The capital, 450-year-old Asuncion ("Mother of Cities") merits a visit of unhurried nights - that way, you'll have time to sit in the main square and people-watch. The shopping in this grand city of 729,000 is the finest the country offers, and the cathedral and archaeological museum are both highlights. The governmental architecture is interesting; don't miss the Congressional Palace, Customs House and Government Palace (in the style of the Louvre).

Carmel-by-the-Sea is a small coastal city on California’s Monterey Peninsula, overlooking Carmel Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The community is known for its compact village center, white-sand beach, cypress trees, and architecture that includes distinctive cottages and courtyards. Much of the commercial district can be explored on foot, with galleries, restaurants, boutiques, and wine-tasting rooms concentrated within a small area.

Yilan is a city in northeastern Taiwan and the administrative center of Yilan County, set on a broad plain between the Central Mountain Range and the Xueshan Range. The region is known for rice fields, rivers, hot springs, and a humid climate shaped by frequent rainfall. The Lanyang River and its tributaries run through the surrounding countryside, supporting fertile agricultural land.

Norfolk Island may be small but it carries a story that spans centuries. Located in the South Pacific between Australia, New Zealand, and New Caledonia, the island is a fascinating blend of Polynesian roots, British convict history, and Pitcairn Island culture. Today, visitors can walk through one of the best-preserved penal settlements in the world at Kingston, where stone ruins and restored Georgian buildings stand against a backdrop of green hills and the open sea.

Auyuittuq National Park is a vast protected landscape on southeastern Baffin Island in Nunavut, extending between the communities of Pangnirtung and Qikiqtarjuaq. Its name means “land that never melts” in Inuktitut, reflecting the park's extensive ice and snow. Towering granite peaks, deep fjords, glaciers, rivers, and tundra dominate the landscape, while the Penny Ice Cap covers a large section of the interior.