Search results for

Even now I’m craving their guilt-free collection of tapas-style breakfast miniatures. You can expect to find little croissants stuffed with jamon, light pastries topped with berries, and fresh squeezed orange juice. It’s simple, inexpensive, and quick—nothing fancy but perfect for a snack. I should note it’s a chain but it’s where the locals go, so don’t write it off and pop in when you see one. Tip: Grab a little tile to your right when you walk in, order at the counter and they’ll write on it. If you’re like me, you’ll go back for more so bring it up with you for round two. Then pay when you’ve finished.

I discovered this Marin Headlands view of the Golden Gate Bridge on one of my very first trips to San Francisco. In my three-plus years living in the Bay Area, I still haven’t found a view to top it. My favorite time to visit is just after sunset, when most tourists are fleeing from the evening breeze and the lights from the Golden Gate are just beginning to glow. If you’re lucky, you might witness an illuminated container ship as it exits the Bay on its way to Asia. This vantage point is on the North side of the Golden Gate—for the active traveler it’s a lovely green hike after a stroll across the bridge but alternately you can dive up. There’s also a closer view at the base of the hill.

The Utah Brewers cooperative, a partnership between Wasatch Brewery and squatters craft beers, has an eye for where people drink. The latest proof: Wasatch Brew Pub, which serves playful beers (Polygamy Porter, anyone?) in a spot just off the new Sugar House plaza.

If you love antiquing or if you’re just searching for a Mexico City souvenir with a bit of history behind it, it’s hard to imagine a more pleasant way to spend a Saturday morning in the capital than visiting Plaza del Angel, a giant antique market with dozens of galleries, located in the Zona Rosa. You can visit during the week, too, but on Saturdays, temporary vendors join those who have permanent spaces here to sell all sorts of wares, from postcards and pictures to religious relics, furniture, books, magazines, and handcrafts.

There’s no better place in Bangkok to browse for books than Dasa Book Café. While Kinokinuya (deservedly) holds sway in the malls, this cute seller is the pick among the city’s independent book retailers. The shop itself boasts around 17,000 titles over three floors and the regularly updated ‘Dasabase’ list of stock makes it easy to find what you are looking for.

The Sandía Mountains rise to over 10,000 feet behind Albuquerque. From the top, the view over New Mexico is unparalleled: on a clear day, your eyes can take in eleven thousand square miles--almost one-tenth of the state! The quickest way up is the fifteen-minute ‘flight’ on the Sandia Peak Tramway, ascending from high desert to alpine evergreen forest. Swiss-designed, this aerial tramway has one of the longest spans in the world. Hiking, winter skiing and mountain biking are all available at the top, as well as a restaurant--a steakhouse two miles above sea level. (Prices are what you’d imagine at this altitude.) In case you’re wondering why this mountain range is called “Sandía,” which means ‘watermelon’ in Spanish--at sunset, the mineral content of the granite crags glows pinkish-red; along with the green of the conifers, the profile is reminiscent of a cut watermelon...

A five-year restoration and renovation project transformed a factory on the Williamsburg waterfront, originally built in 1901, into the stylish but laid-back Wythe Hotel. This property has a distinct Brooklyn stamp, from the Brooklyn-made wallpaper to the Brooklyn-sourced minibar. The little details here stand out, including concrete floors with under-floor heating and the use of reclaimed wood (from the former factory) in the ceilings. The spacious lofts are particularly noteworthy for their floor-to-ceiling views of the Manhattan skyline and standalone pedestal tubs. Visitors and New Yorkers mingle over cocktails on the rooftop bar as well as at the spacious restaurant, which was recently taken over by restaurateur Jon Neidich and his team at Golden Age Hospitality (owners of popular New York spots ACME, Slowly Shirley, and The Happiest Hour).

A Carib chief and national hero, Joseph Chatoyer led revolts against British colonists in 1772 and again in 1795. During the latter revolt, his soldiers and their French allies were planning to attack Kingstown from Dorsetshire Hill, but British soldiers marched up from the city and attacked first, killing Chatoyer. Today, he’s memorialized in a monument on that very hill, overlooking the city he fought so hard to regain.

The historic and modern center of the city, the Piazza del Duomo (the square surrounding the cathedral’s base) remains a popular meeting place, hangout and hub of Milanese life. Local vendors setup shop (selling fresh coconut in the summer, toys and tourist wares), kids run and play (free from traffic) and shoppers trickle in from the walking street surrounding the huge plaza. The statue of Victor Emmanuel II, the first king of Italy, is the best place to meet, sit, recharge and watch the city go by.

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes. ~ Marcel Proust. For my inaugural highlight on AFAR, I am starting with my wife’s favorite quote, and a local sight in Chicago. Sometimes people feel they must jet off to some far off exotic place in order to ‘travel.’ However, if you gaze anew at your immediate surroundings with fresh eyes, you will discover an entire host of wonderful surprises. Here we have Cloud Gate, located down in Millennium Park, back before they buffed out the seams. The contrast between the organic form of ‘the bean’ and the structured grid lines, along with the warped fun house mirror quality of the city, makes this a truly unique destination.

A 19th-century private estate just outside San Sebastián’s city center, Villa Soro was commissioned by a wealthy businessman as a wedding gift for his daughter; it was designed by the same architect who built the iconic Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra, which towers over the La Concha waterfront at the city center. In contrast to that classic belle epoque building, the villa takes its inspiration from English architecture—complete with peaked roofs and faux-Tudor beaming—that was in vogue at the time, while the manicured gardens were designed by renowned Romantic landscape designer Pierre Ducasse.

Now an intimate, 25-room boutique hotel, Villa Soro maintains the same relaxed, cozy atmosphere one might expect to find at a friend’s estate, complete with two elegant drawing rooms outfitted with armchairs that beg to be curled up in with a book. The dark-wood-and-leather bar room (complete with a fireplace, of course) beckons visitors with vermouth and txakoli. Rooms are homey and classically elegant, spread between the main house and the restored carriage house, and they make for a romantic retreat within walking distance of the city’s sights and Michelin-starred restaurants.

Street-food markets are all the rage the world over, and in Vienna you have the chance to visit one that’s been around for many centuries. Built literally over the channeled Vienna River, just beyond the Ringstrasse, the Naschmarkt is devoted to what its name happens to sound like in English: noshing. Whether you order a spicy wurst, browse the fish and cheese stalls, or purchase local products like pumpkin-seed oil and apple vinegar, the Naschmarkt is one of the city’s most enjoyable simple pleasures. In recent years, some gastronomic and ethnic food stalls have expanded into full restaurants. For decades, 400 dealers have set up their Saturday flea market next door, where shoppers hunt for bargains among books, record albums and CDs, and antiques.

There is perhaps no landmark of San Francisco, and perhaps even the entire state of California, more iconic than the Golden Gate Bridge. This much-photographed bridge spans the Golden Gate, the strait separating San Francisco (to the south) and Marin County (to the north). The 2.7-kilometer-long (1.7-mile-long) bridge was completed in 1937 in one of the most remarkable engineering feats of its time. Although the idea of traversing the Golden Gate by way of a bridge had been discussed for decades, the fear that fog and wind would make the project nearly impossible discouraged planners. In the end, the bridge was completed in four years at the cost of $35 million as well as the lives of 10 construction workers. A pedestrian path along the bridge offers stunning views of the bay and San Francisco as well as an up-close look at this Art Deco wonder.

For a classic American diner experience, the Cherry Hill Diner in, yes, Cherry Hill, New Jersey, is the place to go. This 24/7 locale has been around for decades, and is as renowned for its freshly baked cakes as it is for its gargantuan omelets. If you can, try to swing by at night when the lights are aglow and the whole vibe harkens back to the days of mid-twentieth century USA.