L’Aroma Café The beautiful people take their espresso at L’Aroma, where the Italian style of the coffees, sandwiches, luncheon salads, and pastries are more evocative of Milan than Rome. As a bonus, tea-lovers can order from a choice of 20 loose-leaf varieties . Caffè Vittoria The jukebox at the largest of North End’s Italian cafés … Read more

Beer selection Unless otherwise specified, locally-brewed beers listed here are available citywide La Grande Dame Bar Bearing the nickname of the orange-labeled Veuve Clicquot champagne house, this bar is the first branded venue the Reims producer has launched in the US. Views of the Liberty Hotel grand rotunda overhead are magnificent. Multiple vintages of Veuve … Read more

Swimming Cherry Beach in the east and Hanlan’s Point are two of Toronto’s best beaches. While the city has improved water quality, beaches are often posted with no-swimming signs, often after heavy rains. More reliable are the public pools. Beaches hotline 416 392 7161 Beach and pool info www.toronto.ca Young swimmers at a public pool … Read more

Molson Amphitheatre With its lakeside setting in Ontario Place, this is a great place to take in a summer concert. There’s seating for 9,000 under the copper canopy, plus space for 7,000 on the grass. Top performers often mean sold-out shows. 909 Lake Shore Blvd W 416 260 5600 Molson Amphitheatre Roy Thomson Hall The … Read more

Waterside dining, Port Vell All food and drink names are given in Catalan, but in many cases the Castilian variant is used just as commonly. Cafè Bliss Hidden down a tiny side street, in one of the loveliest Gothic squares in the old city, is this delightful café. There is a bright terrace, comfy sofas … Read more

Wall tile advertising Barcelona restaurant All food and drink names are given in Catalan, but in many cases the Castilian variant is used just as commonly. Cal Pep The line-up at this traditional, boisterous tapas bar includes top-notch cured hams and sausages, truita de patates (potato omelette), fresh mariscs (shellfish) and an array of daily … Read more

Coffee Town Seattle’s signature beverage comes in myriad forms. The rampant availability of whole bean, latte, espresso, and basic drip created a coffee craze even before Starbucks went global. Though Seattelites love their streetside espresso carts and neighborhood cafés, the city is also home to Starbucks and its major competitors, Tully’s and Seattle’s Best Coffee. … Read more

Climbing Rock Walls The most popular indoor location for rock climbers is Recreational Equipment Incorporated (REI, which has a huge practice wall in the atrium of their flagship store on Eastlake Avenue. Stone Gardens also offers classes and practice walls for members and walk-ins. Stone Gardens 2839 NW Market 206 781 9828 Adult $14; student … Read more

National Theater Bibliophiles can forage for reading material at the Münchner Bücherschau at the Gasteig in November/December. Munich Biennale This music theatre festival was founded in 1988 by composer Hans Werner Henze. The city of Munich commissions young composers to write their first full work for the festival. Now a bi-annual event, the festival has … Read more

Hofbräuhaus Anyone visiting Munich should make the pilgrimage to this venerable beer hall – symbolic of all Bavarian pubs and the most famous pub in the world. Locals, too, simply can’t stay away. Brass bands play daily at noon and again after 6pm. Am Platzl 9 089 22 16 76 www.hofbraeuhaus.de Hofbräuhaus Augustinerbräu Here in … Read more

Unless otherwise stated all venues are open daily, charge admission, and have DA. Kingston Mines The largest of Chicago’s blues joints, Kingston Mines packs its Lincoln Park locale with students, young professionals, and a broader spectrum of tourists. Two stages provide non-stop musical entertainment from 8pm to near 4am (5am on Saturdays). Acts range from … Read more

Civic Opera House This imposing Art Deco building is largely devoted to performances by the Lyric Opera. Each year (September through March), the company stages work by everyone from Wagner to Gilbert and Sullivan. Touring classical dance troops and musicals fill the off-season bill. 20 N. Wacker Dr www.civicoperahouse.com Symphony Center While visiting orchestras, lecturers, … Read more

Arthur Sackler Museum Part of the Beijing University archeology department, this museum has a collection that spans 280,000 years, from the Paleolithic era to the Qing dynasty. As well as fossils and bones, it includes beautiful bronzes and fine ceramics. Beijing University campus, Haidian district 6275 1667 Open 9am–4:30pm daily ¥20 (foreign visitors must bring … Read more

South Cathedral Also known as St. Mary’s Church, this was Beijing’s first Catholic house of worship. It remains the largest functioning church, and has regular services in a variety of languages including Chinese, English, and Latin. Service times are posted on the noticeboard . South Cathedral Cow Street Mosque There are currently about 200,000 Muslims … Read more

Parque del Retiro In 1767, Carlos III broke with tradition by allowing members of the public into the Retiro, providing they were “washed and suitably dressed”. However it was not until the 1860s and the advent of the First Republic that the partitions separating the royal enclosure from the public area were finally torn down … Read more

Zoo–Aquarium Madrid zoo is currently rated one of the best in Europe – within its confines you’ll find more than 2,000 animals representing 500 species, including endangered ones such as the white tiger. Young children, in particular, will enjoy the koalas. Free-flying birds of prey are the main draw of the aviary while sharks and … Read more

Bank of China, Cheung Kong Centre and HSBC HSBC Building Sir Norman Foster’s striking, Bladerunner-esque edifice cost a whopping HK$5.2bn, making it the world’s priciest pile when it opened in 1985. The headquarters of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation are reputed to have some of the best feng shui around – the building … Read more

Cape D’Aguilar It may be only 7 miles (11 km) directly south of Hong Kong’s busy Central district, but Cape D’Aguilar feels like another world. The wild coastline has wave-lashed rock formations and a marine life so rich that researchers have discovered 20 species “new to science” in these waters. Hoi Ha Wan The long … Read more

St Peter’s Basilica Should the opportunity arise, don’t miss seeing the basilica’s cavernous interior when all the lights are on – only then can you fully appreciate this giant jewel-box of colour . Santa Maria del Popolo Legend recounts that on this spot, where a magnificent oak grew, Nero died and was buried. The site … Read more

Piazza Navona The elongated oval of Rome’s loveliest square hints that it is built atop Domitian’s ancient stadium . This pedestrian paradise is filled with cafés, street performers and artists, milling tourists, kids playing football, and splashing fountains. Bernini designed the central Fountain of Four Rivers, and added the Moor figure to the most southerly … Read more