Things to Do in North America

High in the rugged mountains of northern Guerrero State, the elegant city of Taxco de Alarcon was once an isolated Spanish stronghold. Today it is known for its mines producing rich, gleaming silver, and the generations of artisans who create some of Mexico's most beautiful jewelry.

Though every possible style is represented in the craftshops that inhabit old adobes lining the steep, cobbled streets, it is the smooth, heavy cast pieces of both modern and traditional design that are considered true Taxco style. Before you shop, stop into the city's two siver museums to see truly fine pieces: the Museo de la Plateria, which also covers the Mexico's history in silver, and the Museo Guillermo Spratling, with pottery and other exhibits.

All that glitters is not silver, however, and the city boasts several other worthy attractions. Culture lovers will love the richly detailed baroque facade and soaring interior of 18th century Catedral de Santa Prisca, while active travelers will enjoy hiking to waterfalls and mountaintops around town.

The Alamo is one of the most famous sites in United States history, forever linked to the 13-day Battle of the Alamo in 1836, which ended with the deaths of defenders James Bowie, William Travis, and Davy Crockett. Today, the 18th-century Mission San Antonio de Valero complex, now known as the Alamo, welcomes more than 2.5 million visitors per year to its chapel, barracks, gardens, and small museum.

Stand in the footprints of your favorite silver-screen legends in the courtyard of this grand movie palace, formerly known as Grauman's Chinese Theatre. The exotic pagoda theater - complete with temple bells and stone Heaven Dogs from China - has shown movies since 1927. In fact, it's still a studio favorite for star-studded premieres, captivating crowds of all ages.

It's somewhat of a tourist rite of passage to compare your hands and feet with the famous prints set in cement at the entrance court. There are some 160 celebrity squares to discover including R2D2's wheels, Jimmy Durante's nose, Betty Grable's legs, or Whoopi Goldberg's braids. Rumor has it that the tradition was started when silent film star Norma Talmadge accidentally stepped in wet cement the night of the theater's premier of Cecil B. DeMille's King of Kings.

In 2013, the theatre teamed up with TCL "The Creative Life", a Chinese electronics manufacturer, to bring the theatre into the 21st century while retaining the 85 year legacy and place in Hollywood history. In addition to a 10-year naming rights contract, this allows TCL to put their stamp on the theatre through upgrades to seats, equipment and more to enhance the movie-goers experience.

Tucked away in picturesque historic downtown Savannah, the Telfair Museum of Art holds the distinction of being the first public art museum in the American South. Architecturally crafted in Regency style, this 19th century mansion is actually one of three museums within several blocks of each other that together constitute the Telfair Museum of Art. These include: the Telfair Academy mansion/gallery, the Owens-Thomas house, and the brand new Jepson Center for the Arts. The Telfair Museum and its neighboring mansions are great examples of the historic architecture that Savannah is known for, and the new Jepson Center is a stunning architectural feat in its own, modern right. With holdings of over 4,000 pieces of German Impressionist and American French paintings, as well as a fine collection of Savannah-made silver and an interior that harkens back to its 19th century glory days, the Telfair Museum of Art is a splendid stop in the heart of downtown Savannah.

The state of Oaxaca is famous for the rugs and blankets of Teotitlán del Valle, a small town 24 km southeast of the capital. Weaving is chiefly a cottage industry in Teotitlán del Valle; you can buy rugs and blankets from street vendors, from hole-in-the-wall shops, or even from private homes.

If you’re lucky, you’ll get to see the artists in action. Although the modern weavers of Teotitlán del Valle work on a style of treadle loom introduced to the area in the 1500s by Dominican friars, Zapotec weaving traditions date back to at least 500 BC. If you visit the Zapotec ruins of nearby Mitla and Monte Albán , you’ll spot consistencies between the geometric wall frescos and the rug patterns of Teotitlán del Valle. Traditional motifs include fleches (arrows), a zig-zag pattern called relampago (lightening) and a floral shape known as the sol Zapoteca (Zapotec sun). Traditionally, these designs are woven from handspun wool colored with natural dyes made from cactus fruits, walnut husks, pecan bark, indigo, and the larvae of cochineal, an insect that lives in the nopal cactus.

If you want to continue your weaving education, check out the interesting little community museum across from Teotitlán del Valle’s mercado de artesanias (craft market).

The Texas State Capitol building and its stunning presence on the Austin landscape earns its place on the National Register of Historic Places with ease. An extraordinary example of stonework and 19th-century architecture, the Texas State Capitol is widely regarded as one of the nation’s most “stately” state capitols with its elaborate limestone work and impressive dome, which reaches 15 feet above its Washington counterpart.

Offering a panoramic view over all of Austin from the capitol dome, the 1888 Texas State Capitol has the largest square footage of any state capitol in the Unites States, and is only seconded by the National Capitol in Washington D.C. A tour through these beautiful grounds will do more than expose you to the history of Texas legislation, but will tell “a true Texas story.”