Queen Victoria - March 23, 2023

One of Asia's great success stories, this island republic has merged diverse cultures into a dynamic and thriving nation. Clean, modern and full of green gardens, its neighborhoods reflect the Chinese, Malay, Indian, Arab and European backgrounds of its past. After sampling the legendary shopping, retire to Raffles Hotel's famous bar and toast Maugham, Kipling and Noel Coward with a Singapore Sling.

Dubbed the Garden City of the Gulf, Abu Dhabi now offers visitors a variety of options to explore, such as green parks, clean beaches, and a range of marine and other sports, from powerboat races to sand-skiing and exotic adventures in the desert. Tourists can also pay a visit to the oasis city of Al Ain and enjoy a sightseeing tour to archaeological and leisure sites such as Al Hili Fun City.

Dubai is a popular destination for a relaxing beach holiday, an adventurous desert experience, wild nightlife or a weekend away to shop in the electronics and gold markets. Dubai has beautiful white beaches, clear blue seas, first class international hotels, and fine restaurants. In fact, Dubai has everything you could wish for to have a memorable getaway.

Dubai is a popular destination for a relaxing beach holiday, an adventurous desert experience, wild nightlife or a weekend away to shop in the electronics and gold markets. Dubai has beautiful white beaches, clear blue seas, first class international hotels, and fine restaurants. In fact, Dubai has everything you could wish for to have a memorable getaway.

Like a magic carpet spread before the sea, Oman's coastal plain is one of the most fertile areas of Arabia. Famous since antiquity as the source of frankincense, Salalah was already a prosperous town when Marco Polo visited it in the 13th century! Inland rise the forbidding Al-Quara Mountains, and the desolate "Empty Quarter" of central Saudi Arabia.

It is the only Jordanian port with direct access to the Red Sea; it remains the trade entrepot to Iraq. Aqaba is also a popular winter and summer seaside resort. Since at least 1000 B.C., a port has existed continuously on the site to handle trade between Palestine and Syria.

The Suez Canal is an artificial waterway running across the Isthmus of Suez in northeastern Egypt. It connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Gulf of Suez, an arm of the Red Sea. The canal, about 101 miles long, has no locks because the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Suez have roughly the same water level. Most of the canal has only a single traffic lane, with several passing bays.

One of the most spectacular bays in the world lies in the shadow of Mt. Vesuvius. Visit the San Carlo Opera House and the cathedral of San Janarious, or tour the ancient ruins in the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Lisbon is many cities, from the cobbled alleys of the Alfama district to the broad Parisian style avenues at its heart. View it all from the heights of St. George's Castle. Belem's Monument to the Discoveries recalls the seafaring past, while nearby Sintra's storybook palaces, and the seaside resort of Caiscais, have different tales to tell.

Southampton is the gateway to the immensely civilized city of London. There are museums to visit, pubs to try, and shops to browse, ranging from Harrods to open-air markets. There are more parks and green belts here than in any other city in the world. There are also caches of stately squares and noble monuments, holdovers from a time when the island ruled a significant portion of the globe.