Hoover is an affluent suburb south of Birmingham, AL.  The population is about 71,000 and the median household income is $81,000. The town has grown and prospered thanks to good planning and the Riverchase Galleria shopping complex.  Hoover also has a minor league baseball team. It is close enough to Birmingham for city type pleasures but far enough away to…...

Located in the Chilean Lakes District, Puerto Varas bills itself as the new Bariloche. With similar lakeside views and stunning surrounding mountains, the town is certainly justified in making the comparison. However, while every other shop in Bariloche sells souvenirs and ugly apartment buildings block views for most people, Puerto Varas remains a much more tranquil and undeveloped town. Considerably…...

Berea, Kentucky makes an unusual and historic retirement community for active adults. It is not only one of the fastest growing towns in America (estimated 73% growth from 2000 to 2010), but it is also one of the most unusual small towns in the south. The town was founded by abolitionist missionaries in 1853. They established Berea College, a coeducational…...

Manchester is a town east of Hartford with about 56,000 people in it.  It is an old town and was once famous for its silk mill. Photo of Shenipsit Trail tree with blue blaze near Case Mountain in Manchester, CT courtesy of Wikipedia and Gdisanto (public domain); photo from postcard of Cheney Brothers Mills, South Manchester, 1920, aerial view, courtesy of…...