Lake Maggiore, straddling the border of northern Italy and southern Switzerland, is the second-largest lake in Italy and one of the most scenically diverse. Surrounded by Alpine peaks and dotted with elegant towns, the lake has attracted visitors for centuries, including literary figures like Stendhal and Ernest Hemingway. The western shore is home to the Borromean Islands, a group of three small islands known for palaces, terraced gardens, and white peacocks that roam freely across the lawns.

Kimmirut is a small Inuit community on the southern coast of Baffin Island in Nunavut, located beside the waters of Hudson Strait. Formerly known as Lake Harbour, the settlement sits among rocky hills, freshwater lakes, coastal inlets, and tundra. Its sheltered location gives it a close relationship with the surrounding sea, while the wider landscape contains exposed rock and low Arctic vegetation shaped by a cold, windy climate.

Trebinje, the southernmost city in Bosnia and Herzegovina, sits just a short drive from the Adriatic coast but offers a completely different rhythm. Framed by hills and set along the Trebišnjica River, the city has a history stretching back to Roman times. The river that winds through the city is one of the longest sinking rivers in the world and often disappears underground and resurfaces in various places.

Ontario is a city in Southern California’s Inland Empire, located in San Bernardino County at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains. The city occupies a landscape that has been shaped by agriculture, residential development, and transportation infrastructure, with the mountains providing a prominent backdrop to the north.

Gotland, Sweden’s largest island, sits in the Baltic Sea and feels like a world of its own. Its main town, Visby, is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Northern Europe. Surrounded by a 3.5-kilometer stone wall with original towers still intact, Visby once served as a key Hanseatic trading hub. Visitors can walk along cobbled streets lined with rose-covered cottages, explore Gothic church ruins, and climb up the city wall for views over the harbor.