Miami's cultural transformation

It's Saturday night, and though a drizzle threatens, the lawn is jammed with children snoozing in strollers, couples sprawling on picnic...

Selma, Ala.: Crossing a bridge into civil rights history

I like to walk bridges. I've crossed the obvious: The Brooklyn Bridge, with its panorama of Manhattan, makes your heart soar. And I've...

New Orleans: Love, in good times and bad

Looking at a place you love isn't much different from looking at a person who has stolen your heart.

Kiawah Island, S.C.: Good, dirty fun

As I drove away from South Carolina's sea islands, I found myself saying aloud, "If I ever get to heaven, I hope it's a little bit like...

A prison stay with exit privileges

After ushering his visitors through the reception area, Mark Schreiber pushed a button that electronically shut a heavy iron gate.

A journey through Civil War sites

Although the Civil War was waged across the country — from Arizona to Maine — some of the heaviest and most decisive fighting...

Oxford, Miss.: The center of William Faulkner's cosmos

"The past is never dead. It's not even past," William Faulkner wrote in 1951, two years after winning the Nobel Prize for literature. It's...

Remembering the Freedom Rides 50 years later

As the bus leaves Atlanta, Dennis Climpson is eager for conversation. He wants to talk about college football this Sunday morning, but I...

Civil War deeply rooted in Virginia

On a blustery late-winter afternoon at Manassas, where a muscular statue of Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson marks the spot where the...

A Civil War road trip

Ken Burns, whose landmark documentary on the Civil War established him as one of its quintessential authorities, thinks there's no better...

Monticello's preservation forever linked to Jewish family

I've never met an American who didn't have a soft spot in his heart for Thomas Jefferson and Monticello, his home and plantation in...

Beads, balls and Moon Pies: Mardi Gras in Mobile, Ala.

Think Mardi Gras and your thoughts are apt to turn to New Orleans, where the celebration of the last day before Lent gives new meaning to...

Disney World rethinks Fantasyland makeover plans for 2012

Walt Disney World...

Fort Mose: In St. Augustine, Fla., a celebration of black history

"One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to

Orlando Thrill Park unveils 14 rides for planned Florida amusement park

In Blue Ridge Mountains, autumn hues are wedded with history

When the Blue Ridge Parkway beckons me, I answer, especially in autumn, when I long for its twists and turns, its waterfalls, natural...

Racing thrills with the Daytona 500 Experience

Henry Ford gets the credit for one of the most famous — and oldest — quotes about competitiveness among automobile drivers:...

Charleston, S.C., is a food lover's paradise

Our waiter was staring at us in disbelief. Finally, he leaned forward and, ever so politely, asked my husband to repeat himself.

Tree-lined history on Edisto Island, S.C.

Silvery Spanish moss embraces giant live oaks that line the road, touching overhead to create a cathedral ceiling. Their lacy patterns...

New Orleans' French Quarter: A novel place, still

Despite its name, Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire" isn't a play so much about a geographic destination — Desire Street...