by Clark Scott, Birmingham, AL

From everything I’d heard, read or seen about Papua New Guinea, it was death itself to go to that little-visited island off the northeast coast of Australia. A recent Internet story included the capital, Port Moresby, on its Top 10 Hells on Earth list, and everyone said the country was crawling with venomous snakes, disease, rampant “raskols” (the PNG term for robbers, murderers and rapists) and tribal wars — just the kind of place your grandmother told...

by Jack & Yvonne Prevo, McKinney, TX

On a 10-day trip to Paris, France, in May ’08, we spent a day outside of Paris that included a visit to Château de Malmaison in Rueil and a nice meal at Le Restaurant de la Fournaise in Chatou.

Touring the château

Château de Malmaison (www.chateau-malmaison.fr, in French only) was a country home of Napoléon and Joséphine, purchased by her before her husband became emperor and crowned her empress in 1804. Napoléon later divorced...

by Marilyn Lutzker, New York, NY

A well-preserved medieval center, dozens of world-class museums, a wealth of Art Nouveau architecture, affordable antique and flea markets and more than 1,500 restaurants are enough to belie Brussels’ reputation for being boring. Visitors will find Brussels a joy for looking, learning, walking and eating.

Where to stay

Brussels is divided between Lower Town and Upper Town. On our first visit in 2002, my friend and I stayed in the...