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The predominantly Mexican Pilsen neighborhood was once predominantly Czech. Across Chicago, says Juana Guzman of Pilsen's National Museum of Mexican Art, "food is an important cultural anchor."

Chicago Eats

From curried catfish to baba ghanouj, Chicago serves up what may be the finest ethnic cuisine going

After a stint as a military barracks, Hohensalzburg Fortress was opened to the public in the 1860s by Emperor Franz Josef.

Salzburg’s Hohensalzburg Fortress

One of Europe’s mightiest castles, this fortress dominates Salzburg’s skyline

Boise, says the author, is a study in paradoxes, a place "both rural and metropolitan, civilized and feral."

Boise, Idaho: Big Skies and Colorful Characters

Idaho’s natural beauty is what makes novelist Anthony Doerr feel so much at home in Boise

The European Parliament, a towering complex of glass skyscrapers, has 785 members representing 28 countries and more than 450 million citizens.

Brussels: One of Europe’s Great Travel Secrets

The political center of Europe, this Belgian city is also home to art museums and delicious mussels with frites, of course

Fisherman casts off from the cliffs of Cape Sagres.

Cape Sagres

This windswept coast was once home to a navigators’ school that readied explorers for adventures in the New World

Fátima is one of Europe’s top pilgrimage destinations. There are plenty of picnic benches, endless parking and desolate toilets for the masses.

Portugal: One Foot in the Past and One in the Future

While many things are changing in modern Portugal, the nation still holds steadfast to many traditions

The band plays on in a small-town Czech bar few tourists would think to frequent.

Trebon: Yellow Lampposts and Czech Fly Paper

South of Prague but a world away, Trebon offers a glimpse of traditional Eastern Europe

One of the highlights of Emancipation Hall is a skylight view of the Capitol Dome, from below the East steps of the building.

Inside the Capitol Visitors Center

After years of delays and millions of dollars spent, the brand-new Capitol Visitors Center opens in December

Night view of Istanbul, Turkey.

Snapshot: Istanbul

Istanbul’s vastly growing population and blending of cultures make it one of the most dynamic cities in the world

A view of Macau at night and the tail of the Dragon's bridge show a skyline full of potential and color as buildings continue to arise on reclaimed land

Macau Hits the Jackpot

In just four years, this 11-square-mile outpost on the coast of China eclipsed Las Vegas as gambling’s world capital

Set like a jewel on the edge of Lake Como, the city of Como (its shoreline at dusk) is not just a tourist mecca but also an important center of the country’s silk industry, providing high-quality goods to the fashion houses of New York City, Paris and Milan.

Silken Treasure

The Italian city of Como, celebrated for its silk and scenery, has inspired notables from Leonardo da Vinci to Winston Churchill

At a major crossroads, Champagne has been at the center of European history during both war and peace for millennia. Named campania by the Romans for its high plains and open hills suitable for planting fields of grains, grapes, and other products, Champagne remains one of the most important and productive agricultural regions in France.

Snapshot: The Champagne Region

Celebrating the new year has become synonymous with drinking champagne, but the grapes are from an area steeped in history

The east side of Deer Isle is called Sunshine and is home to beautiful vacation houses, as well as some of the country's largest lobster-holding tanks. Sylvester Cove is in Sunset, on the island's western side, which is also home to the Island Country Club, where the roadside sign proclaims "public welcome."

Snapshot: Deer Isle

Natural beauty abounds on Maine’s second-largest coastal island

Lunt Harbor, looking toward the mountains of Acadia National Park

The Life and Times of a Maine Island

An excerpt from a history of Frenchboro, Long Island, one of Maine’s last remaining year-round island communities

The pueblo perches on a 365-foot mesa. In 1892, reporter Charles Lummis called the site “so unearthly beautiful...it is hard for the onlooker to believe himself...upon this dull planet at all.”

Ancient Citadel

At least 1,200 years old, New Mexico’s Acoma Pueblo remains a touchstone for a resilient indigenous culture

Mount Desert Island, where hikers trek and ponds beckon has long attracted visitors. “From our elevation,” wrote painter Frederic Church in 1850, “we had the whole of the seaward part of the island at our feet.”

Acadia Country

Anchored by the spectacular national park, the rugged, island-dotted coastal region of Maine distills the down east experience

Young guests and living history staffers unload hay.

Back to the Frontier

At Conner Prairie, Indiana, living history is the main event

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Inside Cape Town

Tourists are flocking to the city, but a former resident explains how the legacy of apartheid lingers

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Snapshot: Adelaide, South Australia

Down Under’s unofficial capital of food and drink

The massive neoclassical market is divided into rows of icy seafood stalls and, in the attached building, kiosks filled with cuts of meat and butcher blocks.

Snapshot: Athens Central Market

More than 30,000 people mingle every day at Dimotiki Agora, the city’s busiest markets

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