Russia
Jones traveled to St. Petersburg to learn the national fighting style of sambo, or self-defense without weapons. It was a serious sport with serious people, but outside of practice Jones experienced homemade vodka and a traditional Russian bathhouse. You can easily find both on a visit to this northern city, where the summer sun offers up long days and “white nights.” The baroque Winter Palace, home to the Hermitage Museum, is a must-see, as are museums dedicated to literary figures from Fyodor Dostoyevsky to Leo Tolstoy. Stroll along the Neva River, visit St. Isaac’s Cathedral, which still shows evidence of shelling from the siege of Leningrad during World War II — and take in a ballet at the Mariinsky Theater.