Wikivoyage:Discover/2021

December 2021

 * The downtown area of Cap-Haïtien is full of French colonial architecture (street scene pictured) - it looks like New Orleans may have looked in the past.
 * The name of the village Janda Baik means "the good widow" in Malay.
 * Martinsturm is Bregenz's most famous landmark, and the tower features the largest onion cupola in Europe.
 * At the Marble Palace (pictured) in North Kolkata, now a museum, you can spend your afternoon among precious art objects including works of Rubens and Sir Joshua Reynolds.
 * The MAC-Forum at Munich Airport is Europe's largest roofed outdoor area, and used for various events like a Christmas fair and ice-skating in winter and a beach volleyball tournament in summer.
 * Cali is known in Colombia as the capital of fiestas, street partying, dancing, and salsa as Cali's salsa clubs are among the most famous in the entire continent.
 * The 17th century Kajaani Castle (pictured) is a ruin nowadays, but there are a few plaques placed around it (also in English) that detail its history and the placement and purpose of the original rooms.
 * Set in a characteristic "badlands" valley carved in the plains by the Red Deer River, Drumheller rose through coal mines — now abandoned — early in the 20th century.
 * Chronicling travels by drawing and painting has been a long and storied tradition; common practice amongst art students, amateur hobbyists and master artists, as well as explorers and scouts.
 * The Palazzo Pubblico (pictured) has functioned as Siena's city hall for almost 800 years and is probably the building that most recognizably represents Siena.
 * Mashiko is famous for its pottery, known as Mashiko yaki (益子焼).
 * The Mali National Park sits slightly above Bamako under the outcrops of the Koulouba plateau and incorporates both the botanical garden and zoo along with a trail network.
 * Described as “the last of the Gilded Age mansions” to be built in America, Cà d’Zan (pictured) in Sarasota has 56 incredible rooms filled with art and original furnishings.
 * The Memorial do Cerrado in Goiânia is a natural history scientific complex, and houses some of the oldest fossil artifacts found in South America.
 * Established in 1908 as a mining town, Copper Hill outside Globe, Arizona once had 500 residents - now it's a ghost town.
 * Tomohon is the fourth-largest city in the province of North Sulawesi and lies between two volcanoes, Mt. Mahawu and Mt. Lokon (pictured).
 * At Jane Austen's house near Alton, 19th-century wallpaper has been painstakingly recreated for visitors.
 * Kazan has a moonshine (homemade alcohol) museum with rare exhibits and tasting.
 * The Trojan horse that was used in the movie Troy (pictured) was donated to the city of Çanakkale and is on display on the waterfront.
 * You can take a trek for a nice view over Xiahe or the distant snowy peaks while enjoying the peace and tranquillity, disturbed only by occasional wayward yak.
 * At the National Pioneer Womens Hall of Fame in Alice Springs hundreds of women were recognised for their special contributions to Australia’s heritage.
 * Sossusvlei (pictured) is a mud pan created by the Tsauchab River that flows through the Namib every 5 to 10 years.
 * The kasbah of Sfax now hosts rooms of displays related to the industries for which the city is famous; construction, metalwork and the famous Bourj and Djenes of Sfax all have their own rooms.
 * Charlestown was first settled and laid out in 1629 by engineer Thomas Graves, making it Boston's oldest neighborhood.
 * If you add all the options, the Full English Breakfast (pictured) can easily set you up for the day and is a lot more than most people eat at home.
 * The Mirador de los Suenos is a glass ball observation deck will enable you to have 360 degree views of the Tarija valley.
 * Salzburg's Toy Museum has the largest collection of European toys in Austria.
 * Designed by Le Corbusier, the National Museum of Western Art (pictured) in Tokyo is a World Heritage Site.
 * While the time of Ned Kelly has been long gone, Ned Kelly tourism has a list of all historically important Ned Kelly sites which can still be seen today.
 * Bangor in Irish is Beannchor, translating to a horned or peaked curve, referring to the shape of its bay.
 * The Basilica of Saint Willibrord in Echternach includes the Willibrord well (pictured), the water of which is believed to cure skin diseases.

November 2021

 * Marijuana, (locally known as ganja) although cheap, plentiful and powerful, is illegal in Jamaica.
 * The lack of Indo-European language structures makes Estonian a rather difficult language to learn.
 * Many major streets in Quanzhou have well-utilized bicycle lanes (pictured).
 * Laredo's Republic of the Rio Grande Museum is dedicated to the year 1840, when the city was the capital of the short-lived Republic of the Rio Grande.
 * The British Empire was primarily a maritime empire; from the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 well into the 20th century Britain was by far the world's greatest naval power.
 * The Petit France district is home to some of Strasbourg's prettiest and most photogenic streets and buildings, with half timbered townhouses (pictured) leaning out over the narrow cobbled streets.
 * Ruta 40 began as a connection between the few inhabited places in the strategically important border zone with Chile.
 * Believe it or not, but it's actually illegal to drive around in a dirty car in Oman.
 * The Kota Raja Mahadi fort (remains pictured) in Klang was used as a vantage point to look out for enemy ships that sailed through to Pangkalan Batu.
 * A National Historic Landmark constructed in 1827, the Fireproof Building in Charleston, South Carolina is believed to be the oldest building of fireproof construction in the United States.
 * Celebrating Afro-Brazilian influence on Porto-Novo, the Museé da Silva offers a lot of variety.
 * Because Shenzhen is a migrant city, all of China's regional cuisines are represented there, with Guangdong, Hunan, and Sichuan food (Màocài pictured) particularly common.
 * The Defence Services Museum in Naypyidaw is an enormous half open-air, half housed complex celebrating Myanmar's military.
 * Apopka is a city in Florida, and its name is a Native American word for "Potato-eating place".
 * A notable sight in Geraldton is the Memorial to HMAS Sydney (pictured), a warship sunk in WWII in the waters outside Western Australia.
 * The thick local accent of Baltimore is dubbed Bawlmerese - a phonetic reading of the word "Baltimorese" as locals pronounce it.
 * Belém is a lively and friendly city but it can look quite unappealing at first sight.
 * Leipzig's tramway (tram pictured) network is the second biggest in Germany.
 * The major religions of India - Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism - have all had a presence during some time in Bhubaneswar and have left their architectural footprints there.
 * The Crewe Heritage Centre features many locomotives including many steam trains and the ill-fated British Rail Advanced Passenger Train of the 1980s.
 * Now a museum, Fort Dansborg (pictured) in Tranquebar is a Danish 17th-century fort constructed immediately after the arrival of the first Danish trading expedition.
 * Hvar is known for its lavender, and you can see it blooming in the summer over large areas.
 * In Istanbul's New City you can visit the Atatürk Museum, housed in a building where the founder of Turkish Republic lived.
 * The spectacular mountain scenery and Lake Wakatipu (pictured) dominate the view from most parts of Queenstown.
 * The Canadian Museum of History is Gatineau's star attraction and Canada's most-visited museum.
 * In the Old State Penitentiary of Boise guests can sit in old prison cells, solitary confinement, and explore the inner workings of this supposedly haunted prison.
 * You can go up in the tower of the Great Church (pictured) of Debrecen to see the Rákóczi bell, the largest bell in Hungary, and excellent views of the city.
 * Roads in the Philippines vary greatly in quality from the paved multi-lane expressways of Luzon to the narrow dirt roads of remote mountain areas, which may complicate travel by car.
 * The University Campus of Princeton features many attractive buildings in "Collegiate Gothic" style as well as colonial-era Nassau Hall and the strikingly modern Woodrow Wilson School building.
 * Agulhas National Park is located on the southernmost tip of Africa (pictured) where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet.

October 2021

 * The Swiss Alpine Museum in Berne describes all aspects of the Swiss mountains: geology & tectonics, glaciers, weather, wildlife, agriculture & settlement, and alpinism and winter sports.
 * The Gulf Islands National Seashore includes many areas of historical interest.
 * Constructed in 2000 by about 50 craftsmen from China, the Temple of the Ninth Emperor God (pictured) in Butterworth is a very beautiful temple with impressive architecture.
 * The hexagonal Place Charles II marks the very centre of Charleroi.
 * Aviation history in the context of museum and history tourism invokes various aspects of science tourism, including both civil and military aviation.
 * The Perito Moreno Glacier (pictured) is accessible from El Calafate. Here, you can see the enormous glacier just meters away from you and listen all the sounds that the cracking ice makes 24 hours a day.
 * Aoshima Shrine located on an island outside Miyazaki was once considered so sacred that people were forbidden to even step foot on the island.
 * There are many adventure activities in Livingstone involving the Victoria Falls, from bungee jumping to microflight rides.
 * The Udaipur City Palace (pictured) is complex of small and big palaces, museums and gardens encompassing a rich blend of Rajasthani, Mughal, Medieval, European and Chinese architecture.
 * Fulton Mall in Fresno features a large collection of public art and holds a spot on the California Register of Historical Places.
 * Mt Talau National Park in Vava'u was established in 1995 to preserve one of the few remaining areas of relatively undisturbed native forests of Tonga.
 * Fort Dunree (guns pictured) in Buncrana was one of the last fragments of British territory handed over to the Republic of Ireland in 1938.
 * The territory of Jervis Bay Territory in Jervis Bay and the nearby beach area of Murrays Beach and parts of the surrounding bay are not part of New South Wales and are part of a Commonwealth-administered territory known as Jervis Bay Territory. It was planned as a grand "Pacific City" and the port of the nation's capital, despite having no border with the capital.
 * The hill fort of Vanhalinna in the Turku countryside, which was used as a fortress in the Iron Age, is a popular picnic destination with nice views.
 * The German Lutheran church (pictured) in Ganja was converted into the "State Puppet Theatre" by the Soviets, and still serves that purpose.
 * The Museum of Samoa in Apia is housed in an over-100-year-old colonial building that was once a German school. It has Lapita pottery and stone adze heads, used by the early settlers to the islands, as well as information on Samoan birds.
 * Typically, medical tourism involves residents of high-income countries seeking medical treatment in low-income countries; often the costs are much lower.
 * The Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum in Warrnambool is a substantial museum, with a replica community (pictured) and many exhibits.
 * The right to access in the Nordic countries allows people – foreigners as well as locals – to hike and camp more or less freely in the woods and in the mountains, regardless of land ownership.
 * There are several galleries in Iqaluit selling Inuit arts and crafts from all over Nunavut.
 * Igreja do Nosso Senhor do Bonfim (pictured) in Salvador is one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in all of Brazil.
 * Amsterdam's Binnenstad features several unusual museums including one for hash, marijuana and hemp, one for sex oddities and two displaying historical torture tools.
 * Burmese is written using the Burmese script, which is based on an ancient Indian script called Pali.
 * Wadi an Nakhur (pictured) is the deepest canyon in the Middle East, and according to some is the world's second-deepest canyon after the Grand Canyon in Arizona.
 * In Lake Placid, Florida you can visit the American Clown Museum.
 * The National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque features six aquariums and the history of the Mississippi River.
 * Chiayi is famous in Taiwan and among tourists for its turkey rice (火雞肉飯) (pictured), a popular dish of turkey strips and a savory sauce ladled over the white rice.
 * If you have never driven in freezing conditions before, it's easy to underestimate the variety of driving challenges that winter weather can throw at you.
 * Ghent was once one of the richest and most powerful cities in Europe, this is today visible in the imposing historical architecture of churches and the houses of rich traders.
 * The Mad Tea Party (pictured) is another iconic attraction of Disneyland where you ride a spinning tea cup.
 * Being on the Atlantic Ocean, Banjul has some excellent and well priced seafood on offer.
 * In the feudal days of Japan, you could find castles in nearly every prefecture.

September 2021

 * One attraction in Százhalombatta is a sculpture of a Rubik's Cube (pictured).
 * The roads radiating outwards from The Square of Palmerston North are so wide because they used to accommodate the railway tracks.
 * Museo de Heróes y Mártires in Masaya is dedicated to the heroes and martyrs of Nicararaguan Revolution in 1979.
 * The Marguerite Route (roadsign pictured) can be regarded as the ultimate tour around Denmark.
 * The main market for most of Ulaanbaatar's residents, Naran Tuul is the place to go if you want to shop like a local.
 * The rich history of Zwickau includes being the birthplace of the 19th-century composer Robert Schumann and of a number of automotive makes.
 * In the Museum of Cham Sculpture in Da Nang you can see a collection of stone sculptures (pictured) from the Hindu-practicing Cham civilization, that once occupied much of central Vietnam.
 * Bath has been inscribed as a twice, both in its own right (in 1987) and as one of 11 "Great Spa Towns of Europe" (in 2021).
 * Mondello Park outside Naas is Ireland's only international motor racing circuit.
 * Virginia Beach (pictured) and its neighboring waters are home to a multitude of freshwater, brackish and saltwater fishing opportunities.
 * The architecture of Elora is very appealing, featuring stonework buildings built by Scottish stonemasons over a century ago.
 * For such a historic site and popular tourist destination, Leh has surprisingly few tourist sights.
 * There is only one train line in Mauritania, connecting Nouadhibou (train in Nouadhibou pictured) to Choum and Zouerat.
 * The Museum of Failure in Helsingborg showcases both "dead products" and how people react to them.
 * Along with Samarkand and Bukhara, Khiva is an important and often overlooked historical site on what was once the Great Silk Road.
 * Chupaderos (pictured) and Villa del Oeste outside Durango retain sets of Western movies that were shot there.
 * The cheese item that Canada is probably best known for is the cheese curd that is a necessary ingredient for poutine.
 * Wikivoyage has a travel rant article presenting less pleasant things you may experience during your journeys.
 * The Empire Builder begins its westbound, and ends its eastbound journey, at Chicago's Union Station (pictured).
 * Montepulciano is known especially for its red wine made from Sangiovese grapes, lauded by the poet Francesco Redi as "the king of all wines!"
 * The Knob Reserve in Stratford, Victoria is a traditional meeting place of the indigenous Gunaikurnai people.
 * Today a tourist attraction, the Spanish San Juan de Ulúa fortress (pictured) in Veracruz was known as one of the most cruel prisons during Porfirio Díaz's government (1876-1911).
 * The reconstruction of ancient Roman catacombs in Valkenburg aan de Geul may not hold any actual graves, but it does provide a fine insight in the structure and purpose of these old Roman subterranean dwellings.
 * Ketchikan is situated at the meeting place of three Alaska Native cultures, Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian.
 * Whilst the majority of the Iguaçu Falls are in Argentina, a better overview (pictured) is had from the Brazilian side.
 * Bologna is generally considered to be the gastronomic centre of Italy and it is reputedly difficult to find a truly poor meal there.
 * A frequent flier program is a type of loyalty program run by an airline or several airlines in conjunction, rewarding frequent passengers with extras and bonuses, and providing facilities aiding air travel with the sponsoring airline or airlines.
 * A large fleet of ferries sail between the many islands of Hong Kong and the granddaddy of them all and an attraction in itself is the Star Ferry (pictured with Island skyline).
 * Weston-super-Mare's Helicopter Museum claims to be the largest in the world.
 * Lodgings in central Chandigarh are notoriously overpriced, and the expense is generally not matched by quality improvements.

August 2021

 * During the Festival of Lights, the beautiful Pukekura Park in the centre of New Plymouth is lit up (pictured), with live entertainment and activities for all ages.
 * From Garmisch-Partenkirchen you can take the Zugspitzbahn cogwheel train to Zugspitze, Germany's highest summit.
 * In Ghana, a "tro-tro" refers to almost any sort of vehicle that has been adapted to fit in as many people, possessions, and occasionally livestock, as possible.
 * Santa Cruz, California is a beach town, with a beach to match almost any interest (Main Beach pictured).
 * Whilst the General Macarthur Memorial of Jayapura is basic, the steepness of the terrain makes the site a spectacular vantage point.
 * In the 21st century you can get to pretty much anywhere else on the planet within a matter of days, though there are still some next-to-impossible destinations where few have been.
 * A symbol of Zadar, Crkva svetog Donata (Church of Saint Donatus, pictured), is one of the best preserved pre-Romanesque buildings in the world.
 * Medan hosts a great lot of very nice Art Deco buildings from the Dutch colonial era.
 * Huntsville, Alabama was once a sleepy cotton town but in the 1950s the city became a center for rocket design and construction and is now home to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center Museum.
 * Built to honor Isis, the Philae Temple (pictured) outside Aswan was the last ancient temple built in the classical Egyptian architectural style.
 * Gretna has been famous as a wedding venue for over 250 years, a tradition that began when English marriage laws became restrictive, so couples eloped across the border to Scotland.
 * The old town of Chania is centred around the harbour, a maze of alleys and houses that stood for hundreds of years, were rebuilt, ruined and rebuilt again with details from different epochs.
 * The free AirTrain (pictured) connects the terminals of John F. Kennedy International Airport, but only landside.
 * Particularly good buys in Thailand are clothing, both cheap locally produced street wear and fancy Thai silk, and all sorts of handicrafts.
 * The University of Idaho is the single dominant institution in Moscow (Idaho) in just about every respect.
 * The Zhuilu Old Trail in Taroko Gorge is not for anyone with fear of heights (bridge to the trail pictured), but offers stunning views of the mountains on the other side of the gorge.
 * In Salve many fortified towers and farmhouses from the 16th century are still standing and now serve as B&B or agritourism accommodations.
 * All around Kratie there are animal statues of concrete, as a melancholy reminder of the wealth of creatures that once roamed the local area.
 * For some local fast food in Santiago de Chile, try out the completo (pictured) - a hot dog with more different toppings than you may be used to.
 * Driving in Russia can be an alternative for adventurous people who want to see the countryside or travel in their own pace around the biggest country in the world.
 * The people of Gumbayngirr country, in Dorrigo National Park were able to tell which types of flora was poisonous and which weren't, just on sight
 * From the spire of Onze Lieve Vrouwetoren (pictured), the second highest tower in the Netherlands, there are amazing views over Amersfoort.
 * The Shanghai Propaganda Poster and Art Centre in Shanghai's French Concession is one of the most relevant and uncensored exhibits available to visitors interested in a glimpse of the politics and art of Mao-era China.
 * Berlin is unusual among European capitals in many respects and the four decades of partition have also left traces.
 * Pike's Peak (pictured), the most famous peak in Colorado, inspiring the song "America the Beautiful", dominates over Colorado Springs to the west.
 * You can bring your bicycle on almost every train in Switzerland but you must buy a ticket for it and get on at a door marked with a bicycle.
 * The views, access, wineries, the length and variety of environments and their historical significance makes the Tourist Drive 33 one of Australia's foremost ones.
 * The Danakil Depression (landscape pictured) is both the hottest region on Earth averaged year round and one of the most geologically active.
 * When hitchhiking you should have clothes and gear for the weather, but you should also think about the impression your clothing gives.
 * If you are not bothered by driving long distances, exploring the Yukon by road can be a great way to see this territory's natural beauty.
 * Moritzburg is famous for the old hunting castle (pictured) of the Saxon kings.

July 2021

 * Being a former sugar cane colony, Trinidad and Tobago is famous for its rum.
 * Urdu is written in a modified Perso-Arabic script called abjad.
 * The 90 mile straight (portion pictured) is the longest straight road in the world, located in Outback WA, going for 90 mi.
 * Makola Market in Accra's busy downtown includes a large boulevard and several alleys full offabric shops with goods such as wax-print pagnes, as well as embroidered and beaded cotton and tulle for special occasions.
 * There are many places in Newport and the rest of Aquidneck Island to go fishing.
 * Sátoraljaújhely has a museum dedicated to the Hungarian language (interior pictured).
 * Dali has some of the cheapest accommodation options available in all China.
 * At the Herring Museum in Rymättylä you can learn about the history of fishing in the region.
 * Palacio Postal, the main post office of Mexico City, is considered of the most beautiful buildings in the country (interior pictured).
 * La Perouse is the spot where French explorer Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse did one of his expeditions. Most of his items have been recovered, and are now found at the museum located in La Perouse.
 * Delhiites complain about many things in their city, but the food will satisfy even the most demanding gourmet.
 * Today a museum, the Kreenholm Textile Factory (worker's housing pictured) in Narva was once the largest factory in the Russian Empire.
 * The definition of what beer is varies by region and culture.
 * As in other parts of West Africa, Niamey has a good selection of bright colorful pagne fabrics.
 * The Shin-Kobe Ropeway runs up to the Nunobiki Herb Park and is reputed to have one of Kobe's best scenic views (pictured).
 * Coleraine in Irish is Cúil Rathain, "nook of the ferns."
 * Lubbock is prone to fits of severe weather, but the relatively stable climate year round has allowed a small local winery industry to flourish.
 * Parque da Juventude in Northeastern São Paulo is the former site of Carandiru Penitentiary Complex (prison ruins pictured), which was known as one of Brazil's most terrible prisons.
 * The Baikal-Amur Mainline was built primarily for military reasons as a backup to the Trans-Siberian, which runs quite close to the Chinese border.
 * Some countries, including some Western ones, may demand access to your laptop and mobile phone as part of the immigration process.
 * Det Hvide Vandtårn (the white watertower, pictured) sits on top of Fredericia's city walls which makes it the ideal place to get views over the Ramparts, The Little Belt Bridge & the entire city.
 * Many of the Edwardian buildings of the Dunedin gasworks were spared when the site was demolished in the 1980s - today they make up one of only a handful of preserved gasworks museums in the world.
 * Valka and the Estonian town Valga are twins, separated by the Estonian/Latvian border but using the slogan "One Town, Two Countries".
 * The Cathedral of Our Lady of Hungary (pictured) in Szeged features Europe's third largest church organ with over nine thousand pipes.
 * Geocaching is a game that involves the Internet, GPS map co-ordinates and travel.
 * Kumho World Electronics Market in Gwangju occupies 15 stories of an office building each of which specializes in a specific kind of devices.
 * Wheeling is known for having more Victorian architecture (street view pictured) than any other city in the United States.
 * Tofo Beach and surrounds have some truly excellent diving, with nice reefs and excellent large marine life.
 * A common characteristic of much Islamic art is to avoid depicting humans, and in some traditions also animals.
 * Jack's Ridge (pictured) in Davao was a hangout for Japanese Forces during World War II and is now a tourist spot with scenic views of the city.
 * An odometer, or cycle computer, is essential for long cycle tours when you need to gauge distance travelled against maps and road signs

June 2021

 * The sea museum of Raahe showcases the oldest scuba gear in the world.
 * The magnetic termite mounds (pictured) in Litchfield National Park are amazing termite-built architectural feats complete with arches, tunnels, chimneys, insulation and nursery chambers.
 * With its name of Greek origin, Stavropol was founded in 1777 as a fortress to defend the southern borders of Russia.
 * Clothing is by far the most effective defence against the sun, but not all clothing is UV resistant, and you can get burnt even while wearing some clothing.
 * Pueblo Español (pictured) in Palma de Mallorca is designed like a small village containing facsimiles of the major classical works of Spanish architecture.
 * Standing for three minutes facing the little Schängelbrunnen fountain in Koblenz is said to bring luck.
 * In Minnan most Chinese characters have two or more pronunciations.
 * A common dish in El Salvador is pupusa (pictured), a round corn tortilla filled with cheese and other elements, usually chicharon (shredded pork meat).
 * Saratoga Springs is most known for its great horse racing track (the oldest in the USA) and harness racing track.
 * Rue des Consuls in Rabat is so named because foreign diplomats were required to reside here in the seventeenth century until 1912.
 * Aqaba is Jordan's window on the Red Sea (city view pictured).
 * Frankfurt Airport operates with a strict night curfew that sometimes leaves passengers stranded at the gate.
 * Local pre-paid SIM cards are often a much cheaper alternative to roaming.
 * The Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton boasts the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force (inside pictured) and the Huffman Prairie Flying Field where the Wright Brothers perfected their flying skills in 1904-05.
 * The Huka Falls just outside Taupo are New Zealand’s most visited natural attraction.
 * The Portuguese were pioneers in the Age of Exploration, discovering Volta do Mar (lit. "turn of the sea"), a system of ocean currents and prevailing winds in the Atlantic.
 * While not quite as impressive as other brick mosques across Mali, the Grand Mosque of Mopti (pictured) is still a sight to behold.
 * The Popotech Workshop in Chorefto is a whimsical garden that is the fruit of a transplanted Dutchman's metalworking.
 * The Musical Instrument Museum in La Paz displays a huge collection of sound-producing devices from Bolivia and beyond, some of which you can play yourself.
 * Nicknamed the City of Arcades, Cardiff is great place for shopping in style and the eight Victorian arcades (Royal Arcade pictured) are worth a visit in themselves.
 * In some developing countries as a tourist you will be expected to use a hard currency rather than the local currency.
 * A special kind of junction in South Africa is the "four way or three way stop" where the car that stops first has right of way.
 * In Tangerang you can find the only IKEA store (pictured) in Indonesia.
 * The Jewish Children's Museum in Brooklyn aims for children of all faiths and backgrounds to gain a positive perspective and awareness of the Jewish heritage, fostering tolerance and understanding.
 * The Majuro atoll is sometimes referred to as D-U-D, after the villages of Delap, Uliga, and Djarrit that are the major population centers.
 * Kansai International Airport (pictured) was opened in 1994 at exorbitant cost on an artificial island in Osaka Bay.
 * At the Grenz-Dokumentationsstätte Lübeck-Schlutup, a former border crossing, you can learn about the Cold War border between West (FRG) and East Germany (GDR).
 * The Muthappan Temple in Kannur is unique in the whole of India, as there is no idol but rather a ritualistic art-form (Muttappan Theyam) to worship.
 * Portchester Castle (pictured) near Portsmouth was built in Norman times largely from recycled stones from an earlier Roman fortification on the same site.
 * Vancouver International Airport has earned the title Best North American Airport by Skytrax every year from 2010-2020.

May 2021

 * Some credit card companies insure trips purchased with certain types of credit cards they issue.
 * Chengdu Panda Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding (inhabitants pictured) is the biggest facility of this kind in the world and a favorite among visitors to the city.
 * The dynastic and religious capital of Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom Egypt, Luxor has a lot of historic sites to offer.
 * At Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco you can visit two WWII warships: the submarine USS Pampanito, and SS Jeremiah O'Brien which was involved in the D-day landing.
 * The Hôtel-Dieu (pictured) in Beaune is a stunning example of Burgundian architecture.
 * An attraction in Akademgorodok outside Novosibirsk is the Monument to the laboratory mouse.
 * Surprisingly, fog is the most lethal kind of weather in some parts of the world.
 * Topside, the interior of Nauru, is a "moon landscape" (pictured) as a result of phosphate mining.
 * If you are looking for an unusual holiday, a yacht charter to Madagascar might be a good choice.
 * Street addresses in Abu Dhabi are simultaneously very logical and hopelessly confusing.
 * Theodore Roosevelt National Park (landscape pictured) is named for the US president who lived in North Dakota during the 1880s, owning and operating two ranches there.
 * The Nordic countries have some of the highest levels of English proficiency among countries where English is not an official or first language.
 * Some great souvenirs to purchase in Ilha de Mozambique literally come from the sea.
 * Kalong Island near Labuan Bajo is home to thousands of kalong, or giant flying fox bats, emerging at dusk (pictured).
 * In Colombia yellow fever vaccination is free for people who travel to high risk areas like Leticia (where it's also obligatory for entering).
 * Though a tiny country, Monaco is packed with entertainment for those with money to burn.
 * Innamincka (pictured) is one of the few Aboriginal communities in Australia; home to Yawarrawarrka and the Yandruwandha people.
 * The Struve Geodetic Arc is a World Heritage Site comprising 34 out of 265 points used to measure the Earth's exact size and shape in the 19th century.
 * Tashelhit has been written with several different alphabets.
 * Soft sleepers (compartment pictured) are the most comfortable mode of transportation on most trains in China and are still relatively cheap by Western standards.
 * Held annually in October, the Ohio Sauerkraut Festival in Waynesville is one of the largest arts and crafts shows in America.
 * Thanks to the significant Indian population, Indian food in Suva, Fiji, is authentic, tasty, and good value.
 * Bab Mansour (pictured) is the largest and most striking of Meknes 27 gates.
 * The short undistinguished Ragged Ass Road is known for its name far beyond Yellowknife, which started as a joke among prospectors about their lack of success one season.
 * Most visitors to Yakushima come to experience the ancient cedar trees and forests.
 * The Kremlin of Nizhny Novgorod (pictured) features a church, a war monument with an eternal flame, a reasonable art museum and impressive views along the Volga River.
 * The adobe ruin of La Huaca del Sol outside Trujillo is purported to be the largest pre-Columbian structure in the Americas.
 * One of Nuorgam's top sights is the monument to the northernmost point of the European Union - the literal northernmost point is in the adjacent Teno river.
 * Mosi-oa-Tunya, or "the smoke that thunders" only became known to the western world as Victoria Falls (pictured) after David Livingstone first set eyes on this astonishing natural wonder in 1855, a heartbeat ago in geological time.
 * The Historic Santa Fe Trail is too fragile to travel on, even on foot, but it's a popular route to travel parallel to.
 * The first railway station in continental Europe was the horse railway station of České Budějovice; now the building houses a horse-drawn railway museum.

April 2021

 * Peggy's Cove lighthouse (pictured) is reportedly the most photographed lighthouse in Canada.
 * Lao romanization is bedeviled by the incompatibility between French and English pronunciation.
 * Houston has outstanding dining options, and is widely considered the most restaurant-oriented city in the United States.
 * Home to the Swedish royal family, much of the beautiful 18th century Drottningholm palace (pictured) in Ekerö is open to the public.
 * Pink Lake outside Esperance is a salt pan that's not particularly pink nor lake-like, but the dam structures used to harvest the salt that may exhibit a pinkish tinge caused by the concentration of algae.
 * The Dhanabadee Ceramic Museum in Lampang showcases "chicken ceramic bowls", a local type of ceramic, as well as their production.
 * The Burial Hill Cemetery in Plymouth, Massachusetts is one of the oldest cemeteries in America containing graves of several Mayflower passengers, many early settlers, and some interesting epitaphs (pictured).
 * Each nation has its own culture of horsemanship, with local customs and taboos that need to be respected.
 * Hong Kong International Airport is known for housing a number of renowned eateries, some of them of Michelin quality.
 * Throughout the region around Ölgii there are an estimated one million petroglyphs (pictured) dating back 12,000 years.
 * Plaza Sotomayor is the heart of the old seaport city of Valparaíso.
 * Heraklion Archaeological Museum houses the most important and representative finds from the Minoan civilisation and excavations across the island of Crete.
 * A "smart city" dating back to 500 BCE, a gate and a pillar complex (pictured) are all that remains of Sisupalgarh, an archeological site south of Bhubaneswar.
 * The Dutch Empire was different from some other colonial European empires at the time, inasfar it was mostly centered around individual trading posts, rather than large areas of land.
 * Gold and silver jewellery is cheap in Asmara and is definitely a bargain by world standards.
 * As "space tourist" (Mark Shuttleworth pictured) conjures an image of someone in a polyester shirt with a camera around their neck, NASA and RKA prefer the term spaceflight participant.
 * The G.D. Naidu Museum in Coimbatore is an interesting collection of inventions by G.D. Naidu, also referred to as the Edison of India.
 * Bei Guo Zhi Chun in Hohhot is greenhouse/warehouse turned into a massive eatery where plants are abundant as well as water features and indoor yurts.
 * Anyone who visits downtown Detroit will be pleasantly surprised to see one of America's best preserved collections of late nineteenth and early twentieth century buildings standing beside the contemporary (Brush Street pictured).
 * Wicklow Head 3 km south of Wicklow Town, is the most easterly point on the Republic of Ireland mainland: on a clear day you might glimpse Snowdonia in Wales.
 * Phitsanulok is not well-known to foreign tourists and thus has retained the charm of a typical, larger Thai city.
 * The 1627 Battle of Grolle is re-enacted (pictured) biannually with hundreds of re-enactors from all over Europe, making the town look like it did in the 17th century for a few days.
 * LAX is a massive airport, with nine terminals built in different eras in a variety of architectural styles.
 * The Orheiul Vechi Monastery is carved into a massive limestone cliff and this wild, rocky and remote spot is one of Moldova's most fantastic sights.
 * Thought to be cast in 1252, the big Kōtokuin statue (pictured) in Kamakura was originally housed in a giant temple hall that was washed away in a tsunami.
 * Bruny Island is home to the southern-most licenced pub in Australia and the country's most-southern vineyard.
 * The Antarctic Islands have a marine polar climate: very cold, but not as extremely cold as the mainland.
 * Plymouth (pictured) is one of England's classic ocean cities, and for centuries has been a centre for shipping.
 * Believed to date back to 753, Staraya Ladoga was the first capital of Russia.
 * Short-hop ferries, which are part of the local public transportation network are sometimes called water buses.

March 2021

 * Robert Bateman's "Wolf Sketch" (pictured) on the Highland Tower in Thompson is Canada's largest photo-real mural and the largest lighted mural in the world.
 * The Great Barrier Reef is the largest coral formation in the world.
 * West Virginia is often called the "Mountain State", being the only state in the USA to lie completely within a mountain range.
 * Orto botanico di Padova (entrance pictured) is the world's oldest still operating botanic garden.
 * Abuja Millennium Park includes a large system of terraces highlighting the different vegetation zones across Nigeria.
 * León is known as the "shoe capital of the world", and is a great place for discounted top footwear.
 * The small Republic Square (pictured) in Malé, marked by a flagpole with a giant Maldivian flag, is the focal point of every political demonstration in the capital but also has an extremely helpful tourist map.
 * With some 500 guitars the guitar museum in Umeå is one of the largest of its kind worldwide.
 * Geneva provides free public transit passes to any tourist staying in a hotel, hostel or campground.
 * Today a tourist attraction, the Diefenbunker (tunnel pictured) in Carp was built at the height of the Cold War as the site where Canada's leadership could ride out a nuclear attack.
 * Theater De Maagd in Bergen op Zoom owes its atmosphere with the international architecture award-winning transformation from church to theater.
 * The Alaska Marine Highway System is operated by the State of Alaska and comprises 3,500 miles or almost 6,000 km of ferry lines.
 * Dengbian near Kaiping is a ghost town known as the "village without people" with trees overgrowing structures (pictured).
 * World-renowned for its unique and fearless wildlife, the Galapagos Islands are bisected by the Equator.
 * The cathedral of Girona includes the widest Gothic nave in the world.
 * Ostia Antica is an archaeological site that contains many Roman ruins (pictured), dating back to the days when it served as Rome's port.
 * Fortaleza d'Amura in Bissau is an old Portuguese fort, containing the mausoleum of national hero Amilcar Cabral and tombs of other revolutionaries.
 * Living in the Philippines is cheap and shopping in the country is also cheap compared to some nearby countries.
 * The railway station in Asunción is now a museum, but more impressive than the exhibits is the building itself (pictured) and old wagons.
 * Brickfields is known as the biggest Little India of Kuala Lumpur.
 * The "Four Great Cuisines" of China (四大菜系) are Sichuan (Chuan), Shandong (Lu), Guangdong (Cantonese/Yue), and Jiangsu (Huaiyang) cuisine.
 * The Boston Black Heritage Trail takes you around ten important sites (Robert Gould Shaw and 54th Regiment Memorial picured) in American black history.
 * For many reasons, air travel entails some additional restrictions when it comes to your baggage, compared to other modes of travel.
 * The Kalinga War Memorial in Dehradun is the only war memorial of its kind in the world; it was erected by the British to honour their foe, the Gurkhas.
 * Always wanted to have a meal in a crooked building? Head to Den Skæve Kro - "The Crooked Inn" (pictured) - in Ebeltoft!
 * The University of Kansas campus in Lawrence is simply beautiful and has been called "one of the most picturesque campuses in all of America."
 * Travelling for a funeral or memorial service often involves planning a long-distance trip on short notice.
 * Te Kuiti is known as the "Sheep Shearing Capital of the World" (sheep shearing statue pictured).
 * Pinhão is the centre of the oldest demarcated wine region in the world.
 * The Steps of Penitence leading up to Mount Sinai is a path quite literally carved out of the rock by monks.
 * Climbing from sea level to 866 m (2841 ft) in 20 km (12 mi), the Flåm railway (view from train pictured) the third steepest normal railroad in the world.

February 2021

 * In Ajaccio you can visit the house where Napoleon was born, which is now a museum.
 * Queen Juliana Bridge in Willemstad is the highest bridge in the Caribbean.
 * At the McDonald's in Taupo you can have your meal in a decommisioned airplane (pictured).
 * The seat of the Sicilian Parliament, Palazzo dei Normanni in Palermo, is the oldest royal residence in Europe and once housed the rulers of the Kingdom of Sicily.
 * In Fort Worth you can visit two museums presenting the life of women and non-white cowboys in the Old West.
 * At the Daio Wasabi Farm (pictured) in Azumino, the largest in Japan, you can make your own wasabi pickle.
 * Due to how the city's Bashkir name is written in the Cyrillic script, Ufa is sometimes nicknamed the City of Three Screws.
 * The architecture of the Azadi Tower in Tehran, constructed to commemorate the 2,500th anniversary of the Persian Empire, combines elements of Sassanid and Islamic architecture.
 * From 1562 to 1792, emperors of the Holy Roman Empire were crowned in the Kaiserdom (pictured) in Frankfurt.
 * The Elkmont Historic District is a ghost town within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
 * Bambara is heavily influenced by French, and even the slightest knowledge of French will make it easier to remember words.
 * Port Royal (remains pictured) outside Kingston was once the largest city in the Caribbean and perhaps its most notorious base for pirates and privateers.
 * Coonoor provides the traveller with the panoramic view of the lush green Nilgiri hills, with its ravines, valleys, and waterfalls.
 * Chester - or "Deva" in Latin - was one of the great military bases in Roman England, and as such, has its fair share of Roman ruins.
 * Les Almadies (pictured) in Dakar is the western tip of the African continent with plenty of seafood restaurants.
 * One of the last large wildernesses close to Helsinki, in Sipoonkorpi National Park you can reportedly encounter all mammal and bird species that are common in Southern Finland.
 * Shakhmansur Bazaar is the biggest bazaar in downtown Dushanbe and has a huge variety of foods, as well as an odd assortment of tools and household products.
 * Moored across the river from downtown Wilmington, USS North Carolina (guns pictured) offers visitors the chance to envision the daily life and fierce combat her crew faced in the Pacific Theatre during World War II.
 * High over Kavala a big white cross can be seen from everywhere in the town.
 * Brazil's cuisine is as varied as its geography and culture, based on the variety of crops, livestock and seafood produced in the country.
 * Sasanaramsi Burmese Buddhist Temple (standing Buddha at the temple pictured) in Singapore is the only Buddhist temple outside Myanmar to be built in the traditional Burmese architectural style.
 * Estelí has historically been and continues to be a Sandinista stronghold and you can see almost as many murals bearing witness of this as in León.
 * Musée International du Golfe de Guinée in Lomé houses a quite large collection of authentic mainly West African historical items.
 * During the colonial period, the Germans left a distinct mark on Qingdao's architecture that can still be seen in its historic center and train station (pictured).
 * Famous for its Catalan origins, Alghero was known in the past as "la Barceloneta sarda", little Sardinian Barcelona.
 * One of the most famous streets in New York City if not the world, Broadway has a history reaching back to pre-Columbian times.
 * At 56 m, Zenkov's Cathedral (pictured) in Almaty is among the tallest wooden buildings in the world, which you wouldn't guess from the smoothly painted exterior hues of custard, icing sugar and coloured marzipan.

January 2021

 * Due to the white color of the sand in the White Sands National Park, some animals have evolved lighter coloration, resulting in white reptiles, mammals, and invertebrates that blend with their white background.
 * A sculpture from 1960 showing whalers in action, the Whaling Monument is Sandefjord's most famous attraction.
 * Bodrum Castle (pictured) is one of the world's best preserved monuments dating back to medieval times.
 * In Baisha near Lijiang you can see Buddhist murals that reflect a fusion of Han Chinese and Tibetan painting techniques with Naxi cultural traditions.
 * The region of and around the Turkey Run State Park is indeed known for its population of wild turkeys.
 * Traben-Trarbach (pictured) is one of the most charming wine towns along the Mosel River.
 * A supra (Georgian banquet) always features a tamada, a master of ceremonies nominated by the host, who is responsible for the toasts, for keeping the party going, and keeping the guests joyful.
 * The Lusatian Lake District is a collection of artificial lakes created from former open-pit lignite mines
 * The kasbah (old town) of Rabat has narrow streets with cute white and blue houses (pictured).
 * Burnham Market is one of the five Norfolk Burnhams in existence today–there were originally seven.
 * Described as a football temple, Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti in Buenos Aires is the largest stadium in Argentina and home to the national football team.
 * The Black Sand Beach (pictured) in Vík í Mýrdal is famous for its basalt stacks and black lava sands.
 * As mountains are by their nature hard to reach, traditionally cheese produced there had to be of a variety that stores well and can be collected for later sale.
 * Perth has an enormous traditional arts scene.
 * The Dome of Light (pictured) in Kaohsiung is the world's largest stained glass installation.
 * If you visit Tikal early enough in the morning, it's possible to see and hear monkeys.
 * Basketball is one of the most popular team sports in North America, both as a spectactor sport and as an activity.
 * The French language originated in France, but in the modern day it is spoken on every continent (French speaking areas pictured).
 * The wooden roof of the 11th century Ancona Cathedral is in the shape of an upside-down boat and its most obvious feature is the 12-sided cupola.
 * Some towns owe their existence or at least their current size to mining.
 * Buffalo History Museum (pictured) has by far the most extensive collection of artifacts relevant to the history of Buffalo and Western New York from pre-Columbian times to the present day.
 * Sakhalin has long been the scene of a power struggle between major Asian powers.
 * Townsville on the Australian Pacific coast enjoys an average of 320 days of sunshine a year.
 * Completed in 1929, Havana's neoclassical El Capitolio (pictured) resembles the U.S. Capitol and housed the Cuban Congress prior to the revolution.
 * The San Gabriel mountains above Pasadena offer some excellent hiking opportunities.
 * Compared to the hectic, bustling capitals in other Southeast Asian countries, Vientiane's relaxing atmosphere makes it feel like the small town it is.
 * The most prized piece of art in Klosterneuburg Monastery is the triptych Verduner Altar (pictured), painted in 1181 by Nicholas of Verdun.
 * God's Own Junkyard in Walthamstow displays hundreds of illuminated signs including signs of businesses, decorative signs, movie props and artworks.
 * Inca legend says that Viracocha, the bearded god who created the universe, emerged from the waters of Lake Titicaca and created the sun at Isla del Sol.
 * With a maximum height between 260 and 312 m, King Fahd's Fountain (pictured) in Jeddah is the tallest in the world.
 * At the Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka in Ballarat, you can learn about the 1854 Eureka miners' rebellion and the changes it caused in Australian democracy.
 * Shirakawa is famous in the region for its unique daruma (wooden doll) design.