Birmingham, USA - Alabama

Alabama strikes a chord in one's mind when talking about Southern charm, and it doesn't get much more "down home" than Birmingham. Right in the center of this cheese block of a state, Birmingham is a testament to US folklore, and was, interestingly enough, the center of many of the nation's most captivating and influential civil disputes over the centuries. Warmth comforts residents here for nearly the whole year, and though summers on prairie land aren't quite cool per se, activities taking place during this time often are arranged to make the best of the heat. Birmingham is a city built on natural resources, whether coal, iron ore, or limestone, and reminders from its peak mining days are only too many to ignore. Visit any number of the city's museums and something is bound to mention strikes or accidents, even a few photographs will jump out at you, depicting soot-masked faces. Today, however, it can very likely be easily corroborated that the city's tourism businesses bring in more than just about anything else. Birmingham now sports a deluxe motorsports park where the whine of vehicles can seemingly be heard in the air days, even hours after a race's end. With the foot of the Appalachian Mountains at its edge, Birmingham is also a gathering ground for hikers, bikers, and hunters. Of course, animal rights activists won't be quite so pleased by the allowance of the latter, but while careening down single-track on a downhill two-wheeler even members of such groups may have trouble prioritizing critters over loose rocks.

When to go

Cotton farming is big in Alabama, and these particular textile crops love the summer for its high humidity levels. If plantation life is one of your secret loves, you can come to Birmingham while the sun shines for great stretches and bask in the country where your clothing is likely to have gotten its material. The southern US offers springs and autumns that are much more pleasing to visitors, but with spring come massive pollen infestations and autumn - well, autumn is left standing tall. (Unless, of course, you're no fan of colorful scenery or the occasional slip on a wet leaf.)

Getting there and around

Though it's no capital city, nor a massive hub for travelers coming in and out of the US, Birmingham does carry a good share of cross-border traffic. Providing mostly inter-continental access from Canada and Mexico, Birmingham International Airport receives a great number of domestic flights, and boarding one from Miami or New York is key for Europeans looking to visit the town. Only a few miles away from downtown, the airport gives plenty of options to people in terms of transit; buses, taxis, and rental cars are all available for the taking. If the city is swamped with fellow visitors, you may wish to bear it and utilize the city's public transportation services, but if you happen to catch Birmingham in a slow period, you can easily scoot by with a vehicle of your own. Parking spots are not guaranteed, but you'll be saved from cramps or thoughts analogous to sardine cans.

Attractions

Even folks with no ancestral connections will find their emotions challenged in one of Birmingham's most renowned sites, the Civil Rights Institute. Both a center for carrying out rights operations today and a museum for hundreds of yesterdays, the Civil Rights Institute is an all-inclusive trip through the Birmingham riots and numerous other demonstrations, triumphs and tribulations between 1950 and 1970. Though it may not be the most popular, nor the most architecturally celebrated site in Birmingham, the 16th Street Baptist Church is undoubtedly the city's most famous landmark. The place of a 1963 Ku Klux Klan bombing that left four families and hundreds more civil rights activists mourning losses, the 16th Street Baptist Church is an example of persistence, determination and resolve for the US as a whole.