August is hot in Taipei.

Late winter escapes:The world’s best places for an August holiday

Keen to escape Australia in August? Here are the countries and cities to visit for their summer,winter or welcoming dry season.

  • byBrian Johnston
Kadriorg Palace

Tallinn,Estonia:How to escape its tourist-choked heart

"For us,there has not been much liberation,"says our guide,with characteristic Baltic understatement.

  • byRob McFarland
Tallinn,Estonia. Photograph by Leisa Tyler. SHD TRAVEL SEPT 20 T AND L.

Northern lights

Louise Goldsbury is bowled over by the charms of the Baltic.

Snowglobes at Christmas market,Vienna.?

Dreamy white Christmas

If you think the festive season is missing its magic,a wander through some of Europe's best Christmas markets will do wonders for your yuletide spirit,says Brian Johnston.

Baltic states. Pioneers (Soviet Scouts) sing a song at the Soviet Sculpture Garden,dubbed"Stalin World,"in the Lithuanian city of Grutas

New beat in the Baltic

With a song in his heart,Adrian Bridge revisits Latvia,Lithuania and Estonia 20 years after independence.

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Tallinn,Estonia.

Tracks winding back

A dreadnought fan from childhood,Steven Herrick takes to the city trams to explore Tallinn and Riga.

Crowd pleaser ... NK department store's windows draw crowds.

Ten towns a-trading

From Stockholm to Berlin via Budapest,Paul Ewart explores the best Christmas markets the Continent has to offer - where hand-made gifts,local delicacies and lashings of tradition are to be found.

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Tallinn's dark age has been banished,replaced by sweet sounds amid stunning surrounds,writes Richard Tulloch.