Travel to Alabama – Episode 613

Hear about travel to Alabama as the Amateur Traveler talks to travel writer Larry Bleiberg about his adopted home state.

Larry says, “Most people don’t know about Alabama. They think they know. There’s stereotypes. There’s what they heard over the years, but the truth is that the South remains one of the most colorful and least understood parts of the country. The best way to learn about it is to go there and it’s easy to do. A visit I think will turn people’s views on their head. It’s the center of civil rights history which I think a lot of people know and the best way to understand that is to visit the sites where these famed events happened. But, it’s also got incredible food, one of the most vibrant food scenes in the country right now, mountains and some of the best beaches in the country if not the world.”

We talk about an epic road trip itinerary for Alabama starting in the North with the Rocket City of Huntsville Alabama which is the home to America’s rocket program and has more PhDs per capita than any city in the U.S. It has an amazing space museum, SpaceCamp, and also has a surprising art scene.

From there we head to Muscle Shoals where many famous rock albums where recorded.

Larry takes us to his adopted hometown of Birmingham Alabama which is known for some of the civil rights sites there, but Larry says it has one of the most vibrant food scenes in the U.S.

Montgomery has just opened a sobering memorial to the victims of lynching and the Legacy Museum. It was the first capital of the Confederacy but was also where the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King Jr kick-started the modern civil rights movement. We recommend taking in a baseball game with the Montgomery Biscuits while you are there.

Mobile is the “Little Easy”. It is where Mardi Gras started in the United States. It is a lot like New Orleans but easier to navigate.

Then we head down to the beautiful white sugar sand beaches of the Gulf Shores.  Larry says, “I’ve been to Mauritius of all places in the Indian Ocean on the beaches and then I came to the Gulf Coast the next month for some reason and the Gulf Coast beaches were better.”

We talk about a few side trips to a historic bridge in Selma, the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, and of course we talk about Alabama football.

I have made 3 trips to Alabama in the last year and a half and learned what Larry learned 11 years ago. Alabama is an interesting and captivating destination.

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Show Notes

Larry Bleiberg
Civil Rights Travel
Alabama Travel
Alabama.com
Huntsville
Huntsville, Alabama – The Rocket City and More (Video #88)
Birmingham
Montgomery
Montgomery, Alabama – Civil Rights, Slavery, Lynching and the Legacy Museum (Video #98)
11 Things to Do in Montgomery Alabama
16 Great Places to Eat or Drink in Montgomery Alabama
National Memorial for Peace and Justice
Mobile
U.S. Space & Rocket Center
Lowe Mill ARTS & Entertainment
Campus 805
AM Booth’s Lumberyard
Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
Natchez Trace Trail
Birmingham Civil Rights Institute
16th Street Baptist Church
Highlands Bar & Grill
Barber Motorsports Park
Barber Motorsports Vintage Museum
Dexter Avenue Baptist Church
The National Memorial for Peace and Justice
The Legacy Museum
Rosa Parks Museum
Dexter King Memorial
Mardi Gras in Mobile
Mobile Carnival Museum
The Battle House Hotel
Gulf Shores
12 Great Things to do in Gulf Shores, Alabama
8 Great Places to Eat in Gulf Shores, Alabama
Gulf State Park
Share the Beach
Flora-bama
The Gulf
8 Great Places to Eat in Alabama
Fishers Upstairs
Fort Morgan
Selma
Selma to Montgomery
Deep South Road Trip to Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana
Bryant Museum
Mercedes-Benz U.S. International
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama
Gip’s Place
Tuskegee
Tuskegee Institute
Tuskegee Airmen Museum
Cheaha Mountain
Anniston
Freedom Riders: 50 Years Later

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