Declared a Natural Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 1993, Lanzarote, the easternmost of the Canary Islands, is one of the finest examples of how to strike a balance between the development of tourism and the preservation of natural and cultural resources. 

In addition to the undoubted merits of the Turin Winter Olympics of 2006, both from a sporting viewpoint and for putting Piedmont on the world map, there is also that of persuading marquise Anna Doria to open up to guests a significant portion of her magnificent historical estate, II Torrione, at Pinerolo, a village close to Turin.

The island appears on the horizon. Its shining green mountains, bounded by a broad band of sand, seem to grow out of the sea.

Bao Shidong screws up his eyes, puts his head on one side and stares for a long time toward land. He's been a sea fisherman for ten years. "Hainan is especially beautiful from the water," he says.

Hainan province: That's where the giant Chinese land-mass, stretching southward, created an island that's covered with palms and populated by wild monkeys.