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Named after a Paiute word meaning “big fish,” Panguitch Lake originally served as a fishery for the area’s native people. The U.S. government built a dam to nearly double the lake’s surface area to 1,248 acres, increasing the shoreline to around 10 miles. It’s now a prime spot to set up camp and visit the three nearby national parks as well as Cedar Breaks National Monument. Thanks to its high-country location in Dixie National Forest, the area also stays relatively cooler than the surrounding lower elevations. The closest accommodations include three campgrounds; activities in the vicinity range from angling and hiking to ATV rides.

Take a break from the city’s frenetic energy with a visit to the Palermo Botanical Garden, just south of the port next to Villa Giulia Park. Established in 1786, the 10-hectare (25-acre) gardens contain plants from around the world: Southeast Asian palms, coffee and papaya trees, even cotton plants and sugarcane. A terraced pond blooms with lotus and water lilies, while the ruins of the 14th-century Church of Saint Dennis can be found amid the greenery.

Parque de los Novios, in the center of Santa Marta’s colonial sector, is perfect for people-watching in the late afternoons when the tropical heat abates. Everyone from the gentry to the common folk—not to mention a plethora of brides posing beneath the gazebo—seems to treat themselves to a nice stroll around the park. Nearby restaurants and bars come alive after night falls, as do, of course, street artists and musicians.

Located in historic downtown Williams, Arizona, just outside of Grand Canyon National Park, Red Raven Restaurant is cozy and casual with a brick exterior painted fire-engine red. The kitchen is small but sends out gourmet comfort food to diners seated in its high-ceilinged dining room. They tuck into dishes such as portabella and zucchini fries with a balsamic reduction sauce, broiled pork medallions topped with cilantro pesto and tempura-style broccolini, and a lamb and vegetable stew made with Guinness. Seating at this husband-and-wife–owned establishment is limited, so definitely call ahead.

Austinites had seen pizzas come in square or rectangular shapes before brothers Brandon and Zane Hunt arrived from Michigan, but they may not have associated the style with Detroit. Cooked in replicas of metal pans used on automotive assembly lines, these thick pies have a cheesy layer that extends to the edge of each slice. The Detroiter features two types of pepperoni, one smoked and one natural casing, mixed with a layer of cheese, atop tomato sauce, with some of the curled cups of pork riding to the surface of the slice. The brothers started with one pizza trailer and have since expanded to two brick-and-mortar locations and added a second trailer.

On Karlin’s impossible to pronounce Krizikova street (where the neighborhood’s foodie scene is most visible), this inviting wine bar was among the venues to solidify the foodie scene here. Led by oenophile and poet Bogdan Trojak, Veltlin offers natural wines (what they prefer to call authentic wines) from the former Austro-Hungarian empire with a diversity of blends from the Czech Republic’s Moravian and Bohemian regions to Croatia and Austria. You can check the menu online to see the day’s open bottles on offer. A local illustrator is behind the whimsical map of the former empire adorning one wall.

Lago Dos Bocas is a perfect place to take the family to spend a day. This man-made lake is situated behind a dam in the Utuado/Arecibo region of the west/central part of Puerto Rico. There is small park that is freely open to the public and is operated by the Department of Transportation. There are ferry rides around the island that leave on the hour, and these 20 minute rides are free of charge. The main draw of this area are the restaurants situated along the shoreline, to which the boats can bring you to for an meal of local comida criolla. Be sure to head there on the weekend to catch these places during open hours! photo by chelsea harms

This 2.5-kilometer (1.5-mile) promenade along the vast Guayas River is part public park, part urban playground filled with restaurants, cafés, shops, a clock tower, an IMAX theater and even a Ferris wheel. From the docks, small boats leave on river tours or head to Santay Island, a wildlife refuge on the eastern side of the river. At La Rotonda, a statue of Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín commemorates their meeting in Guayaquil after the liberation of Ecuador from Spain.

Château de Montaigne is worth a detour, especially if you need a little break from the wine tastings, that Bordeaux is so known for. The 14th century castle is nestled deep in the countryside near Bergerac and Saint-Émilion and was once the residence of Michel de Montaigne, one of France’s most important, early philosophers. If you haven’t heard of him, he is the one you may (or may not) thank for making essays popular as a literary genre.

The towering 60-kilometer-long (37-mile-long) Pío XI Glacier, also called Brüggen, is the granddaddy of all Patagonian glacial ice fields. Located in Bernardo O’Higgins National Park, the glacier takes a 90-degree turn on its way down to the sea and is almost twice as large as Singapore. Glaciologists are not entirely clear on why Pío XI is the rare glacier—along with Argentina’s nearby Perito Moreno at the base of the Torres del Paine cordillera—that is growing rather than receding.

A Starwood Luxury Collection hotel in the heart of historic Cuzco, Palacio del Inka occupies a former palace, built by the Incans as part of the Coricancha (the centerpiece of their empire). Since ancient times, it’s had many lives—it was seized by the Spaniards in the 16th century, served as a museum in the 1800s, and finally became a hotel in the 1970s. Today, the property features artwork and artifacts from both the Incan and colonial eras, which guests can tour each day at 5 p.m.

Situated around a large central courtyard, the 203 rooms are decorated in a colonial motif, with carved-wood furnishings, jewel tones, and gold accents. Also on-site is a small but very nice spa with a hydrotherapy pool, dry sauna, Turkish bath, whirlpool tub, and showers with lighting effects, as well as a small gym with cardio machines and weights. While Palacio del Inka is just a few minutes to Plaza de Armas and its many eateries, guests would be remiss to not dine at least once at the hotel’s Inti Raymi Restaurant, which serves Andean and international dishes made with locally sourced ingredients. Before dinner, grab a drink at the Rumi Bar, which offers excellent cocktails and a free pisco tasting each night at 6 p.m.

The apéritif of choice in the Dordogne (and in many parts of France) is this sweet dark liquor called walnut wine, but there’s nary a grape in site. The vin de noix is made from young green walnuts harvested between La Fete de St. Jean (June 24) and Bastille Day (July 14), when the shells are still soft and green. Walnut wine is a typically home-brewed concoction. Think moonshine, with a sophisticated French flair. Though I have found it commercially, the best accompanies a good meal with friends around a kitchen table or at the region’s numerous Fermes Auberges (Farmhouse Inns), where all products are made on site. Walk in to any home and you’ll likely be offered a sip. There are hundreds of family recipes for this elixir, each claiming to be the best, bien sur! But most agree, the longer it sits in the cupboard, the better (6 months to years). But it’s worth the wait. Recipe: green walnuts, dry red wine, sugar, and some patience. Et Voila! I’ve often been asked what it tastes like, and my description usually results in a nose wrinkle. A blend of port and prune juice---and it’s delicious. My friend Roland, knowing my love of the apéritif and the memories it summons, sent me these two glasses he’d found in an antique shop in Perigueux, along with a small bottle of his homemade walnut wine. I set the glasses out on my terrace, poured in the chocolate-hued liquor, and toasted to the memory of my beloved Dordogne, and the people from there who have flavored my life.

Color, shape, and naked geology: Northern Arizona appeals to the senses in the most elemental ways. Agnostic hikers, secular scientists, souls searching for spiritual energy — all end up in Sedona, seeking and finding. Mid-week in this red-rock country, we found a few days of calm: early morning trails around town, and afternoons in galleries seeking shelter from summer thunderstorms. Weekends bring crowds from Phoenix, just two hours to the south, but away from pavement, you can still get away into the elements.

Donsol, in southeast Luzon, is the perfect place to snorkel with whale sharks, otherwise known as butanding. Each year from November to May, possibly the largest school of whale sharks in the world migrates here to feed on the dense concentration of plankton and krill in the area. Donsol’s whale shark interaction is strictly regulated to protect the creatures and their natural habitat. They are not captive and are not fed by the local fishermen, so whether they appear or not is pure chance. A small boat takes you out to the bay and spotters cue you to jump in and swim alongside the whale sharks as they begin to near the surface. It’s an incredible experience to be so close to these huge beasts, which are typically four to 12 meters long in Donsol (though residents claim, of course, to have seen larger). They look like spotted submarines, but luckily have a gentle disposition and are surprisingly graceful.

Located in the heart of hip Northcote, Ruckers Hill is a great place to take in the Melbourne city skyline. Bike over in the afternoon along the Yarra River and Merri Creek (which will take you past Abbotsford Convent, Collingwood Children’s Farm, and Yarra Bend Park) to enjoy the view at sunset. Then, get a taste of Northcote’s nightlife at one of the many bars and eateries along High Street. Try Wesley Anne for beers, Pizza Meine Liebe for thin-crust pies, or Camus for authentic African fare.