The cityscape of Cape Town reflects a history rich in contrasts: governors and slaves, reformers and missionaries, empire builders and ordinary people who became extraordinary role models for a new democratic nation. Beside soaring modern blocks of glass and steel in the city centre, historic buildings - preserved and restored to their former glory - bear testimony to this past. The oldest existing building in South Africa, the Castle was built in 1666 to protect the new settlement at the Cape. Still operational as a military base, today its five imposing stone walls also house a museum with artifacts dating back to the 17th century and troops dressed in historic uniform parade on its cobbled grounds. Nearby, across the Grand Parade, stand the Drill Hall and Cape Town's Italian Renaissance-style City Hall, completed in 1905. The Slave Lodge, the second oldest building in Cape Town, has served many purposes in its nearly three centuries. Originally built as accommodation for the slaves of the Dutch East India Company, it was also Cape Town's first post office, a library and the Supreme Court. Today it is home to the SA Cultural History Museum and its displays of ceramics, toys, silver and textiles from Cape Town's past, as well as artifacts from ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. The historic Company Gardens, established by Jan van Riebeeck in 1652 as a vegetable garden from which to supply fresh produce to passing ships, today offers city dwellers and office workers a peaceful refuge from the bustle of the city's commercial centre. A cobbled avenue, lined with oak trees, leads to the South African Museum, the South African National Gallery, the Bertram House Museum and the Jewish Museum, which is housed in the oldest synagogue in South Africa. Just beyond, South Africa's Parliament buildings stand in imposing array around the cobbles of Stal Plein ("plein" meaning "square"). Numerous other buildings of historic interest, such as Koopman de Wet House in Strand Street, Heritage Square in Bree Street, and many along the upper reaches of Long Street, are dotted throughout the city centre. Situated on the lower slopes of Signal Hill, the Bo-Kaap (literally "upper Cape") is home to many descendants of the Malay slaves brought to the Cape during the 17th century. Most of the families which inhabit its colourful rows of houses are devout Muslims, and the call to prayer can be heard in the narrow, cobbled streets throughout the day. The Bo-Kaap Museum portrays aspects of Cape Muslim culture. Robben Island is, after Alcatraz, possibly the best known prison island in the world. Having served over the centuries as a penal settlement, leper colony and lunatic asylum, its notoriety has, more recently, centred around the fact that President Nelson Mandela and many of his colleagues were imprisoned here during the apartheid era. Regular trips are made to the island, a world heritage site, by a ferry which departs from the V&A Waterfront. National monuments such as Onze Molen, along with Mostert's Mill in Mowbray one of the few original windmills still extant in the Cape Town area, and numerous old churches in Durbanville and Parow, reflect the origins of some of the early settlers in the Tygerberg area. Set in landscaped gardens, Rust-en-Vrede Cultural Centre in Durbanville - an old Cape Dutch complex dating back to 1850 - originally served as a prison, Drostdy (magistrates court), school and, ultimately, a private residence. Inside, creations by prominent South Africans are on exhibition in the Durbanville Clay Museum. A few kilometres away in Khayelitsha, the Mayibuye Centre Museum reflects the political turbulence and memorabilia of the apartheid era. Somerset West, in the Helderberg region, boasts many buildings and artifacts from South Africa's diverse cultural past. These include Vergelegen, built in 1700 by Governor Willem Adriaan van der Stel, the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk built in 1820 (where "Onze Jan" Hofmeyer and other prominent South Africans are buried), the old bridge over the Lourens River built in 1845, the coachman's cottage and the Ou Pastorie and, at the Macassar Kramat, the last resting place of Sheikh Yusuf, who was brought to South Africa as a slave and introduced Islam, today one of the Cape's major religions - to the area. The historic farms in the Oostenberg countryside, dating back to the 18th century, serve as a reminder of the area's agricultural heritage. Many of these fine examples of early Cape Dutch architecture, such as Zevenwacht, Hazendal and Mooiplaas Wine Estates, are still operating wine farms, producing outstanding vintages for South Africa's thriving wine industry. Other, less imposing though no less important souvenirs of the area's rich history include the historic milestone in Van Riebeeck Road, Kuilsriver (now on display in the entrance hall to the Municipal Building), which once marked the distance on the road from Cape Town to what, in the late 17th century, was a cattle-post near the convergence of the Kuils and Bottleray Rivers Just beyond the row of stately palms that marks the entrance to Milnerton stands an old wooden bridge (1901) that, while no longer in use, still links Woodbridge Island to the mainland. A cast of the original Postal Stone can be seen at the library in Table View, and Ons Huisie Restaurant, a restored fisherman's cottage in Bloubergstrand, typifies the vernacular architectural style of this region. Further up the coast are the historic Moravian Mission Stations of Pella and Mamre with a church dating back to 1808, an old watermill, cook house, long house, shop and school. Built in 1685 for Simon van der Stel, then governor of the Cape, Groot Constantia is the oldest homestead in the Cape. Reflecting the gracious lifestyle of the late 18th century, the manor house incorporates priceless collections of exquisite Cape furniture from the mid-1800s as well as rare Chinese and Japanese porcelains and Delft ceramics. Situated along the False Bay Coast in the South Peninsula, the suburbs of Kalk Bay, St James and Muizenberg were fashionable seaside resorts during the early part of this century. Many of the beautiful residences in St James are, in fact, National Monuments, while Muizenberg is reputed to have been one of Rudyard Kipling's favourite places, and is where Cecil John Rhodes retired after the events leading up to the Anglo-Boer War. Period furniture and some of this extraordinary man's personal possessions may be viewed at Rhodes Cottage. Once a whaling station, Kalk Bay is now a working fishing harbour that reflects its cosmopolitan past in architecture, cuisine, arts and crafts.

You can get to Dakar two ways — one requires a world-class rally car in which you live in horrible discomfort and danger for two weeks as you race there from Paris. Or you can step off your cruise ship. Assuming you don't run the Paris-Dakar Rally to arrive here, you'll be clean, refreshed, and ready to explore. And Dakar is worth exploring, for its modernity, its antiquity, and its thoroughly African flavor. The port, especially Gorée Island in the lee of the harbor, has been historically important for centuries. The city proper, however, is only about a hundred and fifty years old, and is therefore quite modern in appearance, albeit with attractive areas of colonial architecture. The thing you'll want to do in Dakar proper is go to markets. There are many, they all have names, and each is more colorful, more energetic, and more appealing than the next. You'll want to visit some of the best: the Kermel, with crafts, food, and flowers; Marche de la Gare, at the railroad station, offering more variety, with fabrics, beads, incense, and food from Mali; and the Soumbedouine, combining crafts with a lively fish market that opens in the evening. The largest and most diverse market, the Sandaga, is packed with fresh food, crafts, spices, clothes, shoes, cosmetics, electronics … the selection goes on and on. The crafts that you can buy are as colorful and fascinating as the city itself. Hand-woven fabrics, precious gold and silver jewelry, and glass and sand painting are on display alongside leatherwork, pottery, woodcarving, and batik. You can load yourself down in a grand manner at any of these markets. The smell of roasting peanuts permeates the air (the city was founded on the peanut trade). The aroma will surely bring to mind memories of baseball games, an incongruous image for this setting. While such simple, satisfying fare is available everywhere, Dakar offers world-class restaurants too. Perhaps you would expect that from a place colonized by the French. Senegalese food incorporates many influences besides French, including some from other parts of Africa. Seafood is a mainstay, with lesser amounts of meat eaten, and almost no pork (it's largely a Muslim country). A delicious regional specialty, Thebouidienne, a whole fish stewed with vegetables and potatoes, is served over huge mounds of white rice. Yassa, originating from northern Senegal, is a chicken dish with lemon and onion, a zesty combination you won't want to miss. Thiou a la Wande, a meat stew, is served with couscous (the second most common starch in the Senegalese diet). In a restaurant, order liberally from the appetizer menu for a satisfying and adventurous meal. Or simply try some grilled street food, which is sold everywhere in the city. One sight that you should not miss is the former slave terminus on Gorée, a quick ferry ride into the harbor. It was an active hub in the slave trade for three hundred and fifty years, until slavery was outlawed in Senegal. The Slave House, an exhibition center made from a slave mansion, has moving displays of slave artifacts, and the old fortress looms over all, offering a hint what it might have felt like waiting there to be shipped away. Several other museums on the island are worth looking at: the African Art Museum, the Museum of the Sea, and the Musee de la Femme Henriette Bathily, or the museum of Senegalese women. There are plenty of options if you prefer a more active vacation. Rental bikes wait for you to take them on a tour of the town. Fishing boats beckon from the harbor for a spot of deep-sea angling. You can even golf, if the links are always to calling you. This curiously modern, curiously ancient city is waiting for you - just a two-week race car drive from Paris!

Welcome to Dubai, city of merchants, cultural crossroads, second largest of the seven United Arab Emirates. A country where the dust of the desert is clearing to reveal the potential for one of the most significant international cities of the 21st century. Wedged between Europe and Asia, buttressed by Africa, Dubai's encouraging tax regimes, state-of-the-art telecommunications and sympathetic business environment have produced a country that is building energetically on the advantages which location, centuries-old trading savvy and oil wealth have given it. Dubai is not just a city of excitement. It's also a city of surprises. Try the ice skating rink in the Galleria shopping mall at the Hyatt Regency, where young men wearing traditional dish dash dress pirouette around the ice while their friends consume French pastries and coffee at Frosty's cafe. And other surprises. The magnificently-manicured, lush and green golf courses. The Irish Village at the Dubai Tennis Centre. Red telephone boxes which once brightened the British streetscape have found a home in Dubai. So, too, has the world's richest horse race, Dubai World Cup, a dream realised by HH General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Minister of Defence UAE. The race draws the best thoroughbred horses from America, Europe, Australia and Asia and races them at the Nad Al Sheba course alongside the UAE's best. But it's not just horses which move quickly in Dubai. The cars hurtling past the Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza, on the road to the exclusive Jumeira residential area, and beyond to Abu Dhabi, include a high proportion of current model Mercedes Benz and Toyota Land Cruisers. These rich men's cars should not be taken as evidence that Dubai is frittering away its oil wealth on expensive toys. The oil is due to run out soon but Dubai long ago began the task of diversifying its economy to soften the impact of diminishing oil revenues on future generations. Tourism is now an important part of the Dubai government's strategy to maintain the flow of foreign dollars into the emirate. "Dubai's attraction," says Patrick Macdonald, deputy chief executive of the Dubai Commerce and Tourism Promotion Board, is that it provides an Arabian experience in a very comfortable, safe and tolerant society. "Visitors can enjoy all the international pursuits - golf, watersports, horse racing, polo and nightlife. Plus there's the attraction of the desert itself, with the opportunity to be part of an Arabian adventure." Originally a small fishing settlement, Dubai was taken over in the 1830s by a tribe led by the Maktoum family, which still rules the emirate today. So began a trading empire based on gold, silver, pearls and spices. A fusion of Arab, Persian and Indian flair established Dubai's business acumen. There is perhaps no better place to delve into Dubai's history than in the museum housed beneath the 180-year-old Al Fahidi Fort in Bur Dubai. Here the old is replicated using new technology. Tableaux show life as it used to be on a working dhow in Dubai Creek; in the souks and the mosques; and in the desert camps of the Bedouin tribes. And while much of the traditional way of life in Dubai has disappeared in the shiny reflection of the glass and glitz of five star hotels and commercial offices, and has been devoured by modern highways, bridges and underpasses, the essence of Arabia remains in busy side streets, along the creek, and in the desert which blows at Dubai's backdoor. The city is divided by Dubai Creek. Consequently the most interesting and direct way to travel from Bur Dubai to Deira on the north bank is by abra water taxi, a traditional form of transport used by locals to go about their business; and by tourists to access the spice and gold souks, and the myriad shops selling textiles and electrical goods in the Shindagha quarter. Visitors stepping off a boat on the waterfront at Deira should make a point of looking at the dhows waiting to be loaded with goods bound for neighboring countries. The piles of unattended cargo on the dockside illustrate the underlying honesty of Dubai society. The dhow owners do not begin loading the boat until every item to be carried has arrived on the wharf. This can often take several weeks. In the meantime, the unpacked cargo stays where it is. But no one touches it. Crime here is the lowest in the world. Dubai is a clean, safe country with great shopping, a good climate for most of the year and lots to do for those who want to be active." Five star hotels in the city are recording high occupancy rates but the competition is hotting up with several new luxury hotels planned. Hoteliers are keen that perceptions about Dubai do not suffer from negativity associated with some other Islamic countries in the Middle East. Siggi von Brandt, director of sales and marketing for Meridien, says that more awareness of Dubai is needed in Asia. "This place has great potential, both as a holiday destination in its own right, and as a stopover on the way to Europe. It's a totally different experience to Asia. Different culture, different dress, different cuisine plus the mystique of the desert," he says.

The coastal town of Mombasa is the second largest city in Kenya, with a population of half a million. Located in the South-Eastern part of Kenya, it plays an important role in the country’s economy, not only for its imports and exports through its port-which is the largest in East Africa, but also as a destination for tourists visiting Kenya. Mombasa undoubtedly has one of the best white sandy beaches and coral reefs that Africa has to offer. Coupled with an array of hotels on the beachfront situated along the North and South coasts of the town, it characterizes Mombasa as the ideal place for a vacation. This is why Mombasa is a major tourist destination, and the tourism industry the number one earner of foreign exchange in the country. Apart from the beautiful beaches, another unique aspect of this wonderful town is its rich history. The “Old Town” is reminiscent of the days when the Portuguese used to rule Mombasa, and you can experience the history even today in the structures that still stand, such as the Fort Jesus. The town is heavily influenced by Arabic culture, and is more observable here than in other parts of the town. Another factor that draws tourists from Mombasa, not only internationally but also from other areas within Kenya such as the capital Nairobi, is the exciting nightlife. There are many nightclubs situated along the North and South Coasts of the town, all of which have different themes that cater to different crowds. Many hotels also have their own entertainment events, which are very appealing to those wishing to have a relatively mellow evening. In the heart of the town is where most hospitals, businesses, banks, shops and markets are situated. Hence almost all services such as health advice, financial services, or any kind of shopping, are all provided for in the city. Being a small town, Mombasa does not have a subway system. However one can easily get around using the local bus service; or for a “truly Kenyan experience” a ride in a “Matatu”- which is quite a unique adventure.The town offers a host of quality restaurants offering a wide range of foods, ranging from British, Chinese, Indian and Italian cuisine, to a variety of local and traditional dishes. Being a colonial country before independence, Mombasa has a kaleidoscope of different cultures and languages. The most common language spoken is Swahili, followed by English. However, being a town that thrives on tourism, finding someone who speaks German, French, Dutch or any other language is not much of a problem.

The capital city, Victoria, is the seat of the Seychelles government and has a population of about thirty thousand - which represents just under half of the entire population of the islands. Also one of the most impressive islands of the group, it has the highest mountains in the archipelago - stretching 900 meters into the blue Seychelles skies, and setting a dramatic backdrop to more than sixty white-sand beaches. In the markets one can sample a vast selection of fresh fruit and fish, or just chat to the locals - who are always happy to tell you a tale about the "whale-sized" fish that was caught last week. Mahé is also the cultural capital of Seychelles: The Natural History Museum and The Codevar Craft Centre are located there, and local artists such as Tom Bowers and Michael Adams exhibit their work informally all over the island. The Botanical Gardens, with their fantastic collection of tropical plants, are a must for every nature lover. There are about 75 plant species native to the rain forest that are found nowhere else in the world.