WHAT YOU WILL SEE:

Paris, France
Paris assaults the senses, demanding to be seen, heard, touched, tasted and smelled. Gaze rapturously at its breezy boulevards, impressive monuments, and great works of art and magic lights. Savor its gourmet pastiche of cheese, chocolate, wine and seafood. Paris is a city of vast, noble perspectives and intimate, ramshackle streets, of formal espaces verts (green open spaces) and of quiet squares. This combination of the pompous and the private is one of the secrets of its perennial pull. Another is its size. Paris is relatively small as capitals go, with distances between many of its major sights and museums invariably walkable. You'll still find classic sights like the Tour Eiffel, Notre-Dame, the Arc de Triomphe, Sacré-Coeur, and all those atmospheric cafes, as well as trendy new projects like the Grande Arche de La Défense, the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie, the Cité de la Musique, and the Bibliothèque François-Mitterrand. And don't forget the parks, gardens, and squares; the Champs-Elysées and other grand boulevards; the river Seine and its quays. Paris's beauty is still overwhelming, especially at night, when it truly is the City of Light.

Berlin, Germany
The capital of Germany is a city of cultural superlatives: three opera houses, two concert halls and eight symphony orchestras await you - more than in any other city in the world. Over 150 theaters and stages offer Boulevard Theater, classic opera, world literature classics and off-scene. Berlin's history is dark, not only as Hitler's nerve center of Nazi horror, but also as the battleground of the Cold War. But with its field of new skyscrapers and hip clubs and fashion boutiques, post millennium Berlin has recast itself as the Continent's capital of cool. Berlin is not exactly escaping the past, as the opening of the Jüdisches Museum Berlin (Jewish Museum), a paean to German Jewry, testifies. Instead, Berlin is reconciling itself to its notorious history and moving with confidence into its future. Berlin was almost bombed out of existence during World War II; its streets reduced to piles of rubble, its parks to muddy swampland. But the optimistic spirit and strength of will of the remarkable Berliners enabled them to survive not only the wartime destruction of their city, but also its postwar division, symbolized by the Berlin Wall. Today, structures of steel and glass tower over streets where before only piles of rubble lay, and parks and gardens are again lush. Before the war, the section of the city that became East Berlin was the cultural and political heart of Germany, where the best museums, finest churches, and most important boulevards lay. The walled-in East Berliners turned to restoring their museums, theaters, and landmarks (especially in the Berlin-Mitte section), while West Berliners built entirely new museums and cultural centers. This contrast between the two parts of city is still evident, though east and west are coming together more and more within the immense, fascinating whole that is Berlin.

Prague, Czech Republic
Viewed from high atop Vysehrad, the 10-centuries-old citadel at the city's south end, the ancient city of Prague hugs the hills rising from the river Vltava. Rows of steeples stacked on onion domes pierce the sky, earning Prague the name "The City of a Hundred Spires". Prague has stood the test of time. Here, the last 1,000 years of triumphs in art and architecture have collided, often violently, with power politics and religious conflicts. While Prague's rich collection of Gothic, baroque, and Renaissance buildings has stood stoically through all the strife, the streets and squares fronting the grand halls have often been the stages for tragedy. The well-worn cobblestones have felt the hooves of king's horses, the jackboots of Hitler's armies, the heaving wheels of Soviet tanks, and the shuffling feet of students in passive revolt. In the years since November 17, 1989, when Prague's students took to the streets to help bring down the 40-year-old Communist regime, the "hundred-spired city" has enjoyed an exhilarating cultural renaissance. Amid Prague's cobblestone streets and gold-tip spires, new galleries, cafés, and clubs teem with young Czechs and members of the city's colony of "expatriates." New shops and, perhaps most noticeably, scads of new restaurants have opened, expanding the city's culinary reach far beyond the traditional roast pork and dumplings. Many have something to learn in the way of presentation and service, but Praguers still marvel at a variety that was unthinkable not so many years ago. The arts and theater are also thriving in the "new" Prague. Young playwrights, some writing in English, regularly stage their own works. Weekly poetry readings are standing room only. Classical music maintains its famous standards, while rock, jazz, and dance clubs are jammed nightly. The arts of the new era -- nonverbal theater, "installation" art, and world music -- are as trendy in Prague as in any European capital, but possess a distinctive Czech flavor. All of this frenetic activity plays well against a stunning backdrop of towering churches and centuries-old bridges and alleyways.

Budapest, Hungary
One of the great cities of Central Europe, Budapest embodies all the elements of the region's peculiar and rich cultural legacy. Poised between East and West, both geographically and culturally, Budapest stands proudly at the center of the region's cultural rebirth. It's easy for Budapest to play with light in the manner of an elegant lady trying on her jewels, for everything looks good. This is a vibrant city: it throbs with life morning, noon and night; visitors arriving from other countries get the feeling that something interesting is happening round every corner. Budapest's extraordinary atmosphere can be felt everywhere. From old women selling boxes of raspberries in the heart of downtown Pest, cars careening by on all sides, to young boys playing soccer in the green foothills of Buda, where the air is fresh and clean, this city and its people will take you in and hold you tight. Budapest is a remarkable and wholly unpretentious place. Explore it fully. Even more exceptional is the perfect contrast between the right and left banks. Buda is built upon hills, the feet of two of them - Castle Hill and Gellért Hill - almost stand in the water. Facing it is Pest, as flat as a pancake. It's the country's cultural, political, intellectual, and commercial heart -- and it teems with cafés, restaurants, markets, and bars. Hungary is famous for its medicinal spas, and Budapest alone has some 14 historic working baths. The Continent's first underground railway was built here. Hungary's oldest academic library, the University Library, is to be found here. It is the location of Europe's largest synagogue. It is the only capital city in the world where there are more than one hundred hot thermal springs. There are no other cities of comparable size anywhere where visitors can explore dripstone (stalactite) caves in the middle of the residential districts. Budapest offers breathtaking Old World grandeur and thriving cultural life. Situated on both banks of the Danube River, the city unites the colorful hills of Buda and the wide, businesslike boulevards of Pest. Much of the charm of a visit to Budapest lies in unexpected glimpses into shadowy courtyards and in long vistas down sunlit cobbled streets.