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A work in progress throughout his adult life, Monticello truly reflects Thomas Jefferson’s many passions: architecture, philosophy, science, music, literature, art, and food. Check out the excellent visitors’ center first and take a shuttle to the mountaintop mansion with its expansive views. A guide takes you through the main-floor rooms, including Jefferson’s bedroom/study/library. Then explore the cellars, terrace walks, kitchen, thousand-foot vegetable garden, and Mulberry Row, where ongoing reconstruction illuminates the important roles slaves played at this complex and innovative plantation. Order timed tickets online for your desired date. Hours vary by season.

Golden Silk Pheach is a working silk farm near Banteay Srei with a boutique selling beautiful clothes and textiles woven on the farm. Having left Cambodia to study in France, founder Sophea Pheach returned to her country to volunteer in refugee camps on the Thai border and soon after opened a village for orphans of the war. Pheach established Golden Silk Pheach as an NGO in 2002 to provide employment for the former orphans and other disadvantaged women from surrounding villages. Pheach calls the silk farm a Preservation Center, because her aim is to safeguard the traditional silk production process and Golden Silk Pheach is one of only a few farms where the process is fully integrated in one location, from raising the increasingly rare yellow silk worms to hand-weaving the silk on traditional wooden looms. Boasting 12 hectares of mulberry trees, the silk farm is home to numerous workshops where you can learn about the process, watch the women at work, and try your hand at weaving on a loom. The boutique sells silk and other textile products, all hand-woven and dyed with natural pigments. A visit is by appointment only, best made 48 hours in advance. It’s not far from Banteay Srei and the Landmine Museum, however, the farm is tricky to find so make sure your driver phones ahead for directions. Backyard Travel also offers excellent tours that take in all three sights, and can be combined with a cooking class with Chef Kethana.

Dornier’s modern cellar and production facility is quite different from the traditional 18th- and 19th-century buildings you’ll see in the winelands. For example, a pool above the cellar regulates the temperature of the wines in an eco-friendly way. Its reflective surface also helps keep the entire subterranean building cool. The cellar’s overall design pays homage to the Dornier family’s history in the aviation industry. Contact the winery in advance to arrange a tour of the facility, then enjoy a tasting of award-winning wines like the Dornier Donatus White (a blend of chenin blanc and rich sémillon), the Dornier Merlot (with hints of plum, mint, and roasted nuts), and the Cocoa Hill Sauvignon Blanc (featuring notes of mulberry, roasted oak, vanilla, and spice).

Everyone has their favorite neighborhood bar. Mine is Bamboo Cafe. Bamboo is located in the upper Fan district, has great food (open for lunch, dinner, and Sunday brunch), a nice beer selection (draft and bottles), the same bar and waitstaff for at least ten years, a gorgeous dark wood bar and booths, chalkboards in the bathrooms, familiar regulars, a great soundtrack, and dim lighting. And to top it all off? It’s also rumored to have the latest ‘last call’ in the neighborhood. What more could you want?

The site of everything from lunch counter sit-ins to the sanitation workers’ strike of 1968 that inspired Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I have been to the mountaintop” speech, Memphis occupies an important place in the history of civil rights. Unfortunately, the city is also where MLK was assassinated, shot on the balcony of his room at the Lorraine Hotel. Today, the fateful hotel is one in a series of buildings that make up the National Civil Rights Museum, which tells the story of the fight for equality, both in and outside Memphis, through artifacts and multimedia displays. Large exhibition spaces include an original lunch counter from an Atlanta sit-in and a replica of the bus that Rosa Parks once rode in Montgomery.

For a subtler aloha shirt or shell dress (a simple shift), try this place in Hilo’s old downtown. Opened in 1985, it’s now a second-generation shop steeped in local rites and rhythms. Designer Sig Zane creates patterns based on traditional plants and legends, some incorporating elements from kapa (mulberry-bark paper fabric) or the kupukupu fern, symbolizing continual growth and expansion.

Artwork, jewelry and handicrafts jostle for space in this treasure trove of a gallery. Favorite souvenirs include coconut lanterns, woven palm-frond fans and wooden replicas of ornate paddles and weapons. But the true standouts are the many-legged tanoa bowls and siapo (paperlike cloth made from mulberry bark, printed with plant and animal motifs). There’s also a leafy courtyard café.

This collection of 5,000-plus bags, purses, and accessories—the largest in the world—spans more than 500 years, from a practical 16th-century goatskin money pouch to a whimsical shoe-shaped purse by contemporary Dutch footwear designer Jan Jansen. Displayed beautifully throughout a grand 17th-century canal house and arranged by time period, the collection includes rare French silk bridal bags from the 1800s, delicate art deco beaded purses, chic 1970s Lucite clutches, and contemporary handbags by luxury brands like Louis Vuitton, Mulberry, Gucci, and Prada. Items owned by the rich and famous are here as well: a Versace evening bag Madonna carried at the Evita premiere; the cat-shaped “Socks” clutch that Judith Leiber designed for Hillary Clinton; and Margaret Thatcher’s iconic gray Asprey handbag, which she referred to as her “weapon.” Don’t miss the café’s renowned afternoon tea, with sweet and savory bites served in the museum’s period rooms.

Visiting a working silk factory (from worm to fabric), was one of my highlights in Suzhou. In essence I’d known the basics of the silk worm growing/ silk production circle, but seeing it for real was very cool. There’s a museum at the beginning of the tour that talks about the history of silk and showcases samples of ancient and not so ancient pieces. But the fun begins in the next room, where piles of mulberry leaves are displayed with hundreds of silkworms munching away on them. From here you walk past the cocoons, then the sorting and cocoon boiling stations, and finally the massive mechanical machine that unravels them into the finest threads. I’m always curious about the way things work, and to walk through the lifecycle of the worm to cocoon, to finished product is fascinating! How the heck did somebody at some point in time figure out how to produce silk? If you’re looking to shop, you won’t be disappointed either. Exit is through the gift shop–a massive emporium, hall after hall filled with all things silk. One item that Suzhou Silk Factory is especially known for is their silk-filled duvet, made from hand-spread cocoons, on site. Address: 94 Nanmen Rd, Cang Lang Qu, Suzhou Shi, Jiangsu Sheng, China, 215007 Phone: +86 512 6561 3733 >>>A heartfelt xièxiè (谢谢) to the incredible and extremely hardworking teams at Suzhou Municipal Tourism Administration and PHG Consulting for a fascinating 4 days in Suzhou, China. @visitsuzhou #visitsuzhou