Straddling the Missouri–Kansas state line, Kansas City stands as a bustling metropolis amid the rolling hills of the Midwest. This "City of Fountains" is a playground for fun seekers, featuring impressive shopping malls, mouthwatering barbecue, a thriving arts scene, and a nightlife that keeps downtown buzzing. Explore the historic jazz district, savor a slice of burnt ends, or catch a local baseball game at Kauffman Stadium, all while uncovering hidden gems like quirky thrift shops and lively farmers' markets.

Shanghai is the shiniest gem in modern China’s jewel box. It’s a hip, contemporary city charging into the future with all the energy of its famous Maglev train. Yet, if you veer away from the sleek highways and glitzy shopping streets you can still stumble upon a more traditional Shanghai, with all its character and flavour. In the tiny back streets, wet-market vendors peddle their wares — buckets of bright green vegetables, fish flapping in shallow plastic bowls, and heaps of crayfish crawling over each other.

"The city in its setting and entire surroundings may be said to have something ideal." (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1797). Scarcely any other European city has had its praises so often sung as Heidelberg. The mysterious Heidelberg Castle, the picturesque Old Town, and as Goethe himself stated, the perfection of its setting – in the nineteenth century, all of this attracted the German romanticists, who immortalized Heidelberg in poetry, music, and art. Today the charm of Old Heidelberg is combined with a future-oriented and international focus.

Steeped in history, the once-capital of Japan and the former seat of the Imperial House, Kyoto is famed for being home to endless Buddhist temples, Shintō shrines, Zen gardens and palaces, many of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Aside from the magnificent architecture and fascinating history, the Kyoto of today is a youthful and vibrant city that stays close to its spiritual and historical roots.