By Elisa Mala

With hot climes and the prevailing philosophy of maintaining “cool hearts” (jai yen), Thailand is rife with contradictions. Nowhere is this more evident than in Bangkok, the nation’s capital and most populated city, a seemingly endless sprawl that is at once chaotic and calm. Ultra-modern commercial complexes overshadow some of the oldest Buddhist temples in the world, extravagant dance performances are as plentiful as gory kickboxing matches, sports cars compete with rickshaws for road space, and millionaires live blocks away from those who occasionally lack running water. Born and bred in Manhattan, NEWSWEEK’s Elisa Mala grew up speaking Thai, which kept her close to the culture from halfway around the world. Here are the sites and activities that capture her imagination on trips there.

VISIT the 150-foot-long reclining Buddha at Wat Pho (www.watpho.com) (near the river along Maharat Road, about 2/3 of a mile south of the Grand Palace). Bangkok’s oldest and largest temple also runs the city’s most respected Thai massage school, the Traditional Medical Pracitioners Association Center, so weary wayfarers can rest with a rubdown. An emerald Buddha sits at Wat Phra Kaew, one of Thailand’s grandest worshipping grounds. No surprise that it’s ornate – located on the grounds of the Grand Palace, it shares a home with the king. Dressing like royalty is hardly a requirement, but knees and elbows should be covered, and shoes removed before entering holy sites.

DUMBO, Brooklyn Heights and Williamsburg, Brooklyn

By Zach Kussin

Not a Brooklyn native, but certainly a Brooklyn admirer, Zach Kussin has enjoyed his time exploring the DUMBO, Brooklyn Heights, and Williamsburg neighborhoods. Having spent time living, learning and working in Manhattan, he was glad to discover the nice change of pace these three areas offer. They are home to some of New York's finest restaurants, art galleries and neighborhood flair. Without the hectic crush of Manhattan in the background, visitors can easily spend their Brooklyn visits at peace.

Stroll through Brooklyn Bridge Park, an urban oasis that offers a pleasant escape from the traffic as well as a variety of outdoor events, including Thursday-night films on a giant silver screen. This summer, visitors can also enjoy The New York City Waterfalls, a series of art installations created by the internationally acclaimed artist Olafur Eliasson. The 90 to 120-foot tall waterfalls located at the Brooklyn anchorage of the Brooklyn Bridge, at the Brooklyn piers, at the shore of Governor's Island and at Pier 35 in Manhattan's Lower East Side will all be easily visible from Brooklyn Bridge Park's vantage point beginning on June 26.

By Kristin Luna 

By Kate Tedesco 

By Lauren Mack 

William Underhill, a correspondent in the London office of Newsweek, first came to Oxford to study in the 1970s and returned as a resident in 2006. He now works as a correspondent in the London office of NEWSWEEK.

Sights: Oxford is a hybrid: part modern industrial centre - BMW has a plant on the outskirts - part venerable academic community, and its finest architectural treasures can be hard to find. Many are hidden behind the walls of the 35 colleges that together make up the university. (Watch out: mean-spirited commercialism dictates that many colleges now charge for admission). My own favourites aren’t the biggest or the best-known. For the quintessence of creeper-clad old Oxford try the quadrangles of Oriel College or its neighbour, tiny Corpus Christi. If the colleges stale, it’s only a short walk to the Pitt Rivers Museum, an astonishingly mixed assortment of ethnographical curiosities displayed with a fine disregard for modern museum styles.

Drinks:With more than ten thousand thirsty students to please, Oxford has pubs for all tastes, from the richly quaint to rowdy late-night watering holes. Guide books rightly steer tourists towards The Bear – plenty of dark panelling and low ceilings – in Bear Lane, but for a quiet pint in modest surroundings take a ten-minute hike north of the city center to Gardeners’ Arms in Plantation Road. The beers – the selection changes regularly – are among the best in town and so too is the vegetarian menu.

Stroll: One look at a map shows that downtown Oxford is rich in green spaces. For absolute peace head for the university’s under-visited Botanic Gardens, the oldest in Britain. Nowhere quite matches the hothouses for comfort in the chill of an Oxford winter. For one more tourist-free excursion, take a stroll in the University Parks, a vast expanse of greenery on the edge of the main university district and fringed by the extravagantly Gothic mansions of the city’s Victorian suburbs.

Festivities: Avoid the city at all costs early on May Morning – the first of the month - the best known of the university’s festivals when a choir gathers on the top of the chapel tower at Magdalen College to greet the start of summer. Okay, the occasion is steeped in authentic tradition but the singing is inaudible and the crush of drink-sodden students intense. A better spectacle is the annual Eights Weeks rowing contest late in the summer term when the college crews compete for the title of Head of the River on the Thames. Forget the idea of conventional side-by-side races: the object is to bump the boat in front. For the record the “week” is only four days long and the river is known to the university as the Isis, not the Thames. Call it tradition, call it affectation: it’s Oxford.

By Joanna Chen

By Karen Pinchin

On a typical tour of Poland, most people sip rich beet soup, take in the horrors of Auschwitz and tip back homebrewed vodkas in hundred-year-old basement bars. But those tourists are missing out on some of the best parts of Poland. After a three-week tour off the beaten path, Newsweek’s Karen Pinchin has some tips on divining the country’s best-kept secrets.

People tell me all the time how much they hate L.A. When I ask why, they cite our unsightly urban sprawl and a lack of culture. I can't deny we spend too many hours on clogged freeways. But a lack of culture? To these people, I say, come see the Los Angeles I know, where culture comes in unexpected ways. Oh yeah, and while the Midwest and East Coast are still braving ice storms, we here in Southern California are dining al fresco and sailing along the coast under cloudless skies.

Stay: Live like a rock star at the Hotel Bel-Air (http://www.hotelbelair.com/), where a typical day on the sun-mottled patio restaurant brings sightings of real rock stars, legends like Nancy Reagan and international glitterati. Bungalows with private patios and French country furnishings are tucked among the über-verdant foliage and old-growth trees in this exclusive residential Bel-Air neighborhood. Rates from $395.

The Huntley Hotel (thehuntleyhotel.com) in Santa Monica towers over the Pacific with views of the landmark Santa Monica Pier and its rainbow-colored Ferris wheel. Rooms were recently renovated in midcentury swank but with modern touches like flat-screen TVs and marble baths. One of the city's hottest hotel bars, the Penthouse, sparks a party each night 18 floors above the coastline with views that do it justice. Rates from $350.

The historic Dutch capital of Amsterdam still retains its Old World grandeur. Here's how to maximize your visit to one of Europe's most walkable cities.

The Dutch know citymaking. Their historic capital, Amsterdam, is a product of 17th-century merchant capitalism, widely considered to be the first age of globalization, and its structure was heavily influenced by Europe's trade with the wider world. The concentric ring of canals that make up the old city are extensions of the routes that led to China, India, and the southern tip of Africa. Mokum (the Yiddish nickname for the city) has managed to remain accessible even as it has modernized. An efficient tram system links peripheral neighborhoods to the core around Central Station, and because of its relatively small size, it is one of the most walkable capitals in Europe.

Touring: A beguiling warren of narrow lanes, canals, and tiny bridges, Amsterdam is perfect for a meandering stroll. For the complete tour, choose from two options: bicycle or boat. Almost everyone rides a bike in Amsterdam, and renting one is easy. The city is as cycling-friendly as they come, with a network of designated lanes and parking, and the old prewar-style bicycles that dominate the lanes will take you back to another time. Mac Bike can put you in the saddle at any one of their numerous locations.

The Netherlands' capital is a watery place, nestled well below sea level, and touring by water provides a great way to view the rows of 17th-century canal-side homes and warehouses. Forgo the cumbersome cruise-boat tours that crowd the major waterways and take a more pleasant, personalized journey through the backwaters. The St. Nicolaas Boat Club is a little-known gem that offers daily tours on their small fleet of quaint, authentically Dutch canal boats. Bring a picnic and a bottle of wine, and see one of the most beautiful European cities from its most unique vantage point. For the pleasure, your ship captain will accept donations at the end of your voyage, and tours can be arranged only by visiting Boom Chicago, a comedy club and bar in the Leidseplein square.

India's Golden Triangle--Delhi, Agra and the Rajasthan capital of Jaipur--attracts tourists by the droves. But after getting your fill of the prime attractions, travel west where a pair of enchanting cities offers a closer glimpse into India's largest state. NEWSWEEK reporter Christopher Werth recently returned from the journey.

Delhi: While the Indian capital is said to be comprised of at least seven successive cities throughout history, the two most recent manifestations are the most apparent. Old Delhi is a vibrant but sooty conglomeration of streets and bazaars, thronged with people and cycle rickshaws. New Delhi is a colonial pattern of wide, sweeping boulevards and monumental buildings, a master plan designed by the British architect Edwin Lutyens. The most fun to be had is in the old city. For a memorable dining experience, duck down the tiny alleyway that leads to Karim's, a well-known establishment occupying a courtyard of random buildings near the Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque. The restaurant is famous as far away as Mumbai.

This week the town is aflutter with Hollywood celebs and wannabes as the 17th annual Sundance Film Festival takes over through Jan. 24. Though the streets and restaurants are packed with glitterati and Looky Lous, it's not too late to book; there's still room at the lodge. And if you just want to play in the snow, there's plenty of thrill-seeking fun. Tara Weingarten, a special correspondent in the Los Angeles Bureau, loves to visit Park City in the winter, but this week she's happy to watch all the stars jet away and leave Tinseltown's freeways a little less congested.

Ski and Snowboard: Not surprisingly, the runs are empty this week, as most visitors are desperate to catch a celeb or see the next blockbuster flick. If you're game, hit the challenging Canis Lupus run at the Canyons ski area, which is also a great place to stay, with rooms—many with kitchens and fireplaces—still available (thecanyons.com). Loved for its milelong natural halfpipe, which doles out radical banks and turns, it starts at 10,800 feet. And if you're really an adrenaline junkie, hop onto the less crowded DreamCatcher and DreamScape lifts, where you'll find fresh powder even days after a snowstorm.

In New Zealand you can explore the land of the hobbits--but don't forget the vibrant Maori culture or delectable cuisine. 

Abandoned by her brothers for the holidays, NEWSWEEK's Ginanne Brownell and her mother took off on an Antipodean adventure in New Zealand. Traversing the islands by car, they soon discovered it always takes twice as long as expected to get anywhere because of the windy roads, car-stopping scenery--and, of course, all those sheep.

Rotorua: Some call it the Las Vegas of New Zealand, although there are no casino slots--just lots of tourists. The small city, located in the central part of the north island, is famous not just for being the heart of Maori culture, but also for its thermal springs and bubbling mud. Head to Whakarewarewa (www.whakarewarewa.com), a Maori village in the midst of the thermal reserve. Locals provide tours of the village, and you'll have the chance to watch traditional Maori dancing and singing and enjoy delicious corn boiled in the thermal waters. (Note: add the butter to the plastic bag and shake -- don't be dumb like me and spread the butter with your bare hands. It's messy and you'll give yourself away as a tourist!) Te Puia (www.nzmaori.co.nz), a Maori cultural center, lets you glimpse traditional weaving and wood-carving workshops amidst the geysers. (Pohutu, the largest, erupts between 10 and 20 times a day.) Stay for a Hangi lunch—meat, potatoes, carrots, onions and corn are cooked in the ground over hot river stones. Delicious and different!

In the past few years, intrepid travel writer Kristin Luna has ping-ponged all over the globe. Here, she rehashes some of her favorite facets of life in Holland:

Eats: The Netherlands isn't known for its gourmet cuisine--the Dutch dining philosophy is to deep-fry everything and serve with fries, hold the salad--but thankfully the country offers every international cuisine under the sun (an ambler might find Ethiopian, Argentinean and Moroccan establishments all within a 100-foot stretch). With an Arabic population of more than 1 million, some of the best fare is North African and Middle Eastern: it's cheap and easy and rarely disappoints. My daily lunch staples were Turkish pizzas or falafel from any of the ubiquitous, colorful dives that dot Utrecht. For one of the tastiest alternatives in town, stop by the Surinamese stand in the middle of Neude Square and order the roti kip, a pita stuffed with chicken, potatoes and green beans (tofu options are available, as well). If you're set on trying the regional fare, grab a cone of thick Flemish fries from any vendor. They're not significantly different from "freedom fries," but served with mayonnaise in lieu of ketchup.

Biking: The Dutch bike everywhere: grocery stores, shopping malls and even the bars. If you're staying in one place for a considerable amount of time, you might consider buying a second-hand set of wheels to help you get around. It's great exercise and more reliable than the country's public transit. The Utrecht police station holds an auction once a month where you can purchase a used bicycle for as little as five or 10 euros (check the tourist office in Neude Square for details upon arrival); at any time, you can find "bicycle black market" vendors near the train stations. Buy the loudest, crummiest one possible, as bike theft is a common occurrence. Or consider renting one for the day at any sporting-good store (watch for signs boasting "fiets," the Dutch word for bike).

Drinks: You needn't look further than Utrecht's main canal, Oudegracht, and its myriad drinking institutions to whet your appetite for quality European brews.