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Hidden away just to the left of Starbucks is a corridor that leads you to a medieval courtyard. Numerous artists, craftsmen, and civil servants have lived here since medieval times, and the residences are still in use today. So much of life in medieval times took place in courtyards like this one, away from the prying eyes of the street. Stepping into Platzl Gassen feels a little bit like slipping back in time a few hundred years. Of particular interest are the houses at Platzl 2 and 3 with their “Ohrwascheln"—asymmetrical roofs.

Dozens of artists from a myriad of backgrounds and cultures—American, Texan, Mexican, Latin American—sell their work at the San Angel Folk Art gallery in San Antonio. The gallery is stocked with paintings, ceramics, paperwork, textiles, glass, and sculpture, and visitors can easily spend the better part of an afternoon viewing the exhibits and browsing the wares. With such a diverse breadth of art, there’s a piece to appeal to every collector’s tastes. Image of tin art by Chris Ake courtesy San Angel Folk Art.

This gallery has two locations and both are jammed-packed with artwork. When you walk in you have to maneuver around the paintings and artwork that are not only hanging on the walls but propped up on the floor. Every square inch of space is utilized. This contemporary gallery fashions art from all different types of artists using all different methods, oil, acrylic, sculpture. They have paintings that evoke serenity and others that are vibrant and in your face. It is truly a diverse collection.

The Christopher Martin Gallery is tucked into the corner at Aspen Grove plaza. Surrounded by other galleries this one stands out among the rest. Christopher Martin is an extremely talented artist that is based out of Aspen and Dallas. The brush strokes in his pieces are deliberate with conscientious thought in every arc of his abstract paintings. He has a specialty in reverse glass painting. All of his paintings are very bold presence and command the attention in a room. This is a stunning collection of work that you won’t want to miss.

There is a fado song proclaiming that all artists and fado singers come to A Tendinha, here in one of the oldest areas in Lisbon, founded in 1840.


At Rossio, between the old cafes like Suiça and Nicola and on the other side of the D. Maria II National Theatre, next to Arco da Bandeira, you will find this little tasca. Here you can eat ham or fresh cheese sandwiches, bifana (pork sandwich) or some fried petiscos (snacks) like the Pastel de Bacalhau, a codfish cake, and shrimp croquettes. Ask for a beer or red wine from the house to accompany.

The Tubman African American Museum, named for abolitionist Harriet Tubman, is Macon’s educational resource for school groups and curious visitors who want to learn more about African American history and culture. The first exhibit displays the mural pictured above, which tells about African American history from African heritage to the slave trade to modern-day America. In addition to information on Tubman, many prominent African Americans are featured, as well as those who helped advance civil rights. Work by artists and African American inventors are also on display.

When you live in Miami, you crave more than the glittery neon of South Beach. In Wynwood, the areas most up-and-coming hub for art and nightlife, Gramps appears like a grungy truck stop on the orange dive exterior. Inside, the bar includes live music, stand-up comedy and games. The bar serves creative speciality cocktails with flavorful, fresh ingredients. Outside, there’s an expansive patio with graffiti, art, picnic tables and live sports broadcasts projected on the buildings exterior. The vibe here is totally relaxed and vibrant. The crowd consists of hipsters, artists and fashionable hippies.

In the last two decades the shops along the narrow alleys and cobbled streets of Kazimierz have attracted a variety of artists who have set up their businesses here as the neighbouhood has become Krakow’s bohemian quarter. Visitors can now spend several hours happily browsing the shops along Ulica Jozefa. Cheder Café offers Middle Eastern snacks and is decorated in a contemporary style that is unmistakably Jewish in character and feels like a relaxed library.

A contemporary arts and crafts shop with an attached café in a lovely restored casona in Barranco. Dédalo, the brainchild of an artistic couple that studied arts and literature in Florence, features unique, carefully curated ceramics, glassware, toys, frames, clothes, jewelry and decorative pieces for all tastes.

The Huffington Post named the Hilo Farmers Market the best in the United States. For fresh local flavors, the market is open every day except Sunday. The big market days are on Wednesdays and Saturdays where more than 200 vendors including farmers and crafts people gather to sell their goods. If you’re looking for local souvenirs to take home or just a place to grab a quick fresh and tasty lunch, the Hilo Farmers Market will provide a beautiful morning or afternoon of shopping and eating.

Situated on a farm a 50-minute drive northwest of Hobart, Two Metre Tall’s brewery is worth the detour. On Fridays and Sundays, the outdoor bar serves experimental beers and ciders made with local apples, hops, and other ingredients. Don’t miss the beer-fed local beef, which visitors can barbecue on-site.

Who says nothing grows in the desert? Local flavor is fresh and on display Saturday mornings during cooler weather at the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Market, where Arizona-grown oranges and peppers are sold alongside homemade tamales and mozzarella. There are food trucks, artisanal ice cream, and cooking demonstrations from local chefs. Head to the Singh Farms stand to view the harvest of organic peaches, tomatoes, figs, peppers, and more, along with fresh-baked bread, herb butter, honey, and eggs. Most weeks, a local chef dishes out breakfast from the outdoor café on-site.

For the bohemian population of Atlanta‘s Little FIve Points neighborhood, Junkman’s Daughter is the place to buy clothing, gifts and accessories for the home. In 1982, before the neighborhood looks like it does today, local Pam Majors, the daughter of a junkman, opened a store full of her favorite bizarre tchotchkes. It soon became a favorite for visiting and local celebrities and musicians.

Active from the 13th to 15th centuries and considered an influence on the pre-Renaissance movement, the Sienese School of painting is identifiable by its themes—always religious, and usually with a focus on Biblical miracles—and its signature style, a dreamy mix of Roman, Gothic, and Byzantine influences that often feature dazzling gold backgrounds. Opened in 1932, this museum boasts one of the world’s largest collections of Sienese School works, as well as a number of Renaissance and late-medieval pieces from Italian artists. Wander through the impressive building—a combination of two 14th- and 15th-century noblemen’s palazzi—to find works like Duccio’s Madonna and Child, Michelino da Besozzo’s Mystical Marriage of Saint Catherine (celebrating the “calling” of Siena’s native daughter), and Bartolo di Fredi’s expansive Adoration of the Magi. Paired with a visit to Florence’s Uffizi, coming here offers insight into the differences—and longtime rivalry—between the two cities.

It’s fair to say that a trip to the hammam is a quintessential Moroccan experience and is a salve for the soul as much as it is for the body. Fes’s bathhouses may not have the sheer wow factor of those in Marrakech, but they perhaps offer a more intimate and authentic experience at more wallet-friendly prices. Your safest bet is to take a taxi to Nausikaa in the Ville Nouvelle and hang with locals while being treated to a deluxe treatment which involves a luxurious steam, followed by an enthusiastic scrub-down (gommage) with an exfoliating mitt (kessa) and olive oil soap, before getting slathered in rose-scented clay which leaves the skin baby-soft and sparkling. It also offers excellent pedicures and waxing.

If your heart is set on going old-school, be aware that the medina’s hammams are not always as hot, nor as clean, as you might like. In the medina, the pink and womblike hammam at Dar Bensouda is perfect if you’d prefer a private to a public hammam. It’s properly hot, and the local women who do the gommage mix their treatment lotions with lavender and chamomile as well as with other healing herbs and spices. A treatment costs 350 dirhams. The Riad Laaroussa provides a luxurious, candlelit experience. It’s the place to go if you want to experience a hammam with your partner, followed by sublimely relaxing massage. Have a cocktail in the courtyard afterwards; the orange- and cinnamon-infused gin and tonic is legend.