeast of Wichita.

A partnership of the Nature Conservancy and the National Park Service maintains these 10,894 acres, open from early spring to late fall. There are 500 species of plants softening rocky hills, and numberless birds, reptiles, and wild mammals.

Las Vegas

For anyone who drives to this city, it's almost like visiting Oz. From L.A.
you cross empty desert for five hours or more. Anticipation builds, until the city finally appears like a mirage. Hit the Strip after sunset, and you'll think you're inside a pinball machine. You won't be moving quickly though, the traffic is terrible! The ideal is to arrive

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