Things to Do in Europe

Of the 100 underground cities in Cappadocia, Derinkuyu is the deepest at 280 ft (85m) below the surface.
 
The city has been open to the public since 1965 but only about half of it can be visited. There are around 600 doors down into the city, leading from the courtyards of the above-ground buildings. In the underground city you’ll find the various levels of stables, cellars, storage rooms, kitchens, wineries, churches and more. The upper floors can be reached by narrow, sloping passageways, while from the 3rd and 4th floor down there are staircases. The lowest floor houses a church.
 
It’s unlikely that these underground cities were meant for full-time residency, but more likely made to withstand attacks from marauding tribes over long periods of time. Derinkuyu had everything needed for day to day life including wells and around 15,000 ventilations shafts.
 
Derinkuyu is 24 miles (40 km) or about half an hour’s drive from Göreme, the main tourist town in Cappadocia.

Amsterdam’s De Negen Straatjes, or ‘Nine Little Streets’, are the nine shopping streets linking the main Prinsengracht and Singel canals. The pedestrian quarter not only makes the perfect destination for window-shopping, but draw your eye above the shop fronts and you’ll find plenty of impressive architecture to marvel over. Many of the buildings here date back to the 17th-century and the area has been the go-to shopping area for locals for almost 400 years.

Ardent shoppers will find plenty to get excited about, with the area’s shops as varied and vibrant as the city itself. The cobbled streets abound with homegrown designer boutiques, vintage clothing shops and independent art galleries, with shop windows showcasing creative displays of artisan furnishings, alternative clothing designs and handcrafted accessories. The unique, quirky and bizarre reign in the small themed shops, with plenty of unusual finds and distinctive keepsakes on offer, but if you’re after typical souvenirs, you’ll be better heading elsewhere. Even the coffee shops here come with an independent flavor, with international chains passed over in favor of Amsterdam’s characteristic brown bars, hip bistros and homely cafés.
With their matchless charm and fierce individuality, these nine little streets are more than just a collection of shops. The vibrant, bustling neighborhood remains one of the most uniquely appealing areas of Amsterdam.

The Schönbrunn Zoo in Vienna is widely regarded as one of the best in the world and is certainly the oldest and the most beautiful. Established in 1752 by the Habsburg Imperial Family, the zoo has a circular layout that spirals outwards from an elegant Baroque pavilion and a reputation for successful conservation and breeding of some of the world’s most endangered species, including Siberian tigers, rhinos and giant pandas. In 1904, a glass-and-steel hothouse was built in Art Nouveau style to protect the vast collection of rare tropical plants owned by Emperor Franz Joseph I; over a century later this hothouse has been renovated and transformed into a show-home for cacti and other water-retaining succulents from arid regions across the world. Desert animals and birds such as lizards and humming birds roam free and there are several enclosures containing snakes and bizarre desert mole rats, which resemble a cross between a tiny walrus and a hairless rabbit. Equally eccentric is the Welwitschia tree from the Namibian desert, which has long, droopy fronds and grows in an untidy heap along the ground; it can live for up to 1,500 years.

Deichstrasse is the oldest street in Hamburg, Germany dating back to the 14th century. It is located near Speicherstadt, which is the old warehouse district near the harbor. The Great Fire of 1842 destroyed many of the original 14th century buildings on this street, so most of what you see today are restored 17th-19th century buildings. The tall, narrow, half-timbered houses here represent typical architecture from this region a few hundred years ago.  

Archaeological buffs and lovers of legends can't miss a trip to the sacred island of Delos, the archaeological jewel of the Cyclades. Travelers can see firsthand where the ancients lived and clamber over the ruins they left behind. Held sacred as the mythological birthplace of Apollo, Delos was at the heart of the ancient world as an important religious and commercial center, reaching its zenith in the Hellenic period around the 5th century BC.

The huge site sprawls along the island’s west coast, from the stadium in the north to the old trading warehouses to the south. Standouts include the Sanctuary of Apollo temples and the Terrace of the Lions. The remains of private houses surround the semicircular theater, and the site includes several agoras, monuments, sanctuaries and temples. You can see finds from the excavations at the site museum, including the original lions from the much-photographed Terrace of the Lions. Another must-do is the climb up nearby Mt Kythnos for views over the island, sea and site.