I was going to say what my top ten favorite cities are, but that is not relavent to this blog. I am going to tell you my top ten favorite cities anyway and my experiance with most of these cities can be counted in days. I like San Francisco as a tourist and to eat. I like Seattle as a place for good coffee. Its a jumpoff spot for many good local natural spots. It is a traditional jumpoff spot for Alaska.The local REI is the original REI it is worth a visit. I have shopped at this REI for over 30 years.
Chicago is great for food, architecture and the Field Museum of Chicago;a great museum. New York is great for food, any kind, and has a lot of tourist destinations. Then comes Washington D.C. . I was born and raised here and think the National Mall, andchances of seeing a president are great. I saw much history her in the making. The city is now very gentrified and still extremely humid.
Next on my list is Victoria, British Columbia for flowers in particular and Ottawa, Canada, for old history, and european ambiance. which may have been higher if I was not treated so rudely by French Canadians. Philidelphia, an old historical US city is very interesting so is Boston. The old and new is fascinating their so is the contrast between Dunkin Donuts on every corner, so is Starbucks, and some very old eateries.
Miami is right up there for beaches and Cuban Coffee, you want to talk about coffee that will “put hair on your chest.”
I am partial to Fort Lauderdale for beaches (this includes the city of Palm Beach). If you like exotic birds you will like all three of the Florida cities I’ve mentioned. Cheyenne Wyoming for Frontier Days, which includes great pancake breakfasts, and milkshakes. Anchorage, Alaska is not very big but the park next to it is, Chugach State Park. I am partial to Calgary, Alberta because I have been there so many times.
I have been to several foreign cities butI no very little about foreign cities. I have yet to go to many foreign cities and read that I am missing out on some very old history and very excellent food. I will never, as far as I know, get to those cities.
Honerable mentions for me: has to go to Saint Louis; an interesting city and Portland,Oregon, a very progressive city with a smalltown atmospher and big city lights.
Top ten backyard birds in the US are the American Robin, Northern Flicker, Song Sparrow, Cardinal, White-throated Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbird, Chickadee (3 species), the American Bluejay, and the Carolina or House Wren.
Believe me, and listservs from 5 states, there are some real neat backyard birds out in the US and some birds that show up more than these birds I have listed. In fact I have seen Common Redpolls, Pine Grosbeaks and Gray-crowned Rosy Finches, high end birds, at US feeders in backyards. I am just opining on some of my favorite backyard birds and they are native to the US.
Matt
