In a gap between high dunes on the west coast of Walcheren, Zoutelande is an amiable village on what is known as the Zeeland Riviera. The Blue Flag beach at Zoutelande is at a kink in Walcheren’s coastline, and so faces south, granting it more hours of sunshine than any other location in the Netherlands. …
One of the smallest towns in Miami-Dade County by area, this affluent community is squeezed onto a pair of islands on Biscayne Bay. From above, Bay Harbor Islands looks a little like a pair of lungs. To my mind, the location is as good as it gets. Nothing on this list, whether it’s a chic …
In the 1870s, Yerseke on Zuid-Beveland was chosen for large-scale oyster cultivation to serve the French market. Before long, mussels, which had always flourished in the Eastern Scheldt estuary, overtook oysters as Yerseke’s main source of income. Mussels and oysters are still a huge industry for Yerseke, and this is the only harbour in the …
The people of Lier are often called Schapekoppen (sheep heads), which is a 14th-century insult turned into a point of pride. The story goes that at the start of the 14th century John II, Duke of Brabant wanted to thank Lier for its help in his fight against the City of Mechelen. He gave Lier’s …
In the Early Modern Age if you were a visitor to Huy, a city on the rugged banks of the Meuse, you would be pointed to the city’s four wonders, “Les Quatre Merveilles”. These have their original Walloon names, and include the intact fountain on Grand-Place (Li Bassinia), the rose window at the Notre-Dame de …
Fronting Choctawhatchee Bay and the bayous that feed it, Valparaiso is a city at the East Gate of Eglin Air Force Base. Dating back some 90 years, the base is the home of the 96th Test Wing, and occupies a vast area to the north and west. There’s a sensational museum on the base, dedicated …
While Portland may be Oregon’s biggest city both in population and square mileage, Downtown Portland is a compact urban nucleus of narrow streets and high-rise buildings separated from the rest of the city by the Willamette River. The one square mile which makes up the Downtown district is home to less than two percent of …
Covering little more than two square miles, this small coastal city has some enchanting scenery. Tequesta features Atlantic shoreline, a piece of the Indian River Lagoon, and the lower reaches of the Loxahatchee River. Something that intrigues me about the coastline is that it’s unusually rocky, and you can view some peculiar formations at the …
An inspiring place in remote North Central Florida, High Springs was first settled almost two hundred years ago. The railroads accelerated development later in the century, and there are hints of this heritage across the downtown area. For you and me, High Springs’ appeal comes from the scores of natural springs flowing into the Santa …
In a lake-strewn landscape in Polk County, Lake Alfred is a small but fast-growing city of 6,500. I’m telling the truth when I say that water is everywhere in Lake Alfred. Officially it makes up almost half of the city’s total area. There are lots of places both here and in neighboring communities where you …