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Swing’s is a craft coffee bar and roaster located in a reclaimed industrial space in the quaint neighborhood of Del Ray. The open, communal space is a great place to head in the morning or early afternoon to meet a friend or to do some reading to the sounds of classic soul music being played on the turntable. Swing’s serves a serious cup of coffee—beans are of the highest quality, roasted on the premises, and ethically sourced. The menu includes espresso and coffee drinks served using pour-over, AeroPress, and cold-brew methods. Caffeine lovers can stop by on Friday mornings at 10:00 for a weekly tasting in the Cupping Lab; private tours of the facility can be arranged by calling in advance.

Washingtonians flock to the Dairy Godmother for a taste of Wisconsin. Visitors, who include President Obama, come to this neighborhood hangout to indulge in homemade frozen custard and other nostalgia-inducing treats. Chocolate and vanilla cones are always available, as well as a third “Flavor of the Day” that can be found listed on the shop’s chalkboard menu or website. Seasonal hits include Mexican chocolate, buttered pecan, pumpkin, and lemon meringue pie. The Dairy Godmother also offers an assortment of fruity sorbets, ice pops, freshly baked cobblers, thick shakes, hand-crafted marshmallows, and fancy cookies—there are even puppy pops for canine companions. Don’t let the long lines scare you, the staff are friendly, quick, and efficient. Even among the busy crowds, they are happy to let customers sample flavors or combine them in a cone or sundae.

As you walk along the waterfront, it will immediately catch your eye—a large, Art Deco building with an unusual name: the Torpedo Factory. Once actually home to a factory that produced torpedoes for WWII, it has since been taken over by painters, sculptors and photographers. Full of 165 artists, with 82 working studios, every visit to the Torpedo Factory is different, as artists work and sell their wares right there. Take your time wandering around and enjoy clay spinning on potters’ wheels, brushes flying across canvas and photographers matting their latest creation. If you’re set on visiting the Torpedo Factory, make sure and check the hours, as they always seem to be changing. In addition, the building sometimes closes early, especially on weekends, for private events.

Twice yearly in Melbourne, Brisbane, and Sydney, the Finders Keepers Market brings more than 150 design and art stalls from local and national makers. The Sydney event is currently held one weekend in June and another in December at Australian Technology Park in Eveleigh. The giant warehouse brims with all manner of crafty clothing, accessories and housewares, including letterpress stationary, tribal jewelry, and silk scarves pressed with real eucalyptus leaves.

The building in which Il Porto is housed, on the corner of Lee and King Streets right in the heart of Old Town, has an interesting history. First it was built and owned by a sea captain. Then it was a brothel (!). Then it was a shop that sold family treasures—and was home to a secret distillery. Next came a butcher shop, before it became a place of solitude for a German painter during WWI. The 1920s saw a speakeasy under its roof, and during the 40s, it was home to a Nazi family’s radio network—disguised as a repair shop. For the last 40 years, it has been home to authentic northern Italian food served with a smile and healthy amounts of chianti. A couple should request a quiet table upstairs under the windows overlooking King Street. The Pollo con Pepperoni comes with three huge chicken breasts pounded out thin in a sauce, with peppers and pepperoni. A heaping plate of fettuccini Alfredo will take you immediately to the back alleys of Rome (whole wheat pasta is available if you’re feeling slightly less sinful). The frutti di mare is a festival of shellfish in a light, airy white wine garlic sauce. Make sure to save room for dessert, as both the tiramisu and the cannoli shine (as does the spumoni, as does the pistachio ice cream, as does, well everything). The house chianti is good and dry and extremely reasonably priced for a glass of wine in Old Town. On your way out, make sure and say hello to Manfreddy—he helped me plan my wedding rehearsal dinner there.

Located a short drive from Old Town in the lively Del Ray neighborhood Cheesetique is a temple to all things cheese.. Not to miss is their gooey, melty mac ‘n’ cheese; ranked as one of the best in the country by none other than Food & Wine magazine. Cheesetique carries an assortment of select cheeses from around the world as well as a variety of gourmet sundries. Don’t know a chevre from a camembert? Let the knowledgeable cheese mongers steer you in the right direction or stop by during one of their classes to improve your cheese IQ.

Now a museum, the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary was founded in 1792 and when the family closed the business in 1933, they left everything as-is. So, what you see when you visit is a fascinating slice of Americana in its original state. The museum is small but utterly fascinating. As with pharmacies today, the apothecary was part retail store so while you got your medicine, you could also pick up some perfume, buy baby bottles, or even a sewing machine. The second floor was the pharmacists’ lab where they mixed up the colorful remedies sold below. Boxes filled with medicinal herbs with curious names like “Dragon’s Blood” line the walls of the room. Alongside the lab was the library with a collection of materials including journals, ledgers, invoices and even a letter from Martha Washington requesting that some castor oil be delivered to her home at Mount Vernon. I was intrigued all the original, hand-blown glass bottles, with their gold plated labels, filled with all sorts of herbal medicines, pills, and tinctures. There was even a display case of medical equipment including the latest in bloodletting devices—ouch! The museum is open only for guided tours that begin a quarter after the hour and a quarter to the hour and last for 30 minutes. It’s well worth the $5 for an adult ticket!

Pretty People Vintage is a one-stop shop for finding unique clothing, jewelry, and accessories in Old Town. Owner Annie Lee curates her collection with wearable pieces that can easily be incorporated into the modern woman’s wardrobe. Throughout the year, Annie scours the east and west coasts for merchandise that reflects her effortless, laid-back, and bohemian sensibilities. Annie and her staff create a welcoming environment so that shopping at her store feels like you’re raiding a friend’s closet. The front room of the historic row house store displays new clothing and modern consignment. From here, it is easy to get lost in the three adjoining back rooms, filled with affordable vintage fashions that date from the ‘20s to the ‘90s. The interior is far from stale and stuffy—it is filled with quirky touches like paper-maché animal heads, bold textiles, and kitschy antique paintings. The store is a 5-7 minute walk from the King Street metro station (yellow and blue lines) and is also accessible via the free Old Town Trolley that runs from the metro to the waterfront.

Marvel at Washington, D.C.’s iconic skyline from the Capital Wheel. Located on National Harbor’s waterfront, the 180-foot observation wheel is the only one of its kind in the northeast United States. Bring the whole family or a gang of friends: up to eight people can fit into each of the 42 enclosed gondolas. From the top you’ll get a bird’s-eye view of the Potomac River and glimpse the Washington Monument, the Capitol, and Alexandria. Plan an evening ride to see the wheel aglow with 1.6 million LED lights. Photo by Geoff Livingston/Flickr.

What started in 2002 as a little café tucked into a Newtown laneway, Campos has become one of the biggest household names in Australian specialty coffee. The company’s success stems from its simple but ambitious mission: to buy, roast and serve the finest quality coffee. Today, the Campos menu rotates more than 10 direct-trade coffee varieties grown in nine regions around the world. The café continues to experiment with beans, machines, and barista techniques to maintain its order pace of hundreds of coffees per hour. Now operating in Queensland and Melbourne as well as Sydney, Campos has recently introduced cupping classes Thursday through Saturday held in a dark upstairs lounge above the Newtown location. Customers pay $30 to compare five coffee varieties from different regions and learn the different processing and preparation styles. Sydney’s newest Campos café in the Alexandria neighborhood features a siphon bar that only serves select single origin coffees.

National Harbor offers lots of free events to the public throughout the spring and summer that include concerts, movies and fitness classes. A local favorite is yoga on the waterfront held at the East Pier. It’s hard to find a more centering spot in D.C. for your practice. Sessions are held Tuesdays at 7pm and Saturdays at 9am. In addition to yoga, there are also free Zumba classes on Wednesday evenings. Tip: Arrive early to grab a sheltered spot under the pier tent.

One of the few hotels on picture-perfect Grace Bay Beach that can work for both honeymooners and families, Seven Stars sits on 22 acres of lush grounds at the edge of Princess Alexandria National Park and has studio to four-bedroom plantation style suites available. All feel very private. Besides wraparound terraces with awesome ocean views, the rooms here all feature full kitchens, making it easy to cook your own lunch or make snacks for the kids. That said, the house restaurant, aptly named Seven, is very good, so plan on dining here at least a few times. The spa is also excellent - perfect for honeymooners - and there is a dedicated activities concierge that will arrange all sorts of water sports and even a kids’ camp.

Lake Maggiore, the second largest Italian lake after Lake Garda, holds the three jewel-like Borromean Islands, Isola Bella, Isola Madre, and the quaint and picturesque, Isola dei Pescatori.

kind of unreal to be in the location where history was made just a year ago

I love visiting big iconic bridges during the sunset. Trips at dusk to the Golden Gate Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge have resulted in spectacular photographs of the urban landscape. The Sydney Harbour Bridge was another great experience! The bridge is accessible by foot or by bike and is surrounded by some of the biggest attractions in Sydney. More adventurous types might opt for the Bridge Climb Tour (http://www.bridgeclimb.com/) where participants get to scale the summit of the 134-meter arch for panoramic views of the city. And yes, they offer a Twilight Tour near sunset (and a dawn tour at sunrise). We were content walking across the bridge on the pedestrian walkway. It was a brisk spring evening in Sydney, and we didn’t envy the tourists climbing the bridge overhead. The views from the bridge are stunning in every direction, and it is a magnificent vantage point to see the Sydney Opera House and the Central Business District.