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The best place to eat in Germany is in a little village in a forest.

The art is only part of the reason this is one of Europe’s edgiest museums.

A guide to going off the beaten path during Brazil’s biggest event of the year.

16 Untranslatable Words from Other Languages

AFAR chose a destination at random and sent writer Mickey Rapkin with 24 hours’ notice to a Central European city where tech trumps goulash.

Breaking the Ice in Tokyo

In Japan’s capital, youth dress up—and let loose—in over-the-top themed establishments.

One of the most dynamic conductors in the world of classical music, Alondra de la Parra, shares how music focuses her travel and informs her creative vision.

Perhaps the words “India” and “jewelry” are most likely to evoke images of colorful bangles, worn in stacks on women’s wrists, or intricately filigreed gold necklaces and earrings, but the country also has a brisk pearl trade, and the place to buy them in Hyderabad is Mangatrai. This jewelery shop, nearly a century old, is known for its exceptional pearls, which are sourced from Tahiti, Australia, Japan, and other Asian pearl producers. The beads are set and sold in rings, necklaces, earrings, and bracelets, and custom pieces can be ordered as well. Note that this vendor has several locations.

This dockside restaurant has a charming historic patina, as it is part of an actual fishing club headquartered in an 18th-century military Cartagena fortress, San Sebastián del Pastelillo. Sit at outdoor tables with views of the city, the bay, and the club’s private marina and pier (some of your fellow patrons arrive by boat!), and dine on freshly caught seafood. On weekends, live music—jazz, bossa nova, and flamenco—animates the scene.

Long known as the neighborhood where consumers—both locals and visitors—come for electronics, Akihabara has evolved to include a manga and anime subculture, with anime character models roaming the streets and anime videos playing in stores and restaurants. Retro computer-game fans will not want to miss Super Potato Retro-kan for its selection of vintage and used games.

Located inside Seattle’s Uwajimaya Asian grocery store, Kinokuniya is a one-stop shop for Asian magazines, books, manga, stationery, and writing supplies. Even if you’re Japanese-illiterate, it’s a fun place to wander around admiring gel and fountain pens, fancy stickers, coffee table, and art books. The store also has a nice selection of unusual calendars and planners. This is a good place to pick up a gift for your favorite Japanophile.

Ever fantasized about being tended to by an attractive teen maid in your home, who addresses you as Goshujin-sama (Master) or Ojo-sama (Mistress)? Or dreamt about being coddled by a demure young thing in a mini-skirt, coquettish pinafore, bunny ears and thigh-high boots? At Akihabara’s Maidreamin’ Cafés, giggly waitresses dressed as French maids—an image that’s been popularized in manga and anime, as well as cosplay (costume play)—insure you’re master of your domain, complete with your own animal ears. “Welcome home, Master/Mistress,” they’ll coo when you enter. At some cafés, maids play cards or video games with customers and perform services like spoon-feeding and back massages—in full clothing—for additional fees, of course. My dessert came shaped like a turtle: a mound of green tea ice cream drizzled with chocolate syrup on a bed of whipped cream, with jelly-candy “legs” and a cherry on top. Before digging in, I followed 16-year-old Daisy in some ritualistic finger-play accompanied by a high-pitched blessing designed to make my dessert more delicious. Kneeling by my table, Daisy stirred cream into my coffee and invited me to chant along. “Kyun kyun!” she yodeled. For an extra fee, she posed for a picture. Considering I paid 1,000-yen to enter Akihabara’s Head Maidreamin Café, 1,500 yen for food and drink, and 5,000 yen for a photo, my one-hour visit was hardly cheap. Yet looking back, it was $30 well spent for an experience available nowhere else but Japan.

Drink Kong is the neo-noir, Manga-meets-Blade Runner–inspired bar created by Rome’s Patrick Pistolesi. A labyrinth of dark-colored lounge spaces, with long bars, neon lights, and harlequin-patterned floors, Kong is both hang-out and experiment. Pistolesi, who has curated some of the city’s best bar menus and is one of the key players in Italy’s cocktail evolution, created an instinctive menu based only on flavors: bitter, sweet, dry. Either peruse the menu for a Kong signature cocktail like “Big Trouble in Oaxaca,” a spicy and slightly fruity tequila and mezcal drink or chat with Kong’s expert bartenders who can craft cocktails customized to your tastes. Or take a leap of faith in the Omakase Room, a Japanese-influenced wood-paneled room for private tastings in the omakase style—your drink will be whatever the bartender chooses for you.

Whether it’s brunch, happy hour, or date night, Barcelona Wine Bar’s shared-plate dining and drinking experience is a D.C. socialite staple. Mingle over pitchers of red wine sangria with a rotation of farm-to-table tapas, including a light spinach and manchego frittata with a bacon crunch at brunch and a spicy eggplant caponata with sweet pepper, basil, and parsley at dinner. People-watch from the garden patio or gather inside the rustic-chic dining room, where the Jamon Mangalica ham being hand-sliced will inspire you to order the charcuterie. After crisscrossing arms with your dining partners to share bites of elevated, familiar flavors, finish on a comfort-food high with a spoon fight over their luscious flourless (gluten-free) chocolate cake. You can do it all again at a second location on Wisconsin Avenue in Cathedral Heights.