Photos by Thomas Bennett

The next day I was on a bus five hours north to Bilbao, the largest city of Spain’s Basque Country—a region and people defined by their ancient language, Euskara. A city so proud, they’ve never fielded a non-Basque on their football club. They even refuse to keep corporate sponsorship on their jersey because they regard it as their national team.

Lonely Planet, Rough Guides, Foder’s, Frommer’s, Rick Steves’, Let’s Go, Blue Guides, Bradt…With a multitude of guidebook publishers, choosing the best guidebook for your next trip can be challenging. Which guidebook should you take? Well, it all depends on your personality, how you travel, your budget, and where you’re traveling.

Most travelers pride themselves on not being tourists. They are adamant about avoiding package holidays or group tours. They are proud of their free-spiritedness: not booking hotels in advance. They insist on spending less money and keeping that money in the local economy. They leave home not only to see other places but to meet the local people of the place they are visiting.

Odessa has a severely Victorian character about it; the lampposts, sidewalks and infrastructure are something out of 1812 Hyde Park. The train station and opera house are Crimean War-era. The parks are green and manicured. This place is fancy, European, cosmopolitan and cultivated.

What makes a great beach? I’m thinking small towns or villages, low-budget guesthouses or bungalows on or near the beach, good local food, relaxed vibes, and great sand and water in a striking natural setting. These are places you could end up staying a week without realizing it

Here are a list of five publications that pay for travel articles…

Ramadan is entering its final week and the holy day of Eid is beginning. The people here in Kandahar are much more observant of the traditions of Islam than anywhere else I’ve been. The fast is a true one, no drinking of water, eating of food, or smoking is allowed during the daylight hours. People go to work, but every thing tends to trickle off into just a drizzle of activity by late afternoon. However, like any generalization the individual experience is much more different.

For ESL teachers in Europe, Madrid is an appealing city to base yourself for a year or more and there’s no denying it’s an exciting place to live. Add to this: fantastic weather, friendly locals (known as Madridleños), abundant cultural events, world-class art, and unparalleled nightlife.

Learning vacations are now more popular than ever; from Thai cooking schools to studying Spanish in Guatemala to practicing meditation in India. But how about somewhere a little closer to home and a place you can still get a rich cultural experience as well?