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The Cellar, an upscale restaurant located at the Oryx Rotana Hotel, offers a new brunch concept in town, “TapBrunch” a mixture between tapas and brunch. Seafood, cured meats, bruschettas. olive-based pickles, fried anchovies, calamari and paella are their forte. Available every Friday for 175 QAR or $48 (food only) per person or 275 QAR, or $74 with unlimited sangria.

The Ravoux Inn (also known as the Maison de Van Gogh) is located in the town of Auvers-sur-Oise, just north of Paris. When Vincent van Gogh lived there for just 3.50 francs a day, Auvers-sur-Oise was already a picturesque village attracting impressionist artists. He spent the last months of his life here, and prolifically and feverishly produced more than 80 paintings in just 70 days. Today there’s a walk [link] around town, with signs showing reproductions of many of his final paintings right in front of the still existing subject matters (churches, walkways, landscapes, etc). The Ravoux Inn has kept its original feel, and and although its a short visit (including a brief film), it’s fascinating to find yourself in Mr. Vincent’s room (as he was known to the inn keepers). OPEN (2017): March 1st – October 29th Wed – Sun 10am - 6pm FEES Adults: - 6€ (no preferential rate) - 4€ (handicapped) Children: - 12 to 17 years: 4€ - Under 12: free Lunch and dinner is served as well, from 1st March to 26 November: Lunch: Wednesday – Sunday: 12:00pm to 14:15pm Dinner: Fridays and Saturdays only 7:30 to 9:00pm >>>Warm thanks to my lovely friends at AmaWaterways for an unforgettable river cruise on the Seine from Paris to Normandy. My visit to Auvers–sur–Oise and the Maison de Van Gogh was one of many excursions available daily at no additional cost. Great concept, AmaWaterways!

Located at the northeastern end of Fakarava, Rotoava is one of the busiest towns in the Tuamotus, although it’s hardly a booming metropolis. While most of the island’s population lives here, there are just a few streets, and it is easy to explore on foot. Check out the churches, the two or three shops, the town hall and the village school. You’ll also find most of the guesthouses—and correspondingly, restaurants—here as well.

Taking a turn around the town center is a long-standing tradition in most of Mexico‘s pueblos and even its biggest cities. It’s in these centers where you’ll find small and charming shops, cafés and restaurants, live music and public art installations. Manzanillo’s center is tiny and not as traditional as many others in Mexico, but still offers the opportunity to get a glimpse of daily life.

It’s worth saying upfront: Tacón de Marlin isn’t the spiffiest-looking place in town, but you’ve probably never eaten better fast food in your life. Repeat travelers to PV make a beeline to Tacón de Marlin, where oversized burritos and tacos (hence the name “Tacón,” which means “Giant Taco”) are the house specialties. Shrimp, octopus and other toppings pulled fresh from the sea are the favorite fillings of locals.

In the tiny, quirky town of Hilo, a perfect date night starts with a stroll on the elevated sidewalks along the Victorian-style storefronts to check out the local creative scene. It ends at Kaleo’s Restaurant, where flip-flops are welcome and smiles guaranteed in the finest restaurant in town. The farmhouse appearance of Kaleo’s is indicative of the warmth put into the menu—a locally inspired selection of flavors that includes such dishes as Dynamite, a seafood and mushroom dish with veggies baked in spicy mayo, or the hearty Kaluna steak and potatoes. Cap it all off with a Chocolate Lava Cake while you reminisce over your molten experiences at Volcanoes National Park. But before digging into dessert, enjoy the live music—it creates a lovely atmosphere to let the romance sizzle.

On the banks of the river Zaan, time stopped three centuries ago at Zaanse Schans. In this recreation of a Dutch village in the 17th–18th centuries, stroll down streets lined with typical green wooden houses, manicured gardens and graceful bridges. Poke into tradesmen’s workshops, historic windmills and tiny boutiques. See how wooden clogs are made and watch pewter jewelry fashioned before your eyes. Discover how artisanal Dutch cheese is crafted and purchase a wheel of Gouda or Edam to take home. Refuel with coffee and apple pie in one of numerous restaurants within the village. Explore a few museums and round off your visit with a boat trip on the river. Although several museums at Zaanse Schans charge for admission, there’s no entry fee at the popular tourist attraction created by relocating houses, windmills, storehouses and barns to form a replica of a typical Zaanse village. Alongside clusters of windmills, characteristic wooden houses and unique shops, traditional Dutch crafts are showcased and the lifestyles of people who lived in Holland long before sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll entered the picture are revealed.

Scaling Mount Kenya, the country’s highest and the continent’s second-highest mountain, is on the bucket list of many adventurers. The jagged summit peaks, sharp cliffs, and snowcapped crags can be seen on the northern road from Nairobi when the mountain is not shrouded in clouds. Hiking this monster usually takes from three to seven days, depending on fitness levels. Of the different possible routes up, the popular Chogoria route passes through lush green pastures and by icy blue lakes, crossing dusty martian landscapes along the way. The highest point hikers can reach without specialized climbing equipment is Lenana, more than 16,000 feet above sea level.

Starting in 2014, this collection of historic buildings was reinvented as a gastronomic hub—helping to revitalize the city’s downtown in the process. An early 20th-century citrus packing warehouse became the Anaheim Packing House, a virtual United Nations of food: Walking through the 42,000-square-foot hall, you’ll find citrusy ceviche at Urbana, fried chicken sandwiches at Sweetbird, garden-fresh hot pot at Rolling Boil, organic curry at ADYA, and matcha shaved snow at I Am. Craft beer—quickly becoming a signature of Southern California—is in no short supply, thanks to bars like Anaheim Brewery, housed inside a 1925 mission revival building. A circa 1917 marmalade factory became the MAKE Building, where you can linger over a flight of California reds at Pali Wine Co. or a plate of pulled pork at Jav’s Barbecue. The compact district is distinctly Californian, from the succulents and air plants inside to the palm trees and olive groves of Farmers Park outside—a grassy knoll where, at any given time, you might happen upon a free yoga class, a gardening demo, or a live acoustic band playing under the sun.

New safari tents at an iconic central California coast resort invite guests to glamp under the redwood trees. Nightly turndown service, included. Big Sur is once again open for business following last spring’s debilitating mud slides, and autumn is an especially luminous time to explore this legendary stretch of central California coast, some 20 miles south of Carmel. Big Sur’s magic lies in its untamed wilderness: redwood groves, chaparral-covered hills, and iconic rocky cliffs that sprout improbably from the ocean. Condors circle overhead and sea otters float just offshore. For many, the isolation—and peace and quiet—that Big Sur offers is the reason to return again and again. For travelers seeking a soft landing, the Ventana Big Sur resort recently reopened under new ownership and after a massive renovation. New glamping cabins have been added to the 59 rooms, suites, and villas spread throughout the resort’s 160 acres. Shaded by redwoods, the 15 safari-style canvas tents come equipped with hickory walking sticks, portable lanterns, and access to a bathhouse with teak-lined showers and heated floors. Guests can enjoy nightly turndown service and the use of fire pits for making s’mores in the evening. As part of the renovation, the Ventana also built an on-site gallery to showcase paintings, sculptures, jewelry, ceramics, and photography by Big Sur’s most renowned artists. And the new Sur House restaurant—helmed by executive chef Paul Corsentino, who worked in New York and Chicago before heading west—houses a 10,000-bottle wine cellar that highlights small-production central coast wineries. Guests eager to embrace the region’s back-to-nature philosophy might appreciate a soak in the heated, clothing-optional Mountain Pool, undoubtedly more pleasant to ease into than the roiling, frigid Pacific Ocean just down the hill. This appeared in the Jan/Feb 2018 issue.

Along with the Isla de los Pájaros (Bird Island), the Isla de los Lobos (also called Sea Lion Island) is another of the main wildlife sights along the Beagle Channel. The rocky outcrop is home to hordes of South American sea lions—characterized by large heads and orangish color—as well as South American fur seals. Depending on which vessel you are on and how close you get, it may be possible to hear the animals’ barking chorus. If you think you can see small penguins on the island, note that they’re probably cormorants.

Fushimi Inari Taisha on Inariyama mountain is dedicated to the Shinto gods of rice and sake, but Inari is also the god of merchants and that brings a lot of businesspeople to worship here. Everyone else stops by to see the thousands of vermilion torii, or gates (each of which is funded by a Japanese company). They lead to the main shrine, which was built in 1499. Walking underneath the gates is like passing through a fiery tangerine tunnel, and visitors leave behind tiny torii replicas as part of their prayer.

The largely French-inspired menu at Republique has more than a few surprises on it, like the generous selection of oysters and kanpachi crudo in Thai green curry and peanuts. The high ceilings, walls of windows, and loads of natural light make the atmosphere ideal, as the omnipresent line outside suggests. The grilled octopus salad—made with cabbage, Santa Barbara pistachios, chile, citrus, and lime—is a must. Brunch, however, is the real draw. The brioche French toast is doused in Vermont maple syrup; pupusas come with Oaxacan cheese, avocado, a fried egg, and roasted poblano; and the kimchi fried rice is dished up with beef short ribs and eggs.

An enchanting mix of terra cotta–roofed buildings (some dating to the 15th century), colorful flowers and patterned mosaic pavements, Funchal Old Town still has the quaint small-town feel it did centuries ago. The main attractions are the Mercado dos Lavradores (farmers market), the Madeira Story Center, Forte São Tiago and the Feira da Lagartixa (flea market).

Despite being so close to the harbor and the ocean, Reykjavík’s city lake has a charm and atmosphere all its own. Bordered by a main road on one side and a string of pretty, colorful residences on the other, the natural, stone-edged Tjörnin is home to a community of ducks, swans, and geese that hang out here even in winter. A popular strolling spot to clear the cobwebs after a night out, it’s also often busy with local families and visitors, who come armed with bread for the waterfowl (but beware of the seagulls—they can be aggressive). The nearby Reykjavík City Hall is also worth a look for its huge 3-D relief map of Iceland, featuring clearly marked glaciers, volcanoes, and fjords.