Kuala Lumpur has long been a home to leafy canopies of tropical trees. These days, as skyscrapers dominate its skyline, the drive to reconnect Malaysia’s capital to its green origin is making a comeback.   Kuala Lumpur is going through an identity crisis. For visitors, it is a place that embraces...

There is nowhere in the world quite like Istanbul - spread across two continents, a city exuding with culture and contrast and always on the move.   Everyday mostly at six, old wooden carts pass and move along the narrow cobblestoned alleyways hauling merchandise of freshly picked cucumbers, tomatoes, nuts and...

There are many ways to discover Italy's powerhouse. In Milan, you take a spade and dig; the odds of uncovering ancient relics are high. You could also take a good pair of shoes, and the odds of discovering the city are as good as the way you strut.   "I would...

Mallorca, an enchanting Spanish island in the Mediterranean, has lured generations of artists, writers, poets, celebrities, and musicians, inspiring their works and legacies.   W hen William Graves opened the door of his father’s old casa in the undulating hillside of Deià on the island of Majorca, his eyes twinkled. Elena, whom...

What can a landscape teach a traveler? In Andalusia, it’s as simple as living like a local and embracing its transportive landscape.   T   o live in southern Spain on the coast of Andalusia - where the occasional sand laden wind blows, is to embrace la calima. It’s been an hour since I...

In travel, there is foreignness and familiarity. It's like flipping a coin, you get one or the other. The most fascinating part? The sense of wonder and surprise.   Every so often, when the occasion arises, I would find myself traveling to one of my favorite European cities. I never get...

From the Pyrenees to the jagged coastal coves of Costa Brava, Spain's Catalonia stirs inspiration and saccharine summer dreams.   IT was hard to say when summer arrived in the Alt Empordà, the upper part of Catalonia, tucked away in the northeast corner of Spain. The fresh-milled scent of olives that clung...

Hamburg - part grit and part chic, why this German city of the north keeps on surprising.   It was August, and the world smelled of roses – of dreams – of summer. When Ted Macauley first visited Hamburg in 1970, a decade had passed since the Beatles performed live in August...

Famous for its cuisine, medieval ramparts, and opera, Lucca is Tuscany's best-kept secret that makes for a different kind of Italian drama.   A ugust is coming to a close in Lucca, a masterfully preserved medieval Italian city situated some 50 kilometers to the west of Florence and a short 15-minute drive...

Malaysia’s storied capital is teeming with contrast - from its jarring mix of ethnicities, cultures as well as beliefs all adding to its irresistible charm and intrigue.   The early morning call from the muezzin at the nearby Masjid Negara, Malaysia’s national mosque in downtown Kuala Lumpur reverberated in the silence...