Search results for

Want to eat where a historic event of the American Revolution took place? Try Fraunces Tavern in downtown New York City. After defeating the British, it was here that George Washington gathered his officers for a farewell speech before heading back to his family home, Mount Vernon. Built by a French merchant family in 1719, Samuel Fraunces bought the building in 1762 and opened a tavern. The museum today includes four 19th century buildings, in addition to the original 18th century house. Fraunces Tavern is now a restaurant and museum devoted to pre-Revolution and American Revolution history. It is also an official NYC Landmark. Go to experience a unique piece of history, then enjoy a hearty meal or a single malt in the tavern or one of the newer buildings (above). www.frauncestavern.com 54 Pearl Street

A new addition to the Jo’burg night market scene is the House & Leisure Night Market at Katy’s Palace Bar, which is also home to an antique store located on the ground floor and The night market featured a good variety of local arts and crafts as well as some locally produced foods and drinks. On the night there was a competition to win a prize hamper consisting of awesome prizes from all the vendors at the market, and amazingly my friend and I ended up winning! Katy’s Palace Bar is normally a private venue for hire, however they are also open for selected public events and every first Sunday of the month for easy lunches and cocktails on their balcony which looks out over the city of Sandton

Even in a city like Prague is filled with unusual and world-class art, The Memorial to the Victims of Communism at Petrin hill in Mala Strana will command your total attention. Dedicated to those who were arrested, shot, exiled, and otherwise brutalized during the Communist era of 1948 to 1989, this masterpiece made by sculptor Olbram Zoubek and architects Jan Kerel and Zdenek Holzel is especially disturbing at dawn and twilight. Seven bronze men are stood on a set of concrete stairs, and only the first figure is intact, the statues decaying with each step up, symbolizing the effects of communism on the Czech people.

The Shockoe Slip in Richmond, Virginia has many quaint shops, good restaurants, and several upscale hotels. One of those hotels is the Berkeley Hotel. This boutique hotel is beautifully furnished. The rooms and bathrooms are richly decorated. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are offered in the hotel restaurant. Access to the Jamestown Center fitness club is included for guests. The attentive staff will be happy to assist you in any way they can. Nearby you will find the Richmond City Hall, the Virginia State Capital, the James River, and many other historic sites. A stroll down Cary Street is fun whether you are going to a restaurant or shopping or sightseeing. I have stayed at the Berkeley several times and have never been anything but pleased with the service and the hotel.

Work days in the ‘concrete jungle’ are hectic. Long hours are spent indoors, sitting at desks. It’s easy to forget that we live on an island. The East River Walk, beginning at 34th street and the FDR, is where I go to get away from the hustle and bustle. Looking out on the East River, I forget I’m in a city at all. Take a deep breath. Run/walk/bike/skip down to the Brooklyn Bridge and back. If you’re brave, continue around to the West Side.

A new Swedish pop music group perhaps? Not quite. On my road trip through Southern Sweden, an architect friend of mine insisted we stop in Malmö to see Santiago Calatrava’s building, the Turning Torso, which was modeled after his own human form sculpture, the Twisting Torso. My friend described the town as “plastic fantastic” because of the vast variation in new architecture styles here, remarking that the Turning Torso is such a notable find within its more sober surroundings. It is, after all, the third tallest residential building in all of Europe. Artsy and industrial, for me, Malmö is reminiscent of something like Dumbo, Brooklyn. Passing through on our road trip, I daydreamed of moving into a loft space in this dynamic city where a majority of the population is under 35.

In recent years the construction of Roppongi Hills Mori Tower and Tokyo Midtown has made Roppongi a high end shopping destination. Tokyo Midtown and Mori Tower combine art and fashion. Tokyo Midtown tauts stores like Pleats Please Issey Miyake, Boss Orange and museums including 21_21 Design Sight and The Suntory Museum of Art. While Mori Tower has The Mori Art Museum, and designer shops including Alexander McQueen, Diane Von Furstenberg, and Kate Spade. Both complexes have a rich assortment of traditional Japanese restaurants and global cuisine. Sukiyabashi Jiro Sushi is the Roppongi Hills sushi restaurant run by the son of Takashi Jiro, Tokyo‘s famous sushi chef featured in Jiro Dreams of Sushi.

There are many things to love about staying at La Tangerina, but the panoramic views from the roof terrace are at the top of my list. In this photo, the Strait of Gibraltar is visible under a cloudy sky. Standing at this viewpoint, if you turn a little to the right, you’ll see the busy Port of Tangier and endless beaches. Turn a bit further to the right, and you’ll enjoy a spectacular multilayer vista, with the White City’s historic Kasbah in the forefront, followed by an array of more modern buildings, with the Rif Mountains as a distant backdrop. The hotel is perfectly located at the highest point on the Kasbah and has been beautifully restored and decorated. We enjoyed large breakfasts and a quiet retreat from the hustle and bustle of the medina.

Casa Vicente is an institution in this desert city—Tucson’s outpost for tapas a la española. Just south of the downtown core, a couple of blocks from the neo-Baroque façade of the Cathedral of San Agustín, this restaurant also features live music on weeknights: classical guitar, flamenco, and even tango lessons. This particular evening, we tried chipirones rellenos, a trio of baby calamari skewered and stuffed with green tomatoes and spices. In a town more known for its tacos and burros (a.k.a. ‘burritos’ elsewhere), it’s appropriate, if somewhat uncommon, to find Iberian fare. Tucson was founded in 1775 as an outpost of the Spanish empire, decades before it became Mexican, and then in the mid-19th century, it finally became part of a U.S. territory. (And, by the way, the sangría here rocks.)

Talk about first impressions: Carved sandstone elephants welcome guests into a two-story chandeliered lobby at this palace-style hotel. Attentive service starts at check-in, with gifts of bindis and fresh jasmine necklaces. At 550-square-feet or larger, rooms are palatial themselves, and richly decorated with oriental carpets, jacquards, and hand-embroidered brocades. Those on higher floors offer panoramic city views, but many visitors choose spaces overlooking the internal courtyard or expansive garden (and away from a 16-lane highway) for a sense of calm. The hotel’s Edwardian-inspired bar draws locals and guests alike with its 25-page whiskey and scotch menu, as does a rooftop pool with stunning vistas over New Delhi’s urban landscape. Unique amenities include an on-call astrologer and, for women travelers, the option of an all-female service staff, including butler, gym instructors, and private city guides.

On first glance, it would be easy to dismiss the 101 Hotel as merely a functional option. Stepping inside the austere five-story concrete building on Hverfisgata, however, guests discover an ultra-modern boutique lodging with minimal black-and-white decor—the work of owner-designer Ingibjörg S. Pálmadóttir—that gives it the feel of a chic downtown gallery. Contemporary paintings, photography, and sculptures by local artists appear througout the property, complementing the oak floors and wood-heavy Nordic furniture in the 38 rooms. Queen and king-size beds (there are no twin rooms) come topped with fine Italian linens, entertainment systems are state of the art, and open-plan bathrooms make extensive use of glass and offer Aveda bath products; deluxe rooms and suites up the ante with with claw-foot tubs. The hotel also has a moody restaurant and bar, a gym and spa, and a comfortable lounge area where you can put your feet up by the fire.

Walt Disney World’s four remarkable theme parks are part of nearly 104 square kilometers (40 square miles) filled with entertainment. Magic Kingdom is home to the iconic Cinderella Castle and has six themed sections. At EPCOT, guests take a trip around the globe and into the future via exhibits, rides and events. Disney’s Hollywood Studios is a working film, television and radio studio lot that features attractions based on favorite Disney characters. Adventures with real animals await guests at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The resort is approximately 90 minutes from Port Canaveral.

Looking at a map of this trail might cause a little bit of confusion considering the name, since the shoreline it follows is that of an ancient lake that covered most of what is now northwest Utah. Lake Bonneville, which was a freshwater lake, existed in its largest form around 14,500 years ago. Today, the Great Salt Lake is all that is left of the Pleistocene-era lake that was nearly the size of Lake Michigan. The trail that is being built along this long-ago shoreline is currently in segments totaling 100 miles, but there is a proposal to expand the trail into 280 continuous miles stretching south from the Idaho border to the town of Nephi, Utah.

The cathedral, usually called the Duomo, is Florence’s most recognizable building. You are able to catch glimpses of its magnificent red-tiled cupola from just about anywhere in the city center. Construction on the church complex began in 1296 and the work—Brunelleschi’s dome and his Baptistery, and Giotto’s bell tower—was completed in 1426. The interior of this architectural is reserved in contrast with the exterior’s marble Gothic facade and its green, pink, and white stripes. Climb the 463 steps up into the dome for a close-up look at Giorgio Vasari’s fresco, The Last Judgment, and a bird’s-eye view of the city.

A beautiful 15,000-acre park in Israel’s Negev Desert, north of Eilat, Timna Park offers visitors spectacular views of the arid desert landscape and ancient geological formations. One highlight is the copper mine at Mount Timna, which scientists and historians consider to be the world’s very first. At least 6,000 years ago, the area was mined by ancient Egyptians by order of their pharaoh, as well as by Israelites under the rule of King Solomon. Tours of the park, including highly recommended bike tours, are available daily, as is zip-lining, pedal-boating on the artifical lake, and the Timna Safari Shuttle, which leaves from Eilat.