Краткое описание: In Siberia, they call Moscow “the West”, with a note of scorn for its bureaucrats and politicians. To Westerners, the city looks European, but its unruly spirit seems closer to Central Asia. For Muscovites, Moscow is both a “Mother City” and a “big village”, a tumultuous community with an underlying collective instinct that shows itself in times of trouble. Nowhere else reflects the contradictions and ambiguities of the Russian people as Moscow does – nor the stresses of a country undergoing meltdown and renewal.

Краткое описание: For Westerners, Morocco holds an immediate and enduring fascination. Though just an hour’s ride on the ferry from Spain, it seems at once very far from Europe, with a culture – Islamic and deeply traditional – that is almost wholly unfamiliar. Throughout the country, despite the years of French and Spanish colonial rule and the presence of modern and cosmopolitan cities like Rabat and Casablanca, a more distant past constantly makes its presence felt.

Краткое описание: Montréal is by far Canada’s most cosmopolitan city. Toronto may have the country’s economic power and Vancouver its most majestic scenery, but the centuries-old marriage of Protestant English and Catholic French cultures that defines Montréal has given the city a dynamic allure that is unique in North America. Its captivating atmosphere combines the best of both traditions, tempered with the Scottish merchants and Irish workers who built much of the city and also the diverse mix of Italians, Greeks, Eastern Europeans, Jews, Chinese and Portuguese who have put down roots in various neighbourhoods over the last century. And yet Montréal’s free-spirited ambience – at once laid-back and highly style-conscious – is a product of the city itself rather than merely a sum of its multiethnic parts.

Краткое описание: Shimmering from the desert haze of Nevada like a latter-day El Dorado, Las Vegas is the most dynamic, spectacular city on earth. At the start of the twentieth century, it didn’t even exist; one decade into the 21st, it’s home to two million people. A showcase for all that’s most extravagant and exuberant about the modern United States, it attracts almost forty million visitors each year, anticipating their every appetite and indulging their every whim.

Краткое описание: Often overlooked in favour of its better-known neighbours, landlocked Laos remains one of Southeast Asia’s most beguiling destinations. Caught in the middle of the two Indochina wars and long isolated from the rest of the world, the country retains a slow, rather old-fashioned charm, and its people – incredibly laidback and friendly, even by Asian standards – are undoubtedly one of the highlights of any visit.