From downtown Athens, one’s eyes rest on the timeless vision of the Acropolis up on the hill, looming grandly above this ancient Greek city. But in the bustling market streets below, another classic, though less well-known, Athens exists.

The historic Plaka district might be one of Athens’ most popular tourist destinations, but there’s another part of the area that visitors rarely see, one where the city’s ancient heart beats a little louder. Under the shadow of the Acropolis, this is the place that saw the birth of classical Greek and Western civilization and also the turbulent arrival of Christianity. There are traces here of the ancient Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and Ottomans, found in the ruins, churches, local houses and – most importantly – in the food

Sunday is traditionally a day of leisure for the average Greek, dedicated to two important aspects of life: food and family. Most Greeks enjoy the largest meal of this day at lunchtime, sharing it with an extended family that usually includes children, cousins, grandparents and aunts and uncles. On this walk – our own take on a classic Athens Sunday – we will start off at a leisurely pace, enjoying the quiet streets of normally bustling downtown. At our first stop, a dairy bar that has been around since the 1930s, we’ll get a taste of true Greek yogurt, topped with nuts and honey, as well as of galaktoboureko, a traditional custard-filled dessert sandwiched between syrupy layers of phyllo. Crossing Aiolou Street – one of the oldest paved roads in Athens, dating back to the 3rd century – we’ll walk past buildings and monuments representing the breadth of Athenian history and then catch a glimpse of parishioners at a nearby Greek Orthodox church as they leave the Sunday service. From there we’ll continue to a local spot where we’ll taste loukoumades, small balls of fried dough drizzled in honey that are traditionally enjoyed at weddings, while in a neighborhood spot that serves regional delicacies from across Greece we’ll sample ladenia, parcels of dough filled with feta, capers and chopped tomato, a specialty of the small Aegean island of Kimolos.

On this tour– our own take on a classic Athens Sunday – we will start off at a leisurely pace, enjoying the quiet streets of normally bustling downtown. At our first stop, a dairy bar that has been around since the 1930s, we’ll get a taste of true Greek yogurt, topped with nuts and honey, as well as of galaktoboureko, a traditional custard-filled dessert sandwiched between syrupy layers of phyllo. Crossing Aiolou Street – one of the oldest paved roads in Athens, dating back to the 3rd century – we’ll walk past buildings and monuments representing the breadth of Athenian history and then catch a glimpse of parishioners at a nearby Greek Orthodox church as they leave the Sunday service. From there we’ll continue to a local spot where we’ll taste loukoumades, small balls of fried dough drizzled in honey that are traditionally enjoyed at weddings, while in a neighborhood spot that serves regional delicacies from across Greece we’ll sample ladenia, parcels of dough filled with feta, capers and chopped tomato, a specialty of the small Aegean island of Kimolos.

The largest of New York’s five boroughs, Queens is the home of over two million people, half of them born outside the United States, speaking more than 140 different languages. It’s perhaps the only place on the face of the planet where Tagalog bumps up hard against Romanian.

Immerse yourself on this multi-day trip in the complex cultural identity of Mexico City, where pre-Hispanic, colonial, and contemporary influences collide.

Right after our Mexico City Trip, immerse yourself on this add-on trip in the complex cultural identity of Oaxaca, where pre-Hispanic, colonial, and contemporary influences collide.

On this culinary adventure, we’ll be lucky enough to explore Mexico City during the Day of the Dead and immerse ourselves in the complexities of this megacity during one of its most famous and colorful celebrations. The images are iconic: Revellers painted in skeleton-like “Catrinas” makeup, the streets and tables across the city awash with orange and yellow marigolds. Together we’ll celebrate this holiday as the locals do, with parades and celebrations, but also with the soulful, spiritual aspects that make this such a meaningful occasion for locals. Over the next six days, we’ll also explore the breadth of Mexico City’s mouthwatering local gastronomy and experience those rare moments when the city’s eras of history and its different identities are in beautiful harmony and which are even more poignant and powerful during the Day of the Dead holiday.

We like to think of Oaxaca as the heartland of Mexican cooking. All the foods that seem so classically, elementally, Mexican – corn, chiles, moles, mezcal – can be traced back to the fertile area that surrounds this historic city. This is true not only of the ingredients, but the cooking techniques as well. The use of smoke and fire to flavor food, as well as the practice of cooking on a comal – the large circular griddle that is essential for making tortillas – are all deeply connected with the Oaxaca region and its indigenous people. But Oaxaca is not only a point of origin for these essential items of culinary heritage, it is also a place in which they are lovingly maintained and protected.

We like to think of Oaxaca as the heartland of Mexican cooking. All those things that seems so classically and elementally Mexican – corn, chiles, moles, mezcal – can be traced back to the fertile area that surrounds this historic city.

We like to travel on a smaller scale. Forget countries and cities, for us the neighborhood is the ideal unit of exploration. Celebrating neighborhood life and businesses is, of course, essential to what we do as Culinary Backstreets. Since our founding in 2012, we’ve been dedicated to publishing the stories of unsung local culinary heroes and visiting them on our food walks, particularly in neighborhoods that are off the beaten path. Plus, we recognize that tourism, while a justifiably important economic force in many cities, can devastate the urban ecosystem if not distributed responsibly into neighborhoods otherwise neglected by the travel industry. To help that process along, two years ago we launched an annual “Neighborhoods to Visit” guide, featuring areas off the main tourist trail from all the cities that we cover.

We like to travel on a smaller scale. Forget countries and cities, for us the neighborhood is the ideal unit of exploration. Celebrating neighborhood life and businesses is, of course, essential to what we do as Culinary Backstreets. Since our founding in 2012, we’ve been dedicated to publishing the stories of unsung local culinary heroes and visiting them on our food walks, particularly in neighborhoods that are off the beaten path. Plus, we recognize that tourism, while a justifiably important economic force in many cities, can devastate the urban ecosystem if not distributed responsibly into neighborhoods otherwise neglected by the travel industry. To help that process along, two years ago we launched an annual “Neighborhoods to Visit” guide, featuring areas off the main tourist trail from all the cities that we cover.

We like to travel on a smaller scale. Forget countries and cities, for us the neighborhood is the ideal unit of exploration. Celebrating neighborhood life and businesses is, of course, essential to what we do as Culinary Backstreets. Since our founding in 2012, we’ve been dedicated to publishing the stories of unsung local culinary heroes and visiting them on our food walks, particularly in neighborhoods that are off the beaten path. Plus, we recognize that tourism, while a justifiably important economic force in many cities, can devastate the urban ecosystem if not distributed responsibly into neighborhoods otherwise neglected by the travel industry. To help that process along, two years ago we launched an annual “Neighborhoods to Visit” guide, featuring areas off the main tourist trail from all the cities that we cover.

We like to travel on a smaller scale. Forget countries and cities, for us the neighborhood is the ideal unit of exploration. Celebrating neighborhood life and businesses is, of course, essential to what we do as Culinary Backstreets. Since our founding in 2012, we’ve been dedicated to publishing the stories of unsung local culinary heroes and visiting them on our food walks, particularly in neighborhoods that are off the beaten path. Plus, we recognize that tourism, while a justifiably important economic force in many cities, can devastate the urban ecosystem if not distributed responsibly into neighborhoods otherwise neglected by the travel industry. To help that process along, two years ago we launched an annual “Neighborhoods to Visit” guide, featuring areas off the main tourist trail from all the cities that we cover.

We like to travel on a smaller scale. Forget countries and cities, for us the neighborhood is the ideal unit of exploration. Celebrating neighborhood life and businesses is, of course, essential to what we do as Culinary Backstreets. Since our founding in 2012, we’ve been dedicated to publishing the stories of unsung local culinary heroes and visiting them on our food walks, particularly in neighborhoods that are off the beaten path. Plus, we recognize that tourism, while a justifiably important economic force in many cities, can devastate the urban ecosystem if not distributed responsibly into neighborhoods otherwise neglected by the travel industry. To help that process along, two years ago we launched an annual “Neighborhoods to Visit” guide, featuring areas off the main tourist trail from all the cities that we cover.