Beijing. China

Very few places on the planet can match the extraordinary historical exibit on display in Beijing. With six Unesco world heritage sites in the city (just one short of the whole of Egypt). In it's heart lies the awe-inspiring Forbidden City, a royal palacewith a scale that's hard to match. Beijing is home to majestic temples that attempt cosmological perfection, and the city centre is crisscrossed by enchanting old-world alleyways that brim with life the same way today as they did centuries ago. To top it all, the icon Great Wall snakes its way across the mountains just north of town.