Gonder, Ethiopia

You go to Gonder to see the castles, which date from the 17th century, but there's so much more to the city than that. I had the good fortune to encounter a terrific guide, Emmanuel, who showed me all around the place and even took me to his nephew's baptismal party. It became typical of my Ethiopian experience: random acts of kindness and hospitality that have changed my outlook on life forever, and hopefully my way of interacting with other people.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Perhaps a strange destination for the solo female traveler, but an intriguing one, certainly. A big, sprawling city, surprisingly walkable and quite safe, friendlier and with a lot less hassle than one would expect. Addis doesn't have a great deal in the way of traditional tourist attractions, though it does have a couple of interesting museums, including one with the skeleton of Lucy, thought until recently to be the world's earliest human skeleton.