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HILO, Hawaii 鈥� The first time you fly into the Kona Coast on Hawaii鈥檚 Big Island, you鈥檒l be struck by two things: the nearly relentless sunshine (moderated by volcanic smoke that locals call 鈥渧og鈥�) and the vast, barren fields of black lava rock stret

WESTLAKE, Louisiana 鈥� After more than a day of train travel across the desert Southwest, the green woods in Louisiana outside our sleeping compartment鈥檚 windows were a pleasant change. But we weren鈥檛 moving. For hours.

With relatively small countries and delightful public transportation, it鈥檚 easy to throw a change of scenery and culture into your European itinerary.

In Germany鈥檚 southwest corner, the Black Forest (鈥淪chwarzwald鈥�) is a range of hills stretching east of the Rhine River. Ancient Romans found the thick forest here inaccessible and mysterious, so they called it 鈥渂lack.

David Sovka is a Victoria-based writer who loves to explore the forgotten corners of the map, and to be left the hell alone.

A small lizard is doing a slow-motion dance just off my starboard bow.

LISSE, Netherlands 鈥� Nothing says springtime like the tulip season in the Netherlands. The vast Dutch sky hangs low against rectangles of colour 鈥� majestic purples, regal reds, bright yellows, eye-popping whites.

In anticipation of cycling across Central America, I shelled out $125 for a couple of tubs of elite performance-enhancing powder from the dirty hippies at my local health food store. No, not heroin.

On my last visit to Tallinn, while I was admiring the view from the terrace atop the city walls, a kindly middle-aged man approached.

LAS VEGAS 鈥� As Frank Sinatra asks Lady Luck to stick around, the neon red lights of one of Las Vegas鈥檚 most famous towering signs appear to dance under the night sky, revealing a beating heart and the rest of the marquee of a famed casino-hotel.