Not in a mimsy, cottages-and-window-boxes kind of way, but with a craggy handsomeness that stops you in your tracks.

BBC: Postcard from Edinburgh

On Andy Beauchamp's street in the notoriously irritable south London neighborhood of Peckham, for example, almost every single doorstep is dressed with flower-filled planters and over-flowing window boxes after Beauchamp decided one day to start sticking plants in front of his neighbors' homes.

CNN: Guerrilla gardeners green their city on secret moonlit missions

We gaze with astonishment at the vine-clad buildings, the riotous window boxes, the bobbing pastel fishing boats and the vast medieval fortress at the centre of town.

BBC: Turkey��s best-kept secret

Flat 5 Madrid has a fresh, clean-lined look with bright colours, flatscreen TVs, free wi-fi and flower boxes on the window sills.

BBC: Mini guide to Madrid��s nightlife