Dinner always tastes better when it comes with a great story. At Il Porto Ristorante, a beacon for authentic Northern Italian food in Alexandria, Virginia, your excellent meal is served with a hefty dose of history—you’ll be dining in a building that was a sea captain’s house, a brothel, a secret distillery, a butcher shop, a speakeasy, and a Nazi radio network. Read about it >
About 80% of the population of Porto, Portugal, identifies as Catholic. For those who practice their faith, they get to choose from 30 main churches in which to do it. These stretch back centuries, the oldest of which is nearing its 1,000th birthday. I had the good fortune to visit many of them as I hiked up and down the city’s hilly streets and passageways, never failing to be impressed by their often-extravagant interiors. Read about the top five churches in Porto >
At the quieter end of King Street Mile, Archer Hotel Old Town Alexandria straddles the perfect intersection of walkability east to restaurants, shops, and the bulk of the attractions in this appealing Virginia city and west to the Amtrak train station where I would be arriving, a handy Washington, D.C Metro station, and the colossal George Washington Masonic National Memorial. Complementing its ideal location, the hotel’s services, amenities, and general vibe make it the perfect place to stay. Read about it >
If you start walking up King Street Mile in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, from its head at King Street Park on the Potomac River, the very first restaurant you’ll see is Mai Thai. Why go further if you’re ready for dinner? Pop in and take a “journey of authentic Thai cuisine” in one of many historic buildings in the third-oldest historic district in the United States. Read about it >
Given Alexandria’s founding as a colonial port town and growth into one of the American colonies’ most important ports, it’s no surprise that this Virginia city should offer up some excellent choices for seafood dinners. I found one of the best at The Wharf, where the 25-year-old restaurant operates out of a 200-year-old building only 500 feet from the Potomac River. Read about it >
King Street, the main commercial strip in Old Town in Alexandria, Virginia, boasts a wide variety of international cuisine for your dinner options, everything from Thai to Italian, Greek to Indian. On my first night in town, I gravitated toward the Oktoberfest sign hanging over the entry doors to Alexandria Bier Garden and the big Bavarian flag cascading down from the roof. It had all the makings for an authentic German meal. Read about it >
Although it opened only in 2024, Mystic Bar & Grill is operated by a family that has been running restaurants in and around Old Town in Alexandria for half a century. Southern cuisine abounds here, exactly what I was looking for, covering the gamut from Texas-style smoked brisket to Carolina pulled pork, spicy she-crab soup to Creole bouillabaisse, Low Country shrimp to grits. It sets the standard for Southern food, and it more than met my expectations. Read about it >
Suffering from the winter blues? Then turn your attention from the figurative blues to the literal ones and you’ll be much happier. Around the world, the coolest color has the ability to awe us. It’s also the color that can best calm us down. Just look at the sky or a tranquil sea and you’re already feeling better. But nature doesn’t hold a monopoly on blue. There are some outstanding manmade objects that equally do the trick. Read about the top five blues >
If Cupid should hit you with an arrow, consider yourself lucky. If anyone else does, it’s going to hurt. A lot. And if multiple arrows pierce you, good luck. St. Sebastian should know. A courageous captain of the Praetorian Guards in the Imperial Roman army during the 200s, St. Sebastian, in the Christian canon of gruesome martyrdoms, suffered this particular form of torture for being a devout Christian, yet he didn’t die from his arrow wounds. Rather, he survived, aided by a pious woman, only to be clubbed to death shortly after for some bold lèse-majesté against Emperor Diocletian. Despite his ultimate fate, the saint, whose feast day is celebrated on January 20, is almost always pictured as an archer’s target practice. Read about the top five depictions of St. Sebastian >
My first trip to the Caribbean was to St. Martin, which also included a high-speed catamaran to St. Barts and a slow ferry with airplane passenger seats to Anguilla. My second was aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship that called at half a dozen islands. Since then, I’ve returned to the Caribbean multiple times, always to different islands, each with its own personality and vibe, all with outstanding beaches, friendly locals, terrific food, and interesting sights. It remains my go-to vacation spot when I want a vacation away from my frenetic trips elsewhere. Read about the top five Caribbean islands >
Stephen Travels 