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You can’t talk about libraries in New York City without mentioning the New York Public Library’s Stephen A. Schwarzman building on Fifth Avenue. Take in the stunning view on the rooftop bar, escape to nooks and crannies throughout the hotel to curl up with the oeuvre of a favorite author, or, perhaps, take a whimsical walk along Library Way, the series of bronze literary plaques embedded in the sidewalk running along East 41st Street leading to New York Public Library’s Stephen A. Schwarzman building on Fifth Avenue. One Book, One New York New York City was a fairly late adopter of the One Book, One City reading program, kicking it off only in 2017. The Strand is on every New York City bookstore list worth its salt, and that’s because The Strand is a New York City institution.

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: The Truth About Hiring a Guide in Fès, Morocco I’ve taken hundreds of tours in my lifetime. But if you’re exploring a medina with almost 10,000 unmapped streets in a country where you don’t speak the language, it might be a good time to consider hiring a guide. What You Need To Know About Hiring a Guide in Fès Tour guides earn a commission off anything you purchase. Guides have relationships with shopkeepers, so they probably won’t take you to the best carpet shop, but the carpet shop where they’ll earn the biggest commission.

The Fès medina was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981 because it’s considered “one of the most extensive and best conserved historic towns of the Arab-Muslim world”. That’s not the case with the Fès medina, as it’s made up of a number of neighborhoods. There’s a door within a door, and though I wanted to believe the inlaid door was simply for petite folk like myself, it’s a meaningful part of Moroccan culture. Riad Tizwa Fès isn’t actually located in the Fès medina, but it’s a short jaunt to the Blue Gate.

Open House New York has curated an incredible list of New York City’s jewels, all you have to do is show up. Jefferson Market Library is a courthouse-turned-library that serves the public all year round, but we scored special access to its normally off-limits tower during Open House New York Weekend. The Audubon Mural Project is on our list of best street art galleries in New York City, and you can experience it with an art historian and local resident as your guide during Open House New York Weekend. Visitors can time their trips to coincide with the public culmination of OHNY’s annual programming by attending Open House New York Weekend every October.