Laurie's light travel travel tips

Anyone can visit Paris, LA, New York or San Francisco. But it takes some pluck and imagination to plan a vacation to a place that might not have had a million movies shot there, or where Zagat or Fodor's frequent. In that vein, I am introducing you to ten towns less traveled and hope you'll see what I see in them. First: I've been coming to South Texas and specifically, the seaside city of Corpus Christi, since I was a baby. My grandmother lived in a house in a small town just west of here, and taught me to roam the beaches at "Padre" to cull shells. We'd Elmer Glue them to cigar boxes (not sure where those boxes came from because my Southern Baptist grandma certainly didn't condone smoking!) and create cherished mementos. It's been nearly 30 years since she passed, but when my bare feet hit the sand of these Gulf of Mexico beaches I can still recall that joy. You should visit Corpus if you're looking for a slower pace than Austin or Houston,...

Moab, Utah is the kind of location one doesn't forget easily, even 45 years after visiting, and living where one is taught to believe that only the coasts are relevant. Bah, humbug. The Southwest is where it's at - not only for intrepid adventurers seeing to rappel down cliffs, whitewater raft, horseback or hot balloon ride, but for the poets, the seekers, the be-ers. For this is a soul-enriching slice of the country, a place where Americans can proudly say, "This is ours." TOURISIM SPIKE IN MOAB According to Moab Adventure Center's Brandon Lake - an ideal monicker for a guy who specializes in outdoor trips - tourism in the Southwest has spiked in recent years, "specifically in Moab. We’ve had, continually, new hotels popping up. There are 10 under construction right now, all because of this incredible demand. " The "influx of people" in the Moab area, which is three and a half hours south of Salt Lake City and not far from the Colorado bor...