Experience the best of Raleigh

Raleigh, the capital of North Carolina, is known as the City of Oaks for the old trees that shade its streets. The State Capitol, a Greek Revival building of 1840, stands in the centre of downtown, and nearby the North Carolina Museum of Natural History and the Museum of History explore the state's wildlife, science and past. Moore Square and the Warehouse District hold restaurants, galleries and bars.

The North Carolina Museum of Art has a large park of outdoor sculpture and trails around it, and Historic Oakwood and Mordecai Historic Park keep nineteenth-century houses and gardens. Umstead State Park and Falls Lake provide woods and water close to town. Together with Durham and Chapel Hill, Raleigh forms the Research Triangle, home to three major universities. The Blue Ridge Mountains lie to the west and the Outer Banks to the east.

North Carolina barbecue, pulled pork with a tangy vinegar sauce, shows up beside hush puppies, collard greens, biscuits and sweet tea, and shrimp and grits is another favourite. The State Farmers Market sells local produce and plants. Summers are hot and humid, winters mild, and spring brings flowering dogwoods and azaleas.