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Even though Butcher’s is a nice steak house (“elegance without arrogance” is the owner’s motto), with one of the most appealing bars in town (a full wall of gleaming bottles behind the bar, views of the Town Lift just outside the door), they double as a great place to go and watch the game. The late night menu is offered until midnight. Order the housemade potato chips topped with melted Monterey Jack and aged blue cheese.

Siwa is a desert oasis in the heart of Egypt’s Great Sand Sea, just 30km east of the Libyan border. Traditionally constructed of sand, salt and mud, many of the town’s buildings literally melted away in the torrential rains of 1926, leaving behind eerily beautiful ruins amidst this lush enclave in the middle of nowhere. The buildings were reconstructed with more modern day materials, but some of the original town structures remain, and can be explored with the aid of helpful local guides.

Remember the oldie “Under the Boardwalk” by The Drifters? The owner of Drifters Bar, Luddy Samms, tells stories of his career with The Drifters, as well as tales of singing with Eric Clapton and Stevie Winwood and Bruce Willis. Samms opened this hot-spot bar and performance venue on Seven Mile Beach in 2011, and expats, locals, and tourists flock here for cold Red Stripe, good food, and lots of live music in a variety of genres. Because this is an authentic Jamaican beach bar, though, reggae is king.

Opened in 1963, Gene McCarthy’s is a Buffalo institution. Nestled in the shadows of towering grain silos next to long-abandoned railway tracks, it’s a snapshot of the city as it once was, done up in pub tables, Irish tchotchkes, and photos of favorite locals. While not much has changed in the past five decades, the tavern did switch hands in 2012, and new owners Bill Metzger and Matt Conron decided to expand the business by adding a brewery. Now, Old First Ward Brewing Company produces more than 40 different beers on-site, then offers some on tap in Gene’s. The whole operation is the opposite of flashy, but it’s exactly what you want from a Buffalo dive bar. Visit in summer and you can even sip your suds in the seasonal beer garden, which features live music every Saturday night starting at 7 p.m.

Peru hotly contested a UNESCO recognition of Mexican food as cultural heritage, arguing its cuisine was equally worthy. While diners wait for that second designation to be made, they can drop in at San Miguel’s La Parada—literally “The Stop”—and enjoy a local taste of the Andean nation. Owner Juanito is best known for his ceviche—seafood cured in citrus juices—but also offers Los Fresquitos, coastal dishes served tapas-style; romantics should order the arroz afrodisiaco, accompanied by an artisanal Peruvian cocktail, such as the most authentic pisco sour in town. Visitors dining in large groups often go for the whole tapas menu.

The city’s most historic food hall is housed in a grand old building with a distinctive arched roof of copper and glass that lets light flood into the bustling interior. Come here to browse the 40 or so stalls and buy cakes, cheese, fish, meat, and vegetables to take away, or better yet, perch at a counter and eat right there amid all the hubbub of the market. The building was completed in 1889 and was landmarked as one of the country’s important buildings in 1985.

Cape Town’s Table Mountain National Park, which hugs the perimeter of the city, is so popular that the line for the cable car to the top can be longer than a queue for a Disneyland ride. But why stand in line when you can put your feet to use? There are several routes that lead to the top of the 3,562-foot, flat-topped mountain, including the two-mile Platteklip Gorge trail. Yes, it’s steep, but startling views of the city and the Atlantic await. Trek, get hungry, then picnic on local provisions—crackers, Dutch-style Gouda, and biltong, the thick-sliced South African jerky—before riding the cable car back down.

The multifaceted mountaintop town of Safed, located almost 3,000 feet above sea level in Upper Galilee, boasts magnificent views of the Golan Heights, Sea of Galilee, and Lebanon. The city first became prominent when the Crusaders built a fortress on the site. Jews first arrived in considerable numbers after expulsion from Spain in 1492, and Safed became a spiritual center when Kabbalah flourished under rabbis Yitzhak Luria and Joseph Caro. Safed has a thriving artists’ quarter, with studios and galleries filling the narrow alleys, and it hosts an annual klezmer festival. It also maintains a strong religious presence as one of Israel’s four holiest cities.

This lovely, nostalgic shop has been selling traditional Hawai‘ian designs—bright and botanically themed—alongside contemporary creations by owner Michael John Gillan for decades. The classic buy is a kapaeke (an heirloom quilted handbag), but you can pick up everything from USB-stick holders to kits that teach the craft. The oldest retail quilt company in Hawai‘i, it has catered to local royalty, as well as Hollywood stars, and pioneered the islands’ fabric-art tradition in Japan. Its instructors offer lessons and demonstrations at Waikiki’s Beach Walk every Tuesday from 10 a.m. to noon, as well as at the Big Island’s Queens’ Marketplace every Sunday from 1–3 p.m.

This frilly, century-old mosque, with its interesting mix of Victorian and Arabian architecture, is straight out of a Disney fairy tale. Its Corinthian columns, Doric pilasters, cinquefoil arches, and painted-glass cupolas will mesmerize you. When the green-and-cream-colored mosque was built, the surrounding neighborhood was called Kampong Kapor, or “Limestone Village.” The mosque’s staff is very welcoming and friendly to visitors who want to have a look around, and they even loan out robes to wear, as it’s considered respectful to dress modestly inside.

Germans, especially Bavarians (who are or are not Germans, depending on whom you talk to) love eating their meat and potatoes. While there, I went for a giant joint of pork with kartoffel (potato) salad. Nobody does fresh potato salad better. Sure, the famous Hofbrauhaus in Munich is a great place to sit with friends and try to avoid spraining your wrist as you suck down liter glasses of beer, but it’s also a great place to eat. Filling up helps you enjoy the beer even more and fights off the eventual intoxication as well.

This stone building, called the Mother-of-Water Fountain, is an old cistern where Lisbon locals used to fetch the water that flowed to the city along the monumental Águas Livres Aqueduct. Now, inside the cool walls, a wine bar has been constructed. Journalist and wine critic João Paulo Martins has selected the 300 labels stocked in the wine cellar (some stored in bottles along the stone chutes that used to rush with water). Small plate selections like carpaccio, seafood, cheeses, and different kinds of cold cuts can be ordered to accompany your wine. During happy hour, between 6 and 8:30 p.m., several wines are available by the glass or in curated flights.

Yes, Mag is a great place for a morning, Saturday brunch, and light lunch, but it is also an excellent spot for those who love a great cocktail. Head to Navigli in the late afternoon to watch Flavio, Marco, and Francesco mix creative concoctions based on old-school recipes and lots of innovation. Drinks to try: the Aviation (gin, lemon juice, maraschino liqueur, crème di violette), One Piece (a modified Old Fashioned), and really, anything they offer.

Shop for an authentic souvenir in Everything but Match, a store inspired by a T-shirt line designed by the owners’ 6-year-old daughter. In this shop in Old San Juan, you’ll find original art, accessories, and children’s clothing made by local artists and artisans. From unique jewelry to brightly colored throw pillows, you’re sure to fall in love with something unique to bring home in your suitcase.

Nina Compton, a native of Saint Lucia in the Caribbean, came to New Orleans a few years ago to compete in the Top Chef television series. She didn’t win the culinary slugfest, but New Orleans came out ahead—a short time later she returned to set down roots by opening Compère Lapin, a charming, brick-accented restaurant in a hotel that’s a reasonable stroll from the French Quarter. It’s good to get there early to grab a drink at the bar, which treats its libations with the same seriousness as the kitchen does its food. (A frozen drink… with chartreuse.) The dishes are alive with creative Caribbean flavors—among the more memorable plates are the seafood pepper pot, black drum, and curried goat.