I have to lead off with this, even though it isn't in Alabama: The International Museum of Muslim Cultures in Jackson, MS (of all places!). I visited it when I drove our synagogue youth group to Jackson for a weekend event. With time on my hands, I started looking for something fun to do and ran across an ad for this museum in downtown Jackson. It's really cool; I learned a lot of Islam's history, especially how historically it was tied much more closely to Judaism than Christianity. There was a special exhibit on the Legacy of Timbuktu and its importance in trade routes and written culture. Unfortunately, I was the only visitor in the museum on a Saturday afternoon, but the guide told me they get a lot of school groups during the week and also church and sunday school groups visit often as well. It's well worth a visit if you're in the area. I also wanted to visit Medgar Evers House, but didn't know to make a reservation in advance. Maybe next time! But now, back to Alabama... History Day Trips Helen Keller Festival - ok, so it took place last week, but the Helen Keller house and museum is very interesting. She was an amazing woman who, although it isn't well known, was one of the founding members of the American Civil Liberties Union. In another badge of honor, the Nazis burned her books. She responded this way: History has taught you nothing if you think you can kill ideas. Tyrants have tried to do that often before, and the ideas have risen up in their might and destroyed them.
You can burn my books and the books of the best minds in Europe, but the ideas in them have seeped through a million channels, and will continue to quicken other minds.
Alabama Space & Rocket Center - Learn about the history of American space travel with special emphasis on the role played by North Alabama. Alabama Civil Rights Museum Trail - Selma, Birmingham, Tuskegee, Montgomery.... it's educational and emotionally moving. USS Alabama Battleship: Ok, I LOVED this as a kid. We went numerous times and it never got old. A must see in Mobile for kids of all ages... Anniston Museum of Natural History: Natural wonders from Alabama and all over the world. A great destination if you're traveling with kids. Fun and Enteratining Alabama Shakespeare Festival: Yes Virginia, people in Alabama do enjoy Shakespeare - and more drama, comedies, and musicals. The Festival is open year-round. Botanical Gardens in Huntsville, Birmingham, and Bellingrath Gardens in Mobile: Blooms, blossoms, and botanicals from one end of the state to the other. The gardens in Birmingham are the most visited, FREE attraction in Alabama! Waterparks and rides: Point Mallard in Decatur used to be a favorite destination when I was in high school. The Wave Pool is still in operation. Alabama Adventure in Birmingham has a large water park. Small, but still fun for the kids is Southern Adventures in Huntsville. Gulf Shores has Waterville, USA - which looks like fun but has a very annoying all-Flash driven site (their web developer should be charged with malpractice) Nature and Wildlife Alabama State Park system and national forests- enjoy the mountains of North Alabama, the soothing quiet of Bankhead Forest, or camp on the beach in Gulf Shores. Desoto Falls and Little River Canyon - spectacular falls, scenery, and more in Northeast Alabama near Fort Payne and the town of Mentone (which is worth a trip all by itself, with artists, crafts, and more in a cool mountain setting). Hike the Walls of Jericho in Jackson County. The area has been called the "Grand Canyon of the South." ...visitors continue to be drawn to the grandeur of the narrow gorge. You can travel to the bottom of its 50-yard-wide limestone bowl and look up at 200-foot-tall cliffs on each side. In a heavy rain, water shoots out of holes and cracks in the rock. Flora and fauna are abundant.
I know there's a LOT more, but I have to get out to the garden before the day heats up any more. Please, add your suggestions. What cool stuff is available to do and see in your area? Alabama has a lot more to offer than crazy wingnut politics. Let's take a bit to remind ourselves of that - and who outsiders just what a beautiful state this is. Maybe with enough reminders, we can protect what we have going for us. |
That got me thinking about weekend or day trips some of us might be considering here in Alabama or in nearby states.
