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RALEIGH
, North Carolina's capital, stands on I-40 at the very heart of the state, focusing around the central, pedestrianized
Capitol Square
. The
Capitol
itself is worth a look if only to see the copy of Canova's bizarre statue of George Washington in Roman garb (MonFri 8am5pm, Sat 9am5pm, Sun 15pm; free). Just steps away the
North Carolina Museum of History
, 5 E Edenton St (TuesSat 9am5pm, Sun noon5pm; free; tel 919/715-0200), is impressively far-reaching, a chronological trot through the state's history from the viewpoint of its people, with particularly strong sections on women. Opposite is the
North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
, 11 W Jones St (MonSat 9am5pm, Sun 15pm; free; tel 919/733-7450), which looks at local geology, as well as animal and plant life, going all the way back to the dinosaur age.
The four-block
City Market
, south of the capitol, arranged around Martin Street and Moore Square, holds a number of good shops and restaurants; check out the local artists and sculptors at work in
Artspace
, 201 E Davie St (MonSat 9am5pm). US President
Andrew Johnson
was born in a tiny hut just north of where the capitol now stands; his birthplace has since been moved to
Mordecai Historic Park
, north of town at 1 Mimosa St (Mon & WedSat 10am4pm, Sun 14pm; $36). Here you can also see the
Mordecai House
, built by a wealthy plantation-owner and continuously inhabited by the same family for two centuries. A little way out to the northwest via I-40, the impressive
North Carolina Museum of Art
, 2110 Blue Ridge Blvd (TuesThurs & Sat 9am5pm, Fri 9am9pm, Sun 11am6pm; tours daily 1.30pm; free; tel 919/839-6262), has an eclectic display of works from Africa, Europe and the US. It also boasts the particularly good
Blue Ridge Restaurant
which is open for lunch Tuesday to Friday, for brunch at the weekend and dinner on Friday (tel 919/833-3548).
Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections):
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