How to use an oyster card to build a budget-friendly all-day street-food crawl across east london

I learned early on that Paris’s métro is as much a local ritual as it is a transportation system. After a decade of mapping rooftops, markets and back alleys, I’ve tried nearly every pass and trick Paris offers. Below I share what I use and recommend for first-timers and return visitors who want to move fast, save money and avoid the most annoying queues and crushes at rush hour.Which pass should you buy? A quick orientationParis has a few...

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I learned long ago that the best Mexico City nights end with a stack of tortillas, a squeeze of lime, and the smell of chiles frying in a comal. But after years of roaming alleys and market corners, I’ve also learned how fragile that pleasure can be if you don’t pay attention to the small hygiene and timing details. Below I share my exact approach to a late-night taco crawl in CDMX that maximizes flavor and minimizes the risk of getting sick...

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I ride Istanbul’s ferries the way I scout a neighborhood: with a loose plan, a hunger for street food, and an eye for where the light falls on stone and water. Ferries here aren’t just transport—they’re a vantage point and a living room, a place where commuters, students, fishermen and street vendors share the same short journey. If you want to discover the city’s hidden waterfront neighborhoods, adopting the commuter mindset will open...

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I have a habit of chasing light. In Bangkok that often means waking before the city fully stirs and climbing to a rooftop where the skyline reads like a living map: temples and cranes, canals and glass towers, and, if I'm lucky, a slice of sky that turns from indigo to molten gold. Rooftop breakfasts in Bangkok are a curious hybrid — some places are full-service hotel terraces with elegant breakfast buffets, others are humble rooftop cafes...

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I love wandering Casablanca’s old medina without a guide. There’s a particular pleasure in letting your senses stitch together the city: the first whiff of frying oil from a tucked-away stall, the scrape of sandals on uneven stone, a chorus of bargaining voices, the sudden flash of cobalt tile behind a wooden door. If you want to plan a sensory walking route through the medina — one that’s safe, manageable and full of texture —...

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Walking into a Tokyo depachika—the basement food hall of a department store—is like stepping into an edible cathedral. The lights are bright, displays immaculate, and the air hums with the polite choreography of shoppers sampling, comparing and carrying away gifts. Over years of wandering these subterranean markets, I’ve learned how to shop smart: what to buy, when to go, how to taste without offending, and most importantly, how to avoid...

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When I head out for a city photo walk with nothing bigger than my compact mirrorless camera, I’m thinking less like a gearhead and more like a city wanderer: what will let me move fast, stay light, and notice small details without missing the light? Over the years I’ve learned to pack not for “everything that could happen” but for the rhythms of urban exploration — sudden markets, rooftop light, wet cobbles, and a good slice of street...

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I wake before dawn in Porto because the city’s azulejo-clad facades have a way of changing their moods with the light — and I want to be there to photograph both. This one-day itinerary is built around two brief but magical windows: golden hour before sunset and blue hour after the sun dips. Between them I propose slow wandering, a few strategic stops for coffee and food, and a handful of lesser-known alleys where tiles surprise you. Bring a...

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