Search results for

Much of the buzz around Brooklyn in recent years has focused on Williamsburg and, to a lesser degree, the nearby Bushwick and Greenpoint districts. Downtown Brooklyn and its neighbor, Fort Greene, have been enjoying a renaissance too, however. One welcome addition to the scene in that part of the borough is the Dekalb Market Hall, which opened in the summer of 2017. It’s sort of a small, and year-round, version of the popular Smorgasburg, offering an opportunity to sample dishes from some 40 different vendors. In the basement of the City Point shopping center on Fulton Street, many of New York’s venerable and upcoming restaurants are represented. Katz’s Deli, the Arepa Lady, and Dekalb Taco will satisfy your longing for something savory, while Ample Hills ice cream and Steve’s Key Lime Pies cater to your sweet tooth. New York’s first Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is also here if you want to have a cocktail and see a movie before or after your meal.

Terraced like the surrounding rice paddies, Soori Bali occupies an undeveloped stretch of fertile coastline roughly 25 minutes from Tabanan, a town northwest of Denpasar known for traditional farming and artisan crafts. The resort’s modern design plays on the shapes, colors, and landscapes of the surrounding area and incorporates local stone. (At the recommendation of the surrounding village’s elder, the property also constructed 10 stone temples onsite within the property.) Outdoor spaces feature bright green trees and grasses along with infinity pools, while high ceilings, cool colors, and marble floors inside create a tranquil escape from the heat. The property’s spacious rooms and wood-slat shades give off an art-gallery vibe, and the reading-room lounge displays the works of the hotel’s artists in residence. Food is another big focus here, both at the resort’s three restaurants and in tours that explore rice cultivation, exotic ingredients found at the Kerambitan market, and the spices, cacao, and coffee from nearby Jatiluwih.

The perfect place to shop for anything and everything from all the islands is the 155-year-old public market called Le Marché. Located two blocks from the waterfront in the heart of Papeete, the market covers two stories. The lower level is filled with hundreds of stands offering Tahitian-made crafts, oils, vanilla, fruits, and flowers. Upstairs is reserved for artisans selling pareos, carvings, Tifaifai wall hangings and quilts, embroidered cushion covers, and other handicrafts. You’ll also find a few good shops for purchasing unique black pearl jewelry at fair prices. An on-site cafeteria serves local dishes. Le Marché is not just a tourist attraction, however—it’s a proper market where locals come to shop for meat, fish, fresh flowers, and produce and to chat with friends over coffee at one of the patisseries.

Start your dive into Maputo’s interesting historic downtown area, the Baixa, at the Maputo Central Market—a covered market built in 1901 inside a Portuguese colonial building. It can get hot and crowded inside, but it’s well worth a little bit of sweat to witness the near-constant buzz of activity from early morning to afternoon as vendors hawk everything from tropical fruits and vegetables to seafood, nuts (don’t miss the cashews), handmade batiks, wood carvings and other souvenirs. Afterward, it’s a five-minute walk from the market to Baixa’s popular Café Continental for a tasty pastel de nata pastry and a cup of strong coffee.

Built in 1891, St. Lucia’s most colorful and largest open-air market sits in the heart of its capital. It’s a one-stop-shopping favorite for fruits, vegetables, spices, handmade arts and crafts, and even handwoven beachwear. The produce is definitely the highlight. The stall tables are beautifully set and decorated, while the fragrance of herbs and condiments fills the air, turning it into a multisensory island experience. The market is open daily, 7 a.m.–1 p.m., but the most active morning is Saturday. After shopping, grab a seat at the adjacent annex to sample some local foods—a breakfast bowl of cow-foot soup (the perfect hangover cure) or a Creole fish lunch.

Spoken of in almost reverential terms by people that have traveled there, Sa Pa is often seen as a holy grail of destinations in Vietnam. Part of that is because of the environment—a cool mountain town that has lured visitors with its salubrious air and alpine scenery since the early 20th century, when the French constructed facilities for sick officers to recover—as well as its remoteness, located close to the Chinese border in the country’s extreme north. Most visitors come to Sa Pa for the hiking in the nearby valley peppered with minority-ethnic-group villages, or to climb Mount Fansipan, the country’s tallest peak, which is located just southwest of the town. Conquering the summit once required a two-to-three-day hike, but now can more easily be reached with the help of a cable car (opened in 2016) that gets you most of the way.

The largest luxury hotel in the city, the Charleston Place takes up a full city block with entrances on King and Meeting streets; the latter leads to the grand lobby, with its imperial open-arm staircase, 12-foot crystal chandelier, and Italian marble floors. Its 433 large guest rooms have old-fashioned Southern details like mahogany and damask furnishings. The hotel’s lower level houses fine-dining restaurant Charleston Grill, an attractive hotel bar, a large indoor saltwater pool with a retractable glass roof, and a shopping arcade with designer stores. The hotel recently began a $150 million renovation but will remain open as the property is upgraded from stem to stern.

Inside the Mercado 20 de Noviembre you’ll find many food stalls to choose from. The Comedor Maria Teresa (Local #38) is a good bet. They have excellent mole, which you can enjoy with chicken and rice, or in enchiladas, as pictured above. A full Oaxacan breakfast starts with a chocolate de leche and pan de yema. The chocolate is served in a bowl to make it more convenient for dunking your bread. Later in the day choose a tlayuda or caldo de pollo. You really can’t go wrong!

The Laxminarayan Temple (also called the Birla Mandir) is an elaborate Hindu temple of red and white columns, artificial mountains, and waterfalls. The temple was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi with the condition that the site would be open to all castes and faiths. “Laxmi Narayan” refers to the Hindu God Vishnu, the Preserver, with his consort Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth and Prosperity. There are also three side-temples dedicated to Buddha, Shiva, and Krishna. The temple is illuminated during two important holidays: Diwali, the Festival of Lights, and Janmashtami, Krishna’s Birthday.

Madrid’s multi-level Mercado San Anton is a sight to be seen. Rows of gorgeous produce, local specialties, Italian deli favorites, briny seafood and locally-farmed meats line the perimeter of each floor, each stall more enticing than the one before it. Even better, its high tables and counters make it well-suited for a quick bite and glass of wine. For a relaxed sit-down meal, head up to the restaurant on the rooftop terrace and finish off the evening with a drink in the lounge.

Take a stroll down one of the cobbled streets of Valladolid and you might come across a cart peddling “volcanos.” The busy vender sells one item: a thick masa bun stuffed with chili marinated pulled pork and topped with red onion. For an extra kick, pour on a spoonful of homemade habenero sauce, but be careful! These small pockets pack heat.

No matter how much people seem to know about the giant Alaska-grown vegetables they hear about on the national news, they’re always surprised that—surprise!—Alaska has farms, and those farms grow loads of different things. Here’s some proof: The tables at the Tanana Valley Farmers Market overflow with goodness grown under the midnight sun. All those hours of sunlight make it possible for farmers to turn over more crops per summer than a cranky French maître d’ turns over tables at a busy bistro. But even if you’re not up for just chomping down on sweet, sweet Alaska-grown carrots for lunch—and seriously, you should consider doing just that—there are plenty of other food vendors at the market. Crafty fun stuff, too. Your souvenir shopping? Done!

Altensteig is a little town in the Northern Black Forest, about 1h away from Stuttgart. It’s very traditional German, quiet and filled with superb architecture. Their Christmas Market is small, about 60 chalets, but so cute.

Cruising down the Garonne river onboard the AmaDolce, the first port we called on was Cadillac, located about 19 miles from the city of Bordeaux. Cadillac, founded in 1280, is a small fortified town, and I bet their charming Sunday market is probably just as old. The market occupies a number of streets in the town center–you won’t miss it. It’s a great place to try all sorts of local specialties (seafood, breads, cheese, sausages), and of course to people watch. The locals not only do their weekly grocery shopping here, markets are also a real social event in France. Friends catch up, stories are exchanged, laughter rings through the streets. Stock up on your picnic needs, as you’ll have no challenge finding a picturesque spot to sit down and snack along the Garonne.

No worries about the little goose pictured here, it already had a name by the time the buyer walked away from the stand. Definitely pet, not food.

Let the Urubamba River set your course during a thrilling rafting adventure along the Ollantaytambo rapids, available through the Belmond. The river helped form what is now the Sacred Valley, and along the way you’ll not only sense its power, but also get a feel for some less visited corners of the region it created. You’ll pass towering eucalyptus trees and the ruins of Inca terraces and more as you make your way down river, ending with a picnic lunch before returning to the hotel by car. Photo by Rod Waddington/Flickr.