So it turns out that if you die on an airline flight more likely than not an attendant will throw a blanket over you and the flight will go on. It was a question that begged to be asked after the death last week of a woman, Carine Desir, during an American Airlines flight from Haiti to New York. The airline is facing scrutiny over whether there were problems with some of its onboard emergency equipment.
In Desir's case, her body was covered with a blanket and placed on the floor in first class. Other passengers were shifted from adjacent seats and the flight continued to New York, even though it could have landed in Miami. The AP is now reporting that American's response is pretty common (although apparently sometimes they put the deceased in a body bag if they have one and/or just strap them into a seat). And federal regulators say there don't appear to be any policies that dictate what should be done, leaving the decision up to carriers. How often does this problem come up? There aren't any solid figures, but numbers kept by a company called MedAire, which helps airlines deal with in-flight medical problems, suggest that the number of annual deaths exceeds 260 a year.
In other words, your odds of dying while on a plane for medical reasons are about 1 in 7.6 million. On the other hand, you have a 1-in-1.3-million chance of getting killed in a place crash. And, it turns out, only a 1-in-5.2-million shot of scoring big time in Megabucks.
Think I'll go get a quick pick and travel by car for a while.

I love reading things that keep me on my toes. Finding a Japanese Doll Festival in the middle of Vermont, in the middle of winter mind you, is just the thing to catch my eye. The Asian Cultural Center of Vermont in Brattleboro hosts the Hina-Matsuri: Doll Festival of Japan on March 9 from 1 - 4 p.m.

The day includes a doll exhibition where dolls are dressed in imperial court costumes from the Heian period in Japan (8th-12th centuries). Hands-on activities for all ages include origami doll making, calligraphy, haiku poetry, and learning how to wear a kimono. The festival is followed by a concert for children of the bamboo flute. For more information call 1-802-579-9088 or visit the Cultural Center's site.

Here’s my Mom. She’s 92 years old and lives in Marietta, Ga., about a half hour northwest of Atlanta. When I visited this month, we indulged in one of our favorite activities: we jumped in the car and headed to the Australian Bakery in the restored historic town center named Marietta Square. In the center of the square is Glover Park, nicely landscaped with a fountain, gazebo and flowering crape myrtle and okame cherry trees. The surrounding streets have late 19th and early 20th century buildings that house specialty boutiques, restaurants, and antique shops.

For being in the heart of the south, it’s a pretty international place. If you want to eat there’s authentic Turkish, Slovakian, Italian, Celtic, and Cajun food all within a three-block radius, But our favorite place is the Australian Bakery which offers 16 varieties of meat pies, including an English pork pie, a traditional Cornish Pastie, curry lamb, and the basic Aussie meat pie — savory ground sirloin and seasoned gravy baked in a flaky pastry crust. We always order the same thing: I get the curried chicken pie, and mom gets the sausage baked in a pastry roll.

The following is a partial list of what you can see out the window while driving one of Panama's rural highways:

foggy forest
pigs
sugar cane stacked atop a pickup
dried fish

a muddy river
a holstein
a left fielder throwing out a baserunner at home
children carrying fresh-chopped wood

commuters waiting to board a school bus painted red, yellow, blue
cotton dresses for sale
stilted houses
soccer on a narrow ledge over a deep valley
nearly-ripe mango

Matrimony is alive and well on the sands of Jamaica. Sucking down my mango daiquiris last week at the Riu Ocho Rios resort, I must have spotted at least a dozen brides walking barefoot in their long flowing white gowns to the beachside gazebo. After the ceremony, the wedding parties retreated to one of the bars for drinks and often booked a private dinner on the beach in the evening, with the requisite reggae band. If you don’t mind sharing the beach with voyeurs like my children, Destination Weddings can be an attractive way to get hitched in front of an intimate group of family and friends. The cost for bride and groom can be considerably cheaper than a more traditional wedding. If your party books a decent amount of rooms for the week, some hotels will throw in the wedding ceremony for free. And it’s hard to top the locale at ocean's edge. Your friends will thank you.

Magellan Press is out with a guide for hungry travelers: ''Where the Locals Eat: The 100 Best Restaurants in the Top 50 Cities.'' That's US cities, and Boston is included.

Entries include a range of food and prices. Boston restaurants include Brown Sugar Cafe for the best Thai and the Cask 'n Flagon for the best sports bar.

If you think the $11.95 price is too steep, particularly for a guide that includes only one New England city, check their website for more foodie news and blogs.

And if you have your own local winner, share your tip with us.

Have you ever wanted to scale the jagged peaks of the Alps and push the limits of your body, but just don't have the cajones to do it?

Take the easy way out this Friday and experience the adventure on the big screen when The Alps debuts at the Mugar Omni Theatre at the Museum of Science in Cambridge.

The story follows John Harlin III, who attempts to defeat his demons by conquering Eiger, the mountain his father died climbing. I haven't seen the flick, but the previews offer some pretty spectacular footage.

Additionally, it's nice to see a climbing movie focus on a peak outside the Himalayas. When it comes to mountain-climbing movies and books, us sea-level neophytes get a selection as thin as the air atop a 8,000-meter peak -- it's nothing but Everest, Everest, Everest. I mean, how much Yak footage can one endure?

Eiger, the mountain in the film, deserves some recognition. Jutting more than 13,000 feet into the atmosphere, it is considered one of the most difficult climbs in the Swiss Alps and is the namesake of a Jon Krakauer book. (Krakauer also wrote a best-seller about his trials on -- you guessed it -- Everest).

And even if you're not an aspiring daredevil mountaineer, the movie might get your juices flowing for a summer trip to Switzerland, a land famous for watches, chocolate, and, uh, The Alps. June flights to Zurich currently ring in around $700-$1,200 on Orbitz.

A 32-day cruise of Central America and the Caribbean through the Panama Canal. A 14-day Croatia cruise, Rijeka to Hvar. A two-week trip through Central and Southern Dalmatia to Montenegro.

These and other voyages are available on freighter and other specialty cruises.

The Maruba Africa takes two passengers on a 42-day round-trip cruise from Buenos Aires. Up to 50 people can be accommodated on the Croatian trip.

Prices vary. See the website for details and to sign up for a monthly Maris magazine, which includes feature articles and passenger accounts.

What do you think? Is a freighter cruise for you?

It is worth turning around for the roadside shop called Quesos Chela, which serves fresh empanadas, shakes made from milk, corn, sugar and more ...

Who says travel has to be to real places? Over the weekend, I trekked to Middle-earth. Yes, I'm a geek. I convinced a fellowship of my friends and family members, several quite skeptical, to accompany me to the land of hobbits, wizards, Rings of Power and pipeweed. Over the course of 12 hours, we watched Peter Jackson's film trilogy adaptation of JRR Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings."

I even wrote a guidebook for the uninitiated. Sample entries: “No, no, not Keebler elves nor Santa’s helpers, Tolkien’s elves are full-sized, uber beings, immortal and little detached/arrogant, but with silver quickness and electrified senses”; and “Innocent, honest, well-meaning Frodo agrees to take the Ring but to where or for what he’s not sure. Just good buddies with Sam, or is there something more to their relationship? Hmmm...”

We made it through “The Fellowship of the Ring,” broke for beer and lembas waybread, then plowed through “The Two Towers.” But at about 1am, an hour into “The Return of the King,” our merry band of adventurers conked out. And dreamed of that other, possibly better world, that we’d like to tramp across, with our hairy little feet.

Dude, it'll never work in Boston.
The TSA (it's like Pavlov: I feel like I should shed my shoes and empty my pockets) is testing a system in Denver and Salt Lake City in an effort to speed security lines at airports: color-coded lanes.
How does it work? Think skiing. Green circle for beginners (families or those needing special assistance), blue squares for intermediates (a casual traveler, perhaps, but one who's been around the block a couple of times -- although never without multiple carry-ons), and black diamonds for experts (Special Forces in Gray Flannel camo with limited carry-ons and the rules of engagement with liquids, gels, laptops. and footwear tattooed on the insides of eyelids).
Basically, you decide which lane is for you, and in theory it makes the process more efficient and less stressful.
Earl Morris of TSA says that the tests are working well and that they will be completed in about a week in Denver, but that Salt Lake City will continue for the foreseeable future. He says the agency will look at possibly expanding it.
But let me be on the record first: It will never work here. Know why? Because here everyone would queue up as black diamond until it filled up and then the wise guys would start trying to speed the green one like a breakdown lane on the Expressway at rush hour. While yammering on the Bluetooth. And cursing. Never mind the new hand gestures the kids would learn.

It's peer group pressure, people. US Airways says that it will charge some passengers (i.e. those not in its frequent-flier program) $25 for a second checked bag, starting May 26. Sound familiar? It was just earlier this month, that United said it would was planning the same thing.
Hear that? It's the footsteps of all the other major carriers getting ready to queue up.

A new travel website has been launched for baby boomers, boomeropia.
"I happen to be a baby boomer and I felt like the fun side of me wasn't being catered to and marketed to,'' said founder Liz Dahl, 59. "I was getting ads for medication and hearing aids and no one was appealing to my fun side."
So she created Boomeropia as an information site, listing interesting trips and tours in 30 categories, from adventure to pet travel to beaches and bed-and-breakfasts.
Other categories include cruises, culinary travel, golf, fishing, and "glamping" -- which means "glamorous" camping or camping trips where the tour operator does all the hard work for you, with comfortable tents and catered meals. Click on "botanical tours" and you'll read about a trip to Kazakhstan in search of alpine plants; click on "volunteer" for details on an American Hiking Society trip to work in a park in the Chilean Patagonia.
There is also a forum section where readers can post photos and share their thoughts. (AP)

Shhh...this is the kind of entry I have to type quietly because my husband sits in the next room occasionally asking me what I am covering. Shhh...if he only knew about this event, he, with no training, would probably show up imploring that his will can move mountains, and move him through such an event. OK, enough already,...this is not a reality TV show as of yet, but I am thinking the The MVP Health Care Frigid Infliction at Bolton Valley Resort will soon land in some producers hands, and sha-boom, become the most watched reality show after "The Biggest Loser: Couples."

Anyhoo, for those of you who think you have what it takes to tackle the nation's largest winter adventure race, show up in gear and frothy mouth at the 2008 MVP Health Care Frigid Infliction on March 1. Teams of two and three can compete in co-ed, or single-sex divisions, with topographic map and compass, snowshoeing, x-country skiing, post-holing and a ropes course. This event is sanctioned by the Adventure Racing Association. Registration is open now, slots filled early last year as those go out and prove themselves winter worthy. For more information, quietly call 802-865-9895 or visit www.gmara.org/frigid.

Time to rip those crossed, wooden skis off the cathedral ceiling or by the shed door, and figure out a way to strap them on some boots and cruise on over to Ascutney Mountain Resort for the 5th Annual Vermont Antique Ski Race, held March 8 and 9 to benefit the Vermont Ski Museum. I've heard of Rossi 102s, well those are said to be just fine, along with the old woodies or vintage fiberglass skis, and compete for fun against former Olympians and US Ski Team members at Ascutney Mountain Resort.

The two-day winter fest kicks off with a 2.5K Vintage Cross-Country Race on Saturday, with the alpine race taking place on Sunday. Running next to the alpine race will be the 4th Annual Cochran Memorial Lollipop Race. The Lollipop Race was dreamed up in the late 1950s at Ascutney as a fun way for children to learn to ski. Every child finished the day a winner and left with a lollipop.

Don't forget about wearing any vintage ski clothing, leather ski boots or poles for added fun. For more information about the 5th Annual Vermont Antique Ski Race or to make a donation to the Vermont Ski Museum, contact Meredith Scott at 802-253-9911 or Bill Henne at Ascutney at 802-484-3609 or bhenne@ascutney.com.

File this under: Unbelievable. There is a story out today about the death of a 44-year-old woman aboard an American Airlines jet bound for New York from Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Apparently, the woman had heart disease and complained of feeling sick and having difficulty breathing.
But this is where the story gets molto funky, and versions diverge.
According to a cousin who was traveling with the woman, Carine Desir, this is what happened: Desir asked the flight attendant for oxygen and was refused -- twice. Apparently the refusals -- and the woman's apparent suffering -- caused a bit of consternation among fellow passengers (after all, having someone on your plane gasping for breath tends to put a crimp in the fun factor of any vacation). So the attendant relented and tried to administer oxygen. But the tank was empty.
So a second tank was produced. Also empty. At this point the cousin prevailed on the pilot to get the plane down ASAP, and he agreed to divert and land in Miami, 45 minutes away.
Unfortunately, a short time later Desir collapsed and was pronounced dead by a doctor who was on board. What then? The airline folks moved Desir's body to the floor of the first-class section (is there no end to the perks up front?), covered her up with a blanket, skipped the Miami stop, and headed off to New York.
American initially refused to comment but now is disputing the cousin's version. The airline says that its oxygen tanks and a defibrillator were working and noted that several medical professionals on the flight, including a doctor, tried to save Desir.
So what's the Truth? Your guess is as good as mine, but I think the next time I fly American at the very least I'm gonna pass on first class.

If you dream of dancing with the stars, this camp's for you.

July 20-25 and July 27-Aug. 1 Camps for Grownups, LTD. will hold its 10th annual Ballroom Vermont dance camp at the Killington Grand Resort in Killington, Vt.

Daily lessons in a variety of dances -- waltz, foxtrot, rumba, tango, and others -- are followed by practice review sessions.

All dancers are welcome, beginner to advance. The cost is $2,574 for couples, $1,599 for singles. Each session is limited to 50 couples.

Check the website for registration details.

Daybreak in the Pacific waters near Puerto Pedregal. Cranes and crocodiles and fishermen motoring and paddling in among the mangroves and broader channels leading from the Rio Chiriqui to the sea.

At the center of the working port, a single dockside restaurant, and ceviche made from raw corvina, a type of sea bass.

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Photos: Essdras M Suarez/Boston Globe

Travel with teens at your own peril: if your teenager isn’t happy on vacation, chances are no one’s happy. Some good news: Loews Hotels' ‘‘Edu-cations’’ are year-round packages that include a one- or two-night hotel stay and activities that will appeal to hard-to-please teens. Some examples: at Loews Coronado Bay Resort in San Diego the teen package includes private surfing lessons on surfboards custom-designed to take home. At the Loews Vanderbilt in Nashville, a music package includes a song-writing session with songwriter Thom Shepherd, a Gibson acoustic guitar, and a one-hour guitar lesson. And on it goes: golf lessons for aspiring PGA pros at Loews Lake Las Vegas, a culinary arts package for would-be cooks at Loews Miami Beach Hotel, and even a behind-the-scenes look at the financial markets for executive wanna-bes at the Loews Regency Hotel in New York. These packages don’t come cheap: they cost between $600-$2,000. But for these one-of-a-kind experiences, your teen will owe you big time.

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Photo: Essdras M Suarez/Globe Staff

Why settle for a mug of green beer and shouted conversation over “The Wild Rover” on St. Patrick’s Day, when you can experience the patron saint of Ireland’s birthday on the Olde Sod itself? Better yet, take advantage of this Fairways to Heaven offer and you’ll enjoy a round at the acclaimed Doonbeg Golf Club, in the shadow of the Cliffs of Moher, no less. Get yourself to Shannon International Airport, and the rest of the three-day, two-night package is taken care of (OK, truth in advertising -- you’re going to have to swing your own clubs). From Shannon, you are whisked to the Lodge at Doonbeg, where you have the choice of an afternoon spa treatment or a golf biomechanics session. Hmmm, that’s a tough call. You’ll also meet with Doonbeg’s pro Brian Shaw, where you’ll receive tips on playing the cliffside, Greg Norman-designed course in what is billed as a “B.S. session” -- those are the host pro's initials, OK??? Dinner and a whiskey-tasting follow, along with the obligatory craic. Make sure to plan the next morning’s wake-up call in time to have your Irish breakfast; you’ll need to be well-fortified to tackle Doonbeg, which features 100-foot dunes and ocean views from 16 holes. The next day, you'll be whisked home... er, to Shannon, actually. Whether you head straight home from there is your call. The package is $365 per person, double-occupancy. Go here for more information.

The annual national junior baseball championship can draw major league scouts to Panama. Two who have made it to the Major League include Yankees closer Mariano Rivera and Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz.

Too early to tell whether this year's champs, from the province of Chiriqui, hold any future pros. But the crowd along the Pan American Highway was happy enough with the junior squad - 15- and 16 year-olds, mostly - who captured the national crown last week. By nightfall, traffic slowed to a crawl for miles approaching the city of David, as flat bed trucks played host to the players clad in orange jerseys, families lined the roadside and followed along in cars and trucks of their own. Chiriquano pride shone in flags and chants and smiles.

The procession snaked into the city, rounded the central park partly cooled from the day's heat, and on to the floodlit stadium. Speakers blared music with Latin beats toward midnight, a Pacific parade without end.

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Photo: Essdras M Suarez/Globe Staff

It's the 50th anniversary of The Freedom Trail Foundation and the Ritz-Carlton Boston Common
is celebrating with its Freedom Trail 50th Anniversary Package.

The package includes a deluxe guest room or suite, a private Walk Into History Walking Tour, A copy of "The Freedom Trail, An Artist's View,'' and an American breakfast for two in the Jer-Ne Restaurant.

The offer starts March 14 and continues through the year. Cost starts at $515 per couple and a three-day nonrefundable advance booking is required.

Still trying to fill all those empty days next week? Well the Children's Museum of Portsmouth is famous for its dynamic vacation week offerings for the free-wheelin' kiddos. So much so that it's second floor is entirely dedicated to hands-on art exploration for all ages.

The week's offerings are as follows; Sunday: painting; Monday: rubbings; Tuesday: jewelry making; Wednesday and Thursday: creation station; and Friday: science exploration. This glorious schedule has many meanings to parents...1. exposure to arts, 2. structured time outside of home, 3. did I mention OUTSIDE of home, and 4. this year's Christmas presents will be completed before the new Spring. Need I say more?

Many hours to arrive and play...Tuesday - Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Sundays 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. Members are free; adults/children: $6 and seniors: $5. For more information about the Children's Museum, visit it's site or call 603-436-3853.

There's plenty to eat year-round in the tropical trees of Panama. These days, cashew fruit and mangos are just about ripe. Tamarind, on the other hand, may not be.

In the town of La Pintada, killing time while waiting to visit cigar rollers in an open-air shop on a slope, Essdras came across a hard-cased fruit lying on the ground. Inside, he said, would be the bitter-sweet paste of tamarind.

The outer shell, though, wasn't so easy to crack.

Smacking it on a rock didn't work either.

What’s it like to travel from Milwaukee to Morocco to Madrid and beyond, from being an African-American in a suburb only sprinkled with them to being an African-American in a country only sprinkled with them – and neither place much thrilled with the mix. Like many journeys, not as easy as the traveler hoped. “Kinky Gazpacho” (Atria, 224 pp., hardcover) is Lori L. Tharps’s memoir of her pursuit of what she imagined was her destiny: to leave her bland, conventional environment behind for exotic, worldly Spain. Alas, racism is a worldwide pestilence and it turns out that Spaniards change her life in ways unimagined by the girl from Smith College shocked by their political incorrectness. Tharps is a freelance journalist, author, and teacher who lives in Philadelphia. Philadelphia? I’m not telling how she got there. Or whether she gave up on the Espana of her dreams. But she is alternately funny and self-effacing and serious and smart. Got an AFS trip planned this summer for your child who would rather chill with her friends? Beware enlightenment; this is how it starts. The alliance of kinkiness and gazpacho, Salamanca and suburbanites, Spain and slavery, love and love stories is Tharps’s to describe, beginning to end.

A phone call from Boston, and a voice: "I can see it out the bedroom window. It's almost covered now. It's beautiful."

And here too, in Panama, a clear-sky view of last night's lunar eclipse.

Photo: Essdras M Suarez/Boston Globe

Remember some of those 80s movies where parties seemed to always be in some industrial place, with metal beams overhead, concrete floors and even grayer walls? It's the only image I can fathom when reading about a vague event in Stamford, CT. Taste & Style, as it is billed, offers countless vendors of cuisine, flowers, music, fashion and couture, at the Loading Dock, on Feb. 22 from 7 - 11 p.m. I imagine this kind of event brings out all kinds of people, as a suggested donation of $175 gets you in the door...though of course all proceeds benefit Kids in Crisis, a 24/7 help center for families and children. And no benefit is complete without some luxurious raffles for guests. For event details and tickets contact stacie@loadingdockevents.com or call 203-357-7400.

I know every parent in New Hampshire is scrambling to fill some open spots for next week's school vacation, so here is an event that will begin the week off with astounding applause. On Saturday Feb. 23, The Children's Museum of Portsmouth offers it's 5th consecutive African Drumming Concert for kids. Concert goers can see, hear and touch authentic African drums, as well as other instruments. Featured performer and Togo native, Jordan Benissan, is a Colby College professor and West African expert drummer.

The concert is included with paid admission to the museum. In case of inclement weather, the event will be held on Sunday Feb. 24. Cost is $6 and members are free. For more information about this concert and other vacation week events, call
603-436-3853 or visit online.

ENTRY X

Do as we say, not as we do. To cover as much ground as
possible in our limited time, we zoomed through Madrid’s triumvirate of great art museums — the Prado, Reina-Sofía, and
Thyssen-Bornamisza — in one day. We emerged from the third museum 12 hours after we’d entered the first utterly art-whipped by a non-stop parade of Velázquez, Goya,
and Picasso (and don’t even get us started on Zurbarán and El Greco).

Great as it was to see galleries full of old favorites, it was even more of a treat to see the new museum wings. Jean Nouvel’s soaring addition to the Reina Sofía, which opened in 2005, provides the edgy modern architecture that a museum of modern and contemporary art deserves. Rafael Moneo’s deferential (and ethereal) addition to the Prado, which opened late last fall, finally frees the original to be a simple temple to Spanish art. We only hope Boston does as well when the new work is finished at the MFA and the Gardner!

I am, like, so into green. I recycle, walk whenever I can, and keep the Charlie Card handy. I'm also really, really into Starbucks (OK, I'm not exactly sure how this helps, but my man, Sergio, says it's cool). My goal in life is to make my carbon toeprint like the size of this period.
Anyway, Popular Science has put out its rating of the greenest cities. And I'm thinking this is going to totally influence all my travel plans.
They ranked the cities by how good they are at getting electricity from clean and renewable sources, how much people use public transportation and recycle, and the number of green buildings they have.
And now the Top Ten:
10. Austin, Texas (Yee-haw)
9. Chicago (love the hot dogs)
8. Seattle (the birthplace of coffee)
7. Berkeley, Calif. (the mother of all crunchitude)
6. Cambridge (i.e. People's Republic of)
5. Eugene, Ore. (where they invented running)
4. Oakland, Calif. (still not much there there)
3. Boston (mad teams, lame drivers)
2. San Francisco (worth it for the sourdough alone)
And the No. 1 greenest city in America:

1. Portland, Ore. (which, according to lore, could very well have ended up being Boston, Ore., had our guy not lost the coin toss with some dude from Maine)
There you have it. Start booking flights. And don't forget the carbon-offset fees.

Panama runs long and lean east and west. It is narrowest in its middle, where the 48-mile-long canal has split the country in two for nearly a century.

Our route from the capital would stick to land, traversing the canal on a high bridge opened in 2003 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Panama's separation from Colombia. We planned then to continue on the Pan American Highway through the dry fields of Cocle and the foothills of Veraguas and down again to a valley home to parched heat and the city of David, the nation's second-largest city.

Before Essdras and I left Panama City, we stopped to pick up a friend of his who has been working as a Panama Canal pilot for 14 years. When the big cargo ships arrive at the Atlantic or Pacific side hoping to get through the canal, Essdras's friend is one of those who climbs aboard and guides the ships through. The canal is the only place in the world, apparently, where the pilot -- normally an advisory role to the captain -- takes full command of the ship.

This is a photo taken by Essdras of a ship passing through the canal's Miraflores Locks.

Passengers flying out of Bradley International Airport will be able to fly directly to Memphis this summer.

Bradley and Northwest Airlines are announcing that daily nonstop seasonal service to Memphis International Airport will begin on June 16.

The chairman of the airport's board of governors says the value of this new service will be further multiplied because passengers can use it to connect to other flights offered by Northwest Airlines at Bradley.

Northwest says the daily flights to Memphis, complement daily service to Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Indianapolis and Amsterdam.

The service will be operated by Northwest Airlink partner Pinnacle Airlines using 50 seat jets. (AP)

Growing up with three older brothers left a lot of room for fingers in the eyes, slaps upside the head, and being led around the house by the ear...n'yuk, n'yuk, n'yuk. Even today any meeting with all three brothers ends up in some old Stooge slapping match. So here's an event for any old Stooge fan...seven, yes 7 UNcut original episodes will be shown on the big screen at Ioka Theater in Exeter, N.H., on Friday, Feb. 22 from 9 p.m. -midnight, and Saturday Feb. 23 at noon. Full bar is offered for the Friday showings, so no one under 18 permitted this night, but Saturday is for all ages. Three full hours of Moe, Larry and Curly for just 7 bucks. At that price, any one can afford a sitter!

Phone 603-772-2222 for more information or visit Ioka on the web.

If Delta Air Lines Inc. buys Northwest Airlines - a deal that could be announced any day now -- the merger would create the largest airline in the world and at Logan International Airport. Yet little is likely to change for travelers at Boston's intensely competitive airport.

"Of all the major cities in which the two carriers are involved, Boston would have the least impact," said George Hoffer, a Virginia Commonwealth University economics professor who has studied the airline industry.

Logan officials and airline experts predict the combined airline wouldn't reduce - or add - service at Boston's airport. They say route cuts are unlikely because there aren't any major metro airports that serve this region other than Logan and there's no overlap between the 30 nonstop destinations Delta serves and the four Northwest flies from Boston.

Additionally, Delta already scaled back its investment in Boston a little over a year ago. But the combined carrier also is unlikely to add service because the money-making routes from Boston have already been taken.

Posted by Nicole C. Wong, Globe Staff

I admit, I have never heard of the relatively new sport of snowkiting. But leave it to those Vermonters who must find something new to do during their excessive winters...thus the 5th Annual Kitestorm Snowkiting Festival at Sandbar State Park in Milton, Vt., [Milton where?...it's along the Lake Champlain shore] on Feb. 23 and 24.

The sport's purpose is simple...fly humungous kite, harness the natural power of wind, and sail across the snow and ice on skis or snowboard. Clinics are scheduled for those who want to give it a try, otherwise, there is much wide open winter space for packing a cooler and watching the professionals compete for prizes. There are speed contests, photo contests for observers, and plenty of post-snowkiting partying planned. For more information, contact Rachael Miller at rachael@stormboarding.com, call 802-951-2586, or visit www.stormboarding.com.
[Photo courtesy Dave Cota]

DAY SEVENTEEN

Last day in La-La Land. A full-circle day. For gifts and souvenirs, I buy bottles of my friends Litty and Melkon’s infused vodka, which is still not available in Mass; until then I’ll smuggle it like a bootlegger). I snag some merchandise -- CDs, shot glasses -- from my friend Sage’s band The Lucky Stars.

I run into Michelle, the friend I’ve been staying with, at Chango, the cafe that’s been my workspace. She’s finally beating her cough, but her boyfriend Sage is getting sick. Their son Weston sings silly songs and still tries to sneak up on me in the kitchen while I’m making dinner. I’ve enjoyed being part of this little family this past week.

I walk with Sage to the local school, his voting place, on Super Tuesday. After casting your vote in California, you get a voter-verifiable paper receipt. I like this. Proof you were there, part of democracy for a day. I lunch with another friend whose couch was my crash pad for two nights. If I total up my meals out over the past 16 days, I’ll be depressed. I don’t, and brace myself for the credit card bill.

This seemed like the book Mike Huckabee would be picking up in the next couple of weeks – oh, OK, maybe months – but his grandly paid Presidents Day weekend in Grand Cayman for the price of a 20-minute speech may have affected his tastes. . . . Nah, Huck still will love “The Christian Travel Planner” by Kevin J. Wright (Thomas Nelson, 416 pp., $16.99, paperback), an encyclopedic and friendly presentation and exposition of sites around the world to entice and inspire travelers uninterested in Sodom, Gomorrah, or Vegas. Pilgrimage tours, mission trips, retreats, conference cruises, camp vacations, religious festivals, solo itineraries devised by the reader alone or with friends are all possible with the materials Wright has meticulously assembled. Jesus (Israel, Jordan, the Egyptian Sinai), Saint Paul (Turkey and Greece), early Christianity (Rome and the Vatican), John Knox (Scotland), Martin Luther (Germany), Thomas Becket (Canterbury Cathedral), John Calvin (Switzerland) are all historical pieces of the worldwide reach of Christian religions and their shrines and remnants.

This is no ordinary Winterfest at Point Sebago, this is the Winterfest of Maine. Well, so I haven't been, but boy do they make it sound like all that! The weekend of Feb. 22-24 is reserved for many treats, new and old alike, at Point Sebago.

Friday kicks off the Fest with a free Kids Beginner Ice Fishing Derby [you cannot tell my youngest son this!] Over 500 beginners, 12 and under, are invited to fish the Lake with a free ice fishing rig, with many volunteers helping teach proper mechanics and tricks of winter fishing. Once Saturday hits, it's a literal free for all of activities. The Ice Fishing Derby for big guys is Maine's richest derby with thousands participating and over $40,000 in prizes in the Togue only tourney [Sounds like better odds than Mohegan to me]. Other major events will include Maine's largest Ice Carving and Snow Sculpting competition, and the Ice Racing of cars and motorcycles [yes, this is for real]. And as if that isn't enough to get the family packed and dragged into arctic Maine, there is a giant fire breathing dragon slide for kids, skating, hot air balloon rides, dog sled rides, snowboard exhibitions and snowmobile jumping [hand to my heart now]. Along with the freebies, demos and exhibits, comes two opportunities to give...the Maine Children's Cancer Programs Polar Ice Dip and the "So You Think You Can Dance" contest for Camp Sunshine will also be mixed into the weekend's agenda.

For Information call 207-655-3821, and think about staying over night at Point Sebago Resort - there are still rooms available.
[photos courtesy of Point Sebago and Winterfest]

Attention all slacker moms (and dads): now’s the time to start thinking about summer camp for your kids, in case you haven’t heard. Here’s an option: if the kids whine about adults not having to go to camp, why not take the bull by the horns and go with them? Hog Island Audubon Center in midcoast Maine has one-of-a-kind family camps. The center's Family Birding Adventure (June 29-July 5) focuses on bird-watching activities. Family Camp (July 6-11) is about all things outdoors, including locating Atlantic puffins, harbor seals, and bald eagle nests. The Labor Day Family Retreat (Aug. 30-Sept. 1) includes easy strolls on Hog Island, a boat cruise, and a lobster feast. Hog Island is a 330-acre island about four hours north of Boston and run by Maine Audubon, which supports wildlife conservation. And now, dear readers, a question (or three): Where do you send your kids to camp? Is it a sleep-away or day camp? Do you try different camps every year or stick with tried-and-true camps? This slacker mom wants to know.

Not a title that leaves much to the imagination. I think it's safe to assume it's a metaphor. The Perishable Theater of Rhode Island presents Scratch & Burn, a powerful hip-hop dance and theater production about man's primal urge to battle for supremacy and domination. Ironic year for this? The performance begs the queston: When is war not the answer? Again, timing is of the essence.

Founder, Teo Castellanos, of the Perishable Theater [Rhode Island's Research and Development Theater] wrote and directed the piece, and choreography was arranged by break-dancing legend, Ricardo "Speedy Legs" Fernandez. Scratch & Burn is performed to live, original music by Brimstone 127. Scratch & Burn plays on Feb. 22 at 8 p.m. at Roberts Auditorium, Rhode Island College. Tickets are $15 and $12 for students and seniors.

Planning a summer trip to Quebec City? Add a visit to Paris without jet lag.

Tickets for the Musée National des Beaux-arts du Quebec's exclusive exhibit, "The Louvre in Quebec City," are on sale now. The one-time-only exhibit of more than 270 major works selected from eight Louvre departments and representing 5,000 years of history will be on view from June 5 through Oct. 26, in conjunction with the city's 400th anniversary celebrations. Tickets are $15 and must be reserved for specific dates and times. They can by ordered by telephone 877-643-8131 or online. Note: all websites have an English button.

Posted by Hilary Nangle, Globe Correspondent

The Orchid Show is back at the New York Botanical Garden Feb. 23-April 6 and it's a sure-fire way to beat those winter blues.

Thousands of orchids will be on display, including Cymbidium (Asian corsage) and Phaius (nun's cap).

And for those with a green thumb, there will be plants for sale.

Don't know an orchid from a pansy? Take the audio tour.

Check the Botanical Garden's website for details.

The answer? Maybe not so much.
I can tell from the blank stare that you are, once again, clueless. OK, let's back up for a second and get you caught up.
The airlines, facing rocketing fuel costs and grinding competition, are scrambling for Advil Extra Strength and answers. Many are feeling the urge to merge, hoping that two can indeed live cheaper and more profitably than one. For the past few weeks, Delta and Northwest have reportedly been doing the dance and may make an announcement soon. My pal Kim Blanton took a look at that deal in a story last month.
In the past few days, news guys have been filing reports saying that United and Continental are also chatting it up, partly because of concerns about being left in the dust if a Delta-NWA deal gets done.
What does this mean to us? Very likely not much. At least in the short term. United hauls about 10 percent of Logan passengers, and Continental 4 percent, according to the folks at Massport. And there are no overlapping routes: Continental goes to places like Newark and Cleveland while United hits Left Coast hot spots, D.C., and Chicago.
But in the long run, fewer competitors tend to mean higher fares. That you can take to the bank, hombre. Stay tuned.

It's February vacation week for many schools in the region. This, of course, presents the annual quandary: how to occupy the kids with a minimum of nerve-wracking frenzy for mom and dad.

The answer? Head to the 20th annual Newport Winter Festival. This year's 10-day celebration, which runs through next Sunday, features more than 160 events.

For children there will be art museum tours, their own jazz concert, and a dance party. Among other highlights will be a fair with Radio Disney today at the Newport Marriott, which will include magicians, balloon artists, clowns, and face-painting.

Throughout the week, the International Tennis Hall of Fame will host family scavenger hunts, crafts lessons, and tourneys of Wii tennis, using the popular video game system. The Sovereign Bank Family Skating Center will be open for those looking to shake off residual cabin fever.

The whole family can enjoy a pizza cookoff, featuring pies from area restaurants, seal watches, a pancake-eating competition at a local International House of Pancakes Family Restaurant, and various tours of this historic seaside city, once a playground for the Gilded Age barons of the late 19th century.

Many events are free, but visitors also can purchase festival buttons that entitle them to discounts at paid events, and at area restaurants and stores.

Well, they say there’s no such thing as bad publicity, so I’m going to do Cabbage Key a favor by sharing my opinion of its totally mediocre cheeseburger, which the wait staff pushes as something really special.

But first, the place. Yes, it is paradise! The Cabbage Key Inn and Restaurant off the coast of Pineland, Fla., and near Boca Grande was built in the 1930s as the main house for the family of novelist Mary Roberts Rinehart. The building sits atop a Calusa Indian shell mound (a 30-foot-tall Florida “mountain”) and the view of water in every direction is extraordinary, especially if you climb up the vintage wooden water tower for a look-see.

And, now, the grub. I rarely order cheeseburgers, but when the waitress sang out, “We’re famous for our cheeseburgers!” I was suckered in. She wasn’t lying, but that’s because Cabbage Key is one of the 3,538 places Jimmy Buffett has cited as his inspiration for the cheesy tune “Cheeseburger in Paradise.” Perhaps he was wasted away in you-know-where if he indeed found a muse in a Cabbage Key burger.

When our paper plates arrived, I was aghast! The bun was standard fare, not even toasted, and the slice o’ American single cheese was maybe a quarter melted. The fixins’ on the side were equally uninspiring. At least the view from the patio seating took away some of my pain. And, hey, I’m not the only one who feels this way. Maybe it’s just a Boston Globe thing, but in 2006, my colleague Ellen Albanese wrote, when mentioning the Buffett connection there, “judging by the burger we had on our visit, we'd guess the singer was referring to the view and not the sandwich.”

Looking for a panoramic view of New York City at nighttime? Or daytime? You can't do better than the renovated "Top of the Rock" observation deck above Rockefeller Center. As its website notes, "There are thousands of ways to see New York, but only way to experience it.''

Recently, I walked by with my teen-aged son and we decided to check it out spontaneously. After passing through a metal detector (does any great tourist attraction NOT have one these days?), we took a rather wild, glass-ceilinged elevator ride up to the 70th floor. We got out and I nearly panicked because we walked onto the observation deck at night and it was totally in the open air and seemed to not have any safety fences. The illusion was courtesy of see-through plastic panels that you could barely see unless you were right up to next to them.

The view was beyond spectacular. The Empire State building, the Chrysler building, and dozens more skyscrapers glistened in the evening air. It was a clear night and it seemed as if we could see up to Boston. It was also a cultural bonanza to hear multiple languages spoken by the visitors, all with the same sense of awe.

It cost $17.50 each to get up there, but it was strangely worth it. I even forked over an extra $10, as I recall, for a staff-taken photo of my son and me that was put in a frame so it made us look to be sitting on a girder in mid-air when the site was built. It was patterned after the famous photo of workmen sitting on a girder back in the '30s.

And please check out the website. You can share photos and stories from your visit, while choosing from jazz, lounge, alternative or dance music while perusing the site. The stories are filed under the titles of funny, inspiring, unexpected, and romantic (many men have proposed marriage on the deck). I didn't see a category for scared, but I would have added one. Still, I'm immensely pleased that I went.

Posted by Steve Morse, Globe correspondent

ENTRY VIII

There's a flip side to the Google Maps tale. If you've ever looked at your own neighborhood on a mapping program, you've probably been confused. We certainly have. (We challenge you to navigate the Financial District or Bay Village with Google Maps.) After weeks of never leaving the hotel without either a laminated street map or at least scribbled instructions from Google, something finally clicked. Wherever we found ourselves in Madrid, we knew where we were.

The test came one night at the end of a research trip, when we decided to go tapas-hopping and catch an early (10:30pm) flamenco performance. Every place we wanted to go lay in a tangled nest of medieval streets, but we walked briskly to the first bar on our agenda, then the next, and the next, and the next, winding up at the flamenco show at 10:15 (the music and dancing began around 11).

Google that.

Discounter Skybus Airlines Inc. is increasing its fees for priority boarding and checked-in bags to offset higher fuel costs and shorten customers' wait at the airport counter, the carrier announced Friday. In early March, passengers who want to board the plane before general boarding starts will have to pay $12.50 per flight segment, up from $10. Beginning with flights departing on Feb. 19, passengers who check in one or two bags at the airport will have to pay $12 per piece for each flight segment, up from $5. However, customers who check in and pay for their bags online will only be charged $10. Skybus flies from Portsmouth, N.H., to Greensboro, N.C., and to the Fort Myers and Jacksonville areas in Florida.
Posted by Nicole C. Wong, Globe Staff

It gets cold in Burlington. Wind whips off the lake. Not unlike Chicago. But prettier. Much.
And that's why y'all will be pleased to hear that AirTran plans to fly three daily nonstops between Burlington International and Baltimore/Washington International starting May 21. And more good news: Introductory one-way rates start as low as $59 if you book before March 17 and travel before June 12.
Now, I feel obliged to remind you that you won't be able to get there in time for the National Cherry Blossom Festival, which wraps up on April 13 (a mere five days after Buddha's birthday). But not to worry. We'll save you some sushi and keep the sake warm. Kanpai.

Yo, Travel Dude, your life, well, it bites more and more. First off, you've got the dollar, which is tumbling like a drunken snake snowplowing down Tuckerman Ravine. And now there is further ugliness with frequent-flier miles.
US Airways says it will no longer give a minimum of 500 miles for a flight, instead giving credit only for actual miles. This puts a crack in what had been pretty much a longstanding policy throughout the industry that allowed many in the Gray Flannel Brigade and others to really rack up miles.
And you know that once one of them does it.... (Mrs. Maggi in 2nd grade warned you about the dangers of Peer Group Pressure)
It's not like a big surprise, though. The counters of airline beans have been shrinking that fine print for a while now, adding fees, cutting the value of miles, and making them expire so fast that, well, you've had bread around longer (and, bear in mind, you're the kind of person who thinks of the expiration date as merely a suggestion).
Death by a thousand paper cuts. Does this tick you off, or what?

Despite the spikes of skyscrapers sprouting at its edges, Panama City's central streets are often low-slung. Two and three and four-story buildings sit back from avenues that rise and fall on slight slopes and wind, heading one way for a block, then another the next. Foot traffic and the lurching of colorful old school buses give the place intimate dimensions. Heat and humidity can make it feel like an atrium.

So it was a subdued scene - despite the bull horns, waving red flags and chants for change - when more than a thousand marchers turned a corner onto Avenida Central Espana and headed away from the Bella Vista district - long a center of the city - toward the Plaza Cinco de Mayo.

It was calmer than in previous days, when protesting construction workers sought better safety conditions, then came out in bigger numbers after police apparently shot and killed one of their own on Tuesday.
Photo: Essdras M Suarez

DAY FIFTEEN AND SIXTEEN

The rains create green. I‘m told this phenomenon is unusual in LA at this time of year. In the backyard of the Echo Park address that’s been my home this past week, grass has shot up six or more inches in the bare patches. My wanderings up and down the hills reveal garden after garden, endless variation on the theme of survival. I even saw an espaliered magnolia -- in full
bloom. I don’t know how the plant life can hold out through the dry periods. Or manage the severe grades (the reputed steepest street in California, Fargo Street, is but a couple blocks away. Yes, even steeper than in San Fran).
But of course plant life doesn’t care about grades.

One year ago in March, the City of Providence opened the Roger Williams Park Botanical Center. At 12,000 square feet, it is New England's largest indoor public display garden boasting rare plants, waterfalls, flowers and unique exhibits. Where else can you show your curious George a plant so large it can swallow a rat?!

Botanical Center staff will lead “Kids and Carnivores” tours on Tuesday, Feb. 19 through Friday, Feb. 22. Tours will take place daily at 1 p.m. and include the Center’s huge carnivorous plant collection. "Feed me Seymour!" The tours are free with admission and last about 45 minutes. Try to visit Friday, because only on Friday, will children be mesmerized by the storytelling of Len Cabral , following their tour. Visitors to the Botanical Center during this week can also enjoy a scavenger hunt. And as an added bonus, starting Monday, Feb. 18, the first 100 kids (14 and under) who visit the Botanical Center will receive their very own Venus Fly Trap! Admissions are as follows - hold onto your hats: Adults: $3.00; Children 6-12: $1.00; and Children under 6 are free. Good greens!... how do they make ends meet at these prices! For more information, contact 401-785-9450 or visit the City’s website at www.providenceri.com.
[photos courtesy of Joel Boodon]

To entice airlines to roll out nonstop service between Boston and Asia, Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East, the Massachusetts Port Authority's board approved rebates on Logan International Airport's landing fees for new international routes.

For routes that provide at least three nonstop flights a week throughout the year, Massport, which runs Logan, will for the first time give a 75 percent credit on landing fees during the first year of service and a 25 percent credit the second year - worth a total of $300,000 to $750,000 per new route.

Additionally, Massport will donate advertising space on one or two billboards in Terminal E, the international terminal, and publicize the route on the airport's local radio ads for a year.

Initially, Massport expects this International Air Service Incentive Program to cost the authority a couple of million dollars. But officials predict Massport will recoup some money after three or four years, as an increase in the number of international passengers boosts parking and concession revenues.

"Competition among airports for new service remains fierce, especially for new international service," Massport's chief executive, Thomas J. Kinton Jr., said at the board meeting. "The package," he later added, "is designed to minimize the risk of new service, not subsidize routes that are not self-sufficient."

Logan isn't the only airport giving this discount. Breaks on landing fees - which cover the expense of operating the airfield - are widespread on new international routes, experts said. Though airlines face significant financial risks on start-up routes, airports stand to gain a lot as the big jets used on international flights funnel passengers through the airports - helping to offset airlines' shift to smaller planes on domestic routes.

Logan currently offers nonstop service to 32 international destinations, but all of them are in Europe, the Caribbean, or Canada.

Massport has been eager to inaugurate nonstop flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo, Mexico City, Tel Aviv, and Mumbai - cities that are frequented by business, academic, and leisure travelers from Greater Boston.
Posted by Nicole C. Wong, Globe Staff

I know you're cold. If I could share the just-purchased-today-space-heater in my office I would. But instead I will work your mind into thinking balmy and 80 degrees. The natural tendency in thinking spring is to visual the crocuses popping through the mulch or the maples bulging with new buds. Not today. Today you will get to warmer feelings with the lucid, romantic thoughts of boats. Big boats, row boats, speed boats, party boats...think boats this weekend at the 2008 Vermont Boat Show and Expo at the Robert E. Miller Expo Center in Essex Junction, Vermont. On February 16-17, one of the biggest boat shows on the east coast presents hudreds of 2008 marine craft from dealers throughout Vermont and New York. Plenty of time to think warmer weather and water fun. The show runs on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, and those under 16 are free with an adult. Free parking too.

Feliz Dia de San Valentin

Going somewhere this weekend? Great, while you’re there count the birds! Nothing to do this weekend? Even better, count the birds in your backyard! Today through Monday is the Great Backyard Bird Count, an annual four-day event that creates a real-time snapshot of where birds are across the country. Just keep a tally of as many birds you see at as many places as you want for at least 15 minutes. Then enter your observations at the event’s website, where you’ll find regional bird checklists, an online bird guide, a photo contest, slideshows, and bird-feeding tips. Your counting helps scientists document the complex dynamics of an extremely large and diverse animal population. Last year, participants reported 11 million birds, for a total of 616 species. Happy hunting!

Chabelitas - a flowering plant common throughout Panama - are set behind the columns of the Continental Hotel in the center of Panama City. But they find a way to thrive in the hot and humid, reaching for the morning sun.

Photo: Essdras M Suarez

Glints of orange, white and green bobbed in the Caribbean black of midnight: cargo ships anchored at the northern side of the Panama Canal, waiting their turn. The flight from Dallas traced the length of the canal zone, banked east across the Pacific, then north into the capital city. Busy years at the Tocumen airport terminal, with Copa Airlines profiting from routes from Spain and across Latin America. Venezuelans taking their money out of Chavez's economy. Columbians resettling from the other side of the Darien jungle. Buenos Aires bankers.

The flight from Dallas held mostly white faces, including that of Phil, a grocer from Wisconsin returning to his home in Panama after a quick trip north. It had been 95 when he left Panama City some days ago -- minus-5 when he arrived in snow-stacked Madison. On the Panama City approach, Phil looked out the window at the spikes of luxury condominiums. "The national bird is the crane," he said. "Construction crane."

It has been nearly 20 years since the U.S. invasion of Panama toppled Noriega from power and left the El Chorillo neighborhood in ashes. Now brochures such as "Realtors," thick with glossy offerings for high-rise luxury condos -- "Breeze," "Rivage," "Conde del Este Country Club," and "Skyline" -- greet new arrivals.

Massport is encouraging residents south of Boston to take public transportation if they go to Logan Airport, starting today.

The agency is expecting a surge in travel because of school vacation, which starts for most students when school lets out Friday. Heavy volume is expected to begin today - with some parents choosing to pull their children out of school early to avoid the rush - and it should extend through Sunday, Feb. 24.

The most direct route in this region is probably the Logan Express bus service from Braintree, as well as other airport shuttle services, officials say.

Other options include commuter boat stops in Quincy, Hull, and Hingham. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's Red Line stops in Quincy and Braintree; there is also commuter rail service, including the new Greenbush line.

For those who choose to drive to the airport, hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles qualify for preferred parking at the airport's Central garage, Terminal B garage, Terminal E surface lot, and economy parking.

The agency also is reminding travelers to check with their airline before departing for the airport.

For more information, check out the airport's website.

Posted by James Vaznis, Globe Staff

ENTRY VII

How did people ever research guidebooks before Google Maps?
You buy the most detailed (and usually most expensive and unwieldy) street map on the market and make 20-30 pages of enlarged photocopies of small areas. Our Madrid master map unfolds to 3.5 by 5 feet—not exactly useful on the street. Once we arrived, we started plugging in actual addresses to Google Maps to figure out how best to see, say, four hotels, two churches, five shops, and a small museum in a one-day walking circuit. Google saved many unpleasant surprises. One flamenco spot gave its address as a street we knew well because it went past our hotel. Google Maps revealed that the bar was about two miles away—at the other end of the street. (We took a bus.) Moreover, the resolution of Google Maps is better than any printed map we’ve found, even showing the names of short back alleys. (You’d be surprised how many bars with live music are on short back alleys.)

You don't need GPS in Boston when you rent through Avis. You can book a chauffeur instead.

Avis began testing its Chauffeur Drive service six months ago and it's caught on with business and leisure travelers. What began in 10 cities in June is now offered in more than 350 cities in Arizona, California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, and Washington.

Avis's partner WeDriveU provides the drivers for $34.50 per hour (plus a 15% service charge), and there is a three-hour minimum per ride. See the Avis website for other details. The drivers can pick up the car and customer and later return the car to Avis. Or you can keep the car and drop the chauffeur off. Just don't do it in the middle of nowhere.

I guess with all of New England to cover, I may miss a thing or two right in my own back yard! I saw the announcement today at the Y...Horse Hill 7K Snowshoe Race & 4K/2K Fitness Snowshoe Walk. How much fun is that! So on Sunday, Feb. 17th at 11 a.m., the Horse Hill Nature Preserve in Merrimack, N.H., will be packed with outdoor enthusiasts and their measly $10 entrance fee that will directly benefit the preservation of Horse Hill. Refreshments will be served after the race. There are no private changing quarters so please come ready and dressed to hop on the trails. For more information call 603-429-8879 or e-mail michael@3craceproductions.com.

Comair, an airline providing regional flights under the Delta Connection banner, is beefing up its summer service at Logan, Delta Air Lines said. The carrier will extend through Sept. 6 its once-daily Spring Break nonstop Saturday service between Boston and New Orleans, which originally was planned to run from Feb. 2 to April 26. On May 3 it will reintroduce once-daily weekend flights between Boston and Myrtle Beach, S.C., after having suspended that route in October. And it will resume once-daily summer service between Boston and Quebec City, Quebec, and Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, between June 13 and Sept. 7. Big Sky Airlines, another Delta Connection carrier, ended its Quebec City route in December because unusually bad weather, disappointing revenue and record high fuel prices made many of the carrier's operations unsustainable. Additionally, Comair will add a third weekly flight between Boston and Bangor starting June 5.
Posted by Nicole C. Wong, Globe Staff

Somebody say, yee-ha! U.S. Airways Express will restore nonstop service between Logan and Albany International (?!) in April. (alright, you boys in the back of the class stop snickering; we're talking about the capital of the Empire State here.)
The Boston Business Journal is reporting that Colgan Air will run daily flights Sunday-Friday. Flights will depart Boston at 6 p.m. and arrive in Albany at 7:20 pm., with return flights scheduled for 6 a.m. weekdays and 12:45 p.m. Sundays.
Service to Albany ended last month when Colgan and Big Sky Airlines, operating under Delta Connection, stopped flying the route. Now that it's back we should plan a trip. Wonder if Eliot Spitzer bowls?

I've mentioned before about where and when to give snowshoeing a try, but here's a chance to try it out under a full moon. On Saturday Feb. 23, America's Stonehenge in Salem, N.H., is offering snowshoeing by candlelight from 6:30-9:30 p.m. under a full moon. Tiny lanterns keep a blanketed trail aglow, aided only by the full moon and millions of stars overhead. As you might expect, warm cocoa and cookies greet you in a toasty log cabin at trek's end. Reservations are required so call and reserve your spot today. Candlelight Snowshoeing price (includes rental): Adults $15, Children 12 & Under $10; Members Adults $9, Children $7. For more information call 603-893-8300 or email info@stonehengeusa.com.

DAY FOURTEEN

The Echo Park Film Center, a non-profit,
community-based film and media center. The funky storefront has a small space for screenings and meetings, and best of all rents out old-school equipment like Super 8 alongside video and digital. The night I visited, the center hosted a DVD release party for a remarkable film, “This is the LA River,” a collaborative, lyrical, 16mm film made by 21 young people ages 14 and 19 about that neglected river that runs through Los Angeles’ heart --- and should be its soul.
Tinseltown ain’t known for its German expat community. So think of the Red Lion Tavern on Glendale in Echo Park as a biergarten theme park --- greenery-draped back patio, white beer steins lining the walls, plates of knackwurst, bratwurst and bockwurst, and a dozen beers on tap like Bitburger and the dark Erdinger Weissbier Dunkel, brews normally absent at most American bars. And yes, waitresses in lederhosen.
Posted by Ethan Gilsdorf, Globe Correspondent

Sometimes it seems that every city wants to be like every other city, with a Starbucks on each corner and a Gap just down the block. As the once-interesting Lincoln Road in Miami Beach morphs into a version of the Chestnut Hill Mall I start to wonder why anyone bothers to go anywhere. (We used to ask my Irish-born grandmother if she yearned to go back and see the beautiful landscapes of Ireland, and she’d reply, “I have a lake and trees at the bottom of my street. Why would I want to go all the way over there?”)

The one thing I’ve noticed that distinguishes one place from another is the way people drive. When I first moved to Miami I was told, “Here’s the way it works on the highway: The extreme right lane is for passing; the left lane is the slow lane.” Of course this isn’t the law; it’s just the way it works. People say Boston has the world’s worst drivers but I disagree. Sure, we’re aggressive but we’re smart when we drive — always thinking ahead. In Miami, people are aggressive and stupid. On a typical day on I-95 you’ll find 90-year-olds cruising way below the speed limit, 18-year-olds whizzing past in a death-wish frenzy; people on cell phones weaving in and out of lanes, plus recent arrivals from places like Caracas or Rome where “driving” and “laws” are never used in the same sentence. Add to that mix your “snow birds” — winter visitors from the north who don’t know which exit is what — and it’s a wonder anyone gets anywhere.

(Posted by Necee Regis, Globe Correspondent)

If you know me, you know I have a big thing against most rental-car company practices. Jacking up, up, up the prices during peak season is one of my beefs. For you folks flying to Florida (and I'm sure this works elsewhere) in the spring and renting a car, here’s a little trick of mine you might be able to use.

In January I booked flights to Tampa from Manchester, NH, (where my friend Kristin is flying from), and Durham, N.C., (where I’m flying from) on Southwest, and both were about $200 round-trip. Not bad for Easter weekend! But get this. Car rentals from the airport for five days were around $500!! Unbelievable.

Here’s what I did. As you probably know, Enterprise has little neighborhood offices all over the place, and they’re often (usually? always?) cheaper than airport rentals. I reserved a car at a location on my way to where I’ll be staying (Indian Rocks Beach). I’m paying a mere $30 extra to then drop it off at the airport when I leave. The grand total? $156!! Now that is a deal. If I picked the car up at the airport, still using Enterprise, the price would be $438. Other companies were charging even more!!

Long Beach is nice. The Queen Mary summers there -- and springs, falls, and winters, too. But face it: It ain't LA. JetBlue knows this. So on May 21 the discounter, which already flies to Long Beach, will start daily nonstops between Logan and LAX (no, Whitney, we don't mean lacrosse). The carrier is also offering the obligatory introductory fare: $159 each way when booked online by Feb. 22 for travel by June 14.
Yet another event in an already big month. The carrier was already throwing itself an 8th anniversary party with round-trip flights in the treat bags. You hadn't heard? Check it out: 100 TrueBlue flight club members will be picked in the sweepstakes to win a round trip, and each winner gets to give away seven other flights to friends or family -- or whatever (yes, I know you have very complex relationships).
The fine print: Enter from now through Feb. 29; you must be a TrueBlue member (but you can sign up for free); and cough up the names and e-mails of seven other people (JetBlue promises they will only use this info for good -- i.e., to let them know they won -- and not for evil -- i.e., sell them out to Spam Meisters or other satanic cults).
Truly there is magic in the air.

So, communing with nature sounds great to you -- in theory at least. But the allure of the great outdoors pales a bit when you find the accompanying living conditions a bit too ... outdoorsy, shall we say. Perhaps the latest iteration will make you a more enthusiastic outdoors enthusiast. It’s called “glamping,” or glamour camping, and it combines the best of both worlds for those so inclined: a wilderness camp setting with deluxe comforts, such as hot showers, daily maid service, plush-top king beds, triple-sheeted linens, and gourmet cuisine. These amenities are available in what is billed as California’s newest backcountry “tent hotel,” the Sequoia High Sierra Camp. The camp is perched at 8,200 feet in Giant Sequoia National Monument in Central California, about three hours north of Los Angeles. Guests can drive their own vehicle to a trailhead, then hike an easy, well-marked 1-mile trail to the camp, or hike a moderately strenuous 12-mile route which takes an average of 8 hours, starting at neighboring Sequoia National Park. Recreation options include scenic day hikes and abundant fly fishing, with a picnic lunch. Three California-style gourmet meals prepared by an on-site chef are included in the daily rates, which are $250 per person. Operating dates for the 2008 season are June 13-Oct. 5, weather permitting. Hey, even glamour campers must occasionally bow to the elements. For more information, go here or call 866-654-2877.

It is good to be wired. Sha. This is why I keep the JiWire in my favorites list (right next to my Starbucks store locator because I like to stay wired, too). JiWire is so excellent. It keeps a registry of 236,834 free and pay Wi-Fi sites in 135 nations.
The top city? Moscow with 8,237, followed by London (3,442), Paris (3,179), Taipei (2,751), and Seoul (2,498). (But there is no Starbucks in the real Moscow; the one in Idaho has one, and this may influence my travel plans).
Here in Mass., Boston comes in first with 225 hot spots, followed by Cambridge (61), Hyannis (46?!), Newton (29), and Waltham (22).
A grande Guatemala Casi Cielo and the Cape in winter. Sweet.

I couldn't resist to print this menu right from the site of Robert's Maine Grill and Market in Kittery, ME. And it's not just any old Valentine's Day dinner...a portion of the evening's proceeds will benefit Krempels Brain Injury Foundation. The more I review the menu, the more I want to live in Maine...

Brighten an otherwise dreary February day by making a trip to the Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton — if you’ve never been there before, I guarantee you’ll be pleasantly surprised that such a wealth of creative contemporary
craft is nestled in an unassuming building on 22 wooded acres of south of Boston. On display are wood sculptures, enamel jewelry, and multipaneled metalwork installations. And don’t miss the mechanical toys and kinetic sculptures of Gina Kamentsky, on display until Nov. 9. But it’s the investment in connecting with community that makes the museum truly vibrant. Saturday Kid Classes feature a different medium for each month (February is fabric) and allow children 6-10 to let their creative juices flow. Teen Studio classes (for kids 14-17) focus on ceramics, fibers, or metals. For grown-ups, there are Saturday Try it Out! workshops (sculptural knitting, anyone?), Girls’ Night Out classes on Wednesday (including mosaics and Polaroid transfer), and 2-day weekend intensive workshops (check out cloisonne enameling). Feb. 19 (during school vacation week) is the museum’s [SENSE]ation Day, and kids of all ages can make art in hands-on workshops and participate in interactive performances of fairy tales. There will be ongoing demonstrations and art activities throughout the day: make a mask or learn the art of Japanese paper dyeing. Oh, and don’t miss the small but very cool gift shop.

'Tis the season of sickness after all, so why not host a Winter Holistic Festival?! Saturday Feb. 16 and Sunday Feb. 17, The Village Shops and InnSeason Resorts South Mountain, in downtown Lincoln, N.H., will be holding a holistic event to rival all others. While many of you know the healing effects of massage, reiki, or chiropractic care, it's probably time to come find out about homeopathy, licorice root or constitutional hydrotherapy. The weekend is filled with workshops, exhibits and vendors of mind, body and energy balancing. Sessions of relaxation using many modalities will be offered to all who attend and an hourly door prize will be called out. Taking things a step further, there will also be spiritual readings available by the finest consultants in the New England area, including, Leigh Grace, Angie D'Anjou, and Norman Moody.

Both days the show runs from noon- 8 p.m. and admission is free. More information is available by phone at 603 886-4577 or by email at angie@heartofspirithealing.com.

Got cabin fever? Nothing like a little stargazing to snap you out of it. Sharon Friends of Conservation is hosting an astronomy night Feb. 16 at Moose Hill Farm, which is down the street from the Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary in Sharon. Several telescopes will be on hand. If you don’t know Orion from a hole in the ground, knowledgeable volunteers from SFOC and the South Shore Astronomical Society will field questions. Hot drinks and a warming room will be available. Dress warmly and park at Moose Hill Farm at 396 Moose Hill St. Did I mention it’s free? (If Feb. 16 is impossibly overcast, astronomy night will be Feb. 17.) Call 781-784-4625 for more information.

Globe photographer Essdras Suarez knows the streets of Panama City, his hometown. I've never been. But starting this week, we'll be exploring together the isthmus country on assignment for the Globe travel section.

Over the past several years, Essdras and I have reported together on five continents. Some journeys - such as those in our 2004 project Crossing Divides, have been at the edge of the modern world. Other projects, such as those in China, Mexico, and most recently Europe, have spanned from teeming capital cities into distant provinces.

This journey will do more of that, but with a twist -- a kind of inside/outside from Essdras and me, a native and a gringo. Panama and the United States have a unique relationship - from the canal to the 1989 invasion by US troops to the flock of American snowbirds now seeking second homes in the Chiriqui highlands. Our journey will explore dynamics of all of that, but capture unexpected scenes, too.

Kids complaining of being bored? Winter blues got 'em down? Change the pace of things, open their eyes to days gone past, and they'll undoubtedly come to appreciate all their modern day conveniences a bit more. The 21st annual Hancock Shaker Village Winter Weekend happens Feb. 16-18 offering a great variety of hands-on activities for the entire family. Care for animals in the barns, hop on a sleigh ride, cook up some comfort food in the kitchen, and harvest the ice using genuine Shaker tools. Activities are spread throughout the day, the Village Cafe open for hearty winter soups and sandwiches, and the Village store will offer some sensational winter weekend specials.

Hancock Shaker Village members and children 12 and under are admitted free of charge. Admission for everyone else is as follows: adults $12.50 and youth aged 13 – 17 are just $5. Yeah that's right, just 5 bucks to turn back time and make little Abby and Nate realize that their PSPs are just not all that. Call 413-443-0188/800-817-1137 or email info@hancockshakervillage.org for more information.

Maybe your legs are shot from skiing or you’re just looking for a different way to explore the mountains. Great Glen Trails in Pinkham Notch, N.H., is whisking people up the Mt. Washington Auto Road this year aboard a custom-designed SnowCoach, which is a 9-passenger van that has a unique track system instead of tires. The SnowCoach takes passengers to treeline, at about 4,000 feet, where they can enjoy expansive views of the White Mountains. Those interested in getting a workout, can snowshoe 4.5 miles back down the road. SnowCoach tours last just over an hour and run 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, weather permitting, through March. Tickets are $40 for adults, $25 for kids 5 to 12, and there’s no minimum age. Call 603-466-2333 for more info.

If you are, then there's a contest for you.

Princess Cruises -- the Love Boat line to those in the know -- is launching an online contest on Valentine's Day to find "The Greatest Romantic.''

If you think you qualify, or know someone who does, send a video of three minutes or less telling why you or your candidate deserves the honor. Princess is accepting videos Feb. 14 to March 20. After that they'll post five finalists on the website for the public to vote on the ultimate romantic. The winner, announced April 15, will receive a seven-day cruise for two to Mexico or the Caribbean, including airfare.

"From a personal love story to an original poem or creative stunt, we're seeking compelling video entries expressing romance from many perspectives," Jan Swartz, senior vice president for Princess, says in a press release. "Be it in small or dramatic ways, we're looking for someone who can channel their inner romantic and espouse the meaning of romance for others, plus share how they make romance a part of their daily lives."

If you aren't tech-savvy enough to post a video -- or you're just plain shy -- don't despair. Visitors to the contest website during the voting period can sign up for a chance to win a cruises of their own and other prizes.

New Englanders looking to escape the snow may find better deals this year by flying beyond Florida.

Travelers leaving from Logan International Airport can reach some popular destinations in the Caribbean for 5 percent to 35 percent less than they could last winter, while flying to Florida vacation spots can cost 5 percent to 15 percent more than a year ago.

The reason? Airlines are shifting large planes from domestic routes to more lucrative international routes. Fewer seats on flights within the United States and more seats to the Caribbean, Bermuda, Latin America, and South America drive domestic airfares up and international ticket prices down. Additionally, while airlines have been tacking hefty jet fuel "surcharges" on domestic fares, they've been adding smaller fees or even rescinding them on tickets to some popular Caribbean destinations amid intense competition on those routes, said Rick Seaney, the chief executive of FareCompare.com, a Dallas consumer airfare research website.

"It's supply and demand," said Seaney, whose website crunched for The Boston Globe the yearly data for February and March airfares between Boston and these winter getaway destinations. "The more supply, the cheaper the price."

But in most cases, it's still much cheaper to stay in the United States. Sun-seekers on a budget will still probably prefer Florida, where they can reach beach scenes like Miami, West Palm Beach, and Fort Lauderdale from Logan for $180 to $190 round trip, including taxes and fees. Although, travelers who have been eyeing an island escapade but have hesitated because of the higher airfare may find the time is right, with $240 to $300 round-trip prices to St. Thomas, Bermuda, and Nassau, Bahamas.
Posted by Nicole C. Wong, Globe Staff

DAY THIRTEEN

“I wouldn’t be talking to myself if someone would just talk to me,” grumbles a disturbed young woman in a flowery dress at Chango, the cafe that’s become my de facto workplace. “And the coffee here [expletive],” she adds, storming out with this further insult: tossing a cup of some liquid at the front window.

She could have been an actress. This could have been performance art. But I doubt it. It’s just an unhappy LA day for her.
The morning seems grimmer than others this week, overcast, over-bleached. Or just over-exposed. A woman next to me is

also from out of town, visiting friends, haunting cafes. She can’t get the wireless signal to work, either. Nothing’s going right. And I’m anxious
about being on vacation for so long. Do I deserve this break? Love my neuroses.

I’m still wandering Echo Park. Struck by the composition of a mural of palm trees in a school
playground and actual palm tress in the distance. I snap a picture. The school recess monitor
yells at me, “Hey! You can’t take photos here!” I apologize. She radios the front office anyway. I
leave. (Oddly, I run into her a few hours later on Sunset Blvd and explain again: No, ma’am, I am not a terrorist or a child molester. Honest.)

On the walk home, I see a house and garage set into the hill, completely wrapped in a orange- and green-striped tarpaulin. Like a wedding tent, or an inflatable Moonwalk for a birthday party. Or a Christo-wrapped art project.

But no. The home’s been sealed off for some anti-termite fumigation. Do not enter, kids. This
anti-art project/Bounce House can kill.

It's close to a miracle...I posted the following last month, all in a huff that I did not leave you enough time to arrange for this performance. Not this time around, we have been blessed with a re-scheduling...do not ask questions, do not debate calling...this is a sign, so order now! New show is set for Thursday, Feb. 28 at 7:30 p.m.

Posted last month:
How in the world did I forget about my favorite Righteous Babe, Ani DiFranco, coming to the Capitol Center for the Arts this Monday, Jan. 21?! No matter, there are amazingly, surprisingly, unexpectedly still tickets available, and not even nosebleeds [not that there are really nosebleeds at the CCA]! DiFranco's "Pretty Girl" busted up the folk-indie-rock-punk [how do you really describe this woman?] music scene in the '90s and under her own record label has kept the distinctive edge coming ever since. How she ever played with "Both Hands" is beyond me. This venue is where I first saw Ani back in '95, and the revitalized theater is perfect for getting to know her. Call, order, go!

And I don't just mean a hotel. It may be old fashioned, but you could ignite the old sparks again by checking out a book with some romantic verses and share them on the big V Day. I used to stay in a home owned by one of the most interesting couples I ever met. They were in their 70s, a retired history teacher, and a popular artist who would sketch daily. He would drive her to an inspiring spot, she would set up her easel, fill her lap with pastels, and he would take out his carefully selected book, and read to her the entire time she sketched. Every day until she passed, they did this together. Two hotels share this idea of romance.

Emerson by the Sea, Cape Ann's only historic hotel, is offering a Valentine's Day package that includes the ocean, fireplaces, spas, dinner and chocolate covered strawberries. It is said that much of the poetry of Ralph Waldo Emerson was inspired by the hotel and its unforgettable rocky coast. Perhaps this is the chosen book for the 14th?

Or you could visit the Hawthorne Hotel in Salem, the famed hotel where Nathaniel Hawthorne penned the Scarlet Letter. Located in the town's Historic District, the hotel is within walking distance to several other popular spots in this seacoast town - and you would be hitting the town during its week long chocolate fest. Their Sweetheart Package includes dinner for two, sparkling wine, and surprise, chocolate covered strawberries. Now while the place is literary, this is a case where you do not choose the "Scarlet Letter" to read to your sweetheart....perhaps, bring along Emerson's work to either place.

It's the fourth annual "Chocolate Covered February'' in Hershey, Pa., and this year offers new enticements: a chocolate chef’s table, "chocolatology” and “chocolate mixology,” and a Chocolate Fantasy Tea Party.

In this all-things-chocolate universe there are tastings and dessert decorating demonstrations at Hershey’s Chocolate World, guest chefs at Hershey Lodge, a showing of the film "Chocolat'' at Hershey Theatre, and chocolate chats at Hershey Museum.

Need more? Check the website for a complete list of activities. Several events are free, reservations are required at some.

And if you're in Hershey on Tuesday nights this month, plan to attend The Hotel Hershey Chocolate Cooking School. The cost is $50 but you'll learn to make chocolate pasta, chocolate peanut butter bon bons, and chocolate rocky road clusters.

Now that's worth the price of admission.

On Cape Cod, the Chatham Bars Inn resort, has deals for Feb. 15 or 16. Couples can stay in a deluxe guest room with a fireplace, receive an amenity upon arrival, and have a three-course dinner for two, plus breakfast in bed, and a 2 p.m. checkout. For luxury lovers, there are the 12 Spa Suites with a sauna, private hydrotherapy tub, steam shower, plasma TV, Bose sound system, and fireplace. Spa services, including the romantic Side By Side Massage, are available in the privacy of the suite. Valentine’s Weekend packages start at $399 for two and include all taxes and service charges. The spa suites begin at $691 a night with taxes and services included. Visit the inn's website or call 508-945-0096 or 800-332-1577.
Posted by Richard P. Carpenter, Globe Correspondent

If you live near Logan, say someplace like Eastie, you've probably heard the drum beats getting louder, particularly near Terminals A and E, the homes of Delta and Northwest. That's because the folks who know and write about such things at the WSJ and NYT are telling us that the pair are getting closer to tying the knot.
What will this mean to you (because that is what it's all about, no?)? If you'll recall -- and I know you won't, which is why I'm writing this -- my pal Kimberly Blanton wrote a story last month saying that if the two merged it would perhaps not hurt us so much because Delta, with 16 percent of the Logan business, largely flies south to spots like Atlanta and Florida, while Northwest, with a mere 5.4 percent, is a West Coast carrier.
So did we duck a bullet? Maybe.
Delta, which seems hungry to get hitched, could still do the deed with United, which it has also been flirting with, corporate hussy that it is. If that happens it would create a carrier that would serve more than a quarter of the 28 million who flew into and out of Logan last year. There would be greater overlap, so routes would probably get snipped, and fares on longer flights to places like the West Coast would rise.
So, if there's going to be a deal, I think I know who I'm rooting for. I think.

I’ve rented a car twice in the past couple of months. I got a great rate both times—just $28 a day — but the first time, I let the salesperson talk me into buying insurance for an extra $20 a day. He mentioned that if anything happened, I’d have to pay not only for any damages, but also a fee for each day the car was out of commission. Most important, he said, my car insurance company wouldn’t cover it (something about a special “state exclusion”). I was too rushed to call my insurance company, so I paid the extra $20 per day. Can you say “sucker”? The next month when I picked up another rental car, I had plenty of time to spare and called my insurance company first. Turns out it would cover all costs. Lesson learned. Always find out what your insurance company (or even your credit card company) covers before you rent a car.
Anybody else out there got a car rental horror story?

When you have a kid obsessed with geography, something is bound to rub off. Now I’m the one flipping through his atlas and almanac of world facts, trying to find out what the world’s
smallest continent is. (Australia.) So when the Fandex Family Field Guide came out with ‘‘The Wonders of the World’’ (Workman Publishing, 2008) I was intrigued. Forty-six monuments of civilization are neatly bound at one end in a portable deck of cards that fan out. The fun, accessible format keeps kids’ attention, and it’s packed with enough information, photos, and facts to keep an adult interested. Along with the requisite Taj Mahal, Great Pyramids, and Parthenon, I was surprised to find the Himeji Castle in Japan and the hidden caves of Ajanta in India. Even the skyscrapers of New York, a marvel in their own right, get their props. Keep it handy for reference or read it with a child — neither of you will be disappointed.

The Festival Ballet Providence is an elite dance company whose mission it is to give cultural enrichment to the community through dance education and performance. On Feb. 8-10, the company offers a triple bill of emotional choreography through Agnes de Mille's "Rodeo", Antony Tudor's "Leaves are Fading", and Viktor Plotnikov's "Coma". For any ballet novice wanting to go, you may want to take part in a pre-performance opportunity with dancers, choreographers and production staff, 45 minutes before each curtain call. The opportunity to talk with professionals in such an intimate setting is priceless, especially for children and students of dance.

Tickets range from $17 to $62, discounts available for children, seniors, groups and family-four packs are also available. Call the VMA Box Office at 401-272-4VMA or the Festival Ballet Providence for further details, 401-353-1129. By the way, the VMA theater is just a three minute walk from the Amtrack station, and it adjoins the new Renaissance Providence Hotel.

DAY TWELVE

Here in L.A., ever since the strike, a lot of out-of-work writers have a lot of time on their hands.

Sitting in cafes, driving in cars, walking the streets (to their cars or cafes), would-be screenwriters seem undeterred.

“Look, guys, if you want to sell this movie..." one guy in sunglasses insists into his cell phone, passing me on the sidewalk.

“I’m writing my first screenplay,” says another fast-talking writer in a cafe, giving a 30-second
elevator pitch. “I’m scripting a scene of a future meeting with the president of Korea. Well, it’s all
scripted.”
In another cafe, a woman and two men huddle over coffee, strewn notebooks and a laptop. “I was at a third callback when...” the woman, apparently also an actress, brags to her two colleagues.

The subject moves onto describing an actor she knows. “He’s a former actor,” the she says. “That guy who starred in 'Space Jam,' you know, that movie withMichael Jordan? He says still makes enough residuals off that movie to get health insurance from SAG.”

A few minutes later, they’re hashing out a scene from a work-in-progress. They go back and forth discussing characters and motivations. I could be witnessing the next Robert Towne or Herman Mankiewicz in the making.

“I really, really love this script,” she says, “I really, really can’t help but be in love with Scott
and Fred and Karen. I just love the whole thing.” To emphasize her point, she compares the script to “that Kate Hudson movie 'Almost Famous.' ”

Really.

Perhaps theirs is not the next Oscar-nominated screenplay after all.

“We could have her, like, see the knife go in and go, ‘Ha ha!’ She could cover with humor. Cover with humor.”

Really? Or really not.

Posted by Ethan Gilsdorf, Globe Correspondent

Man, I am thinking I could become a professional charitable cause attendee. SO many opportunities to give money, thought and time to a cause, in such creative and fun ways. On Feb 9, from 8 p.m.- midnight, the Providence Preservation Society has dreamed up its 5th Annual Winter Bash. Their mission is to bring to light the preservation and rehabilitation efforts of the city's treasured historical resources. With live music by the Cusacks [no, nothing to do with that cutie-pie John], serving up not-even-close-to-your-run-of-the-mill hors d'oeuvres, and top-shelf cash bar. Funnest part of all is maybe the attire - in years past, over a thousand people partied the night away in anything from blue jeans and cowboy boots, to ball gowns and tiaras. Volunteers this year, promise the event to be bigger and more surprising than ever. Tickets are $30 for General Admission or $100 for Patrons.

JetBlue announced today that six of its winter snowbird routes will now be available throughout the year.

For New England, JetBlue will offer year-round service between the Orlando International Airport in Florida and both the Burlington International Airport in Vermont and the Portland International Jetport Airport in Maine.

Those service expansions will give New Englanders additional connecting-flight options for traveling south of the US border.

In March, JetBlue will introduce its first international service from Florida with nonstop service from Orlando to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and Cancun, Mexico.

The carrier hopes to begin offering service from Orlando to Bogota later this year but is waiting approval from the US Department of Transportation.
Posted by Nicole C. Wong, Globe staff

This one is ripe for pithy commentary, what with warm and fuzzy introductions from new TSA bloggers - from Ethel: "did I mention I LOVE ice cream" - and a comment forum smack-down from hundreds of travelers airing "gripes & grins".

But I don't want to end up on any TSA watch lists. So check out the week-old "Evolution of Security" blog for yourself here.

One caveat: in order to be able to comment on the blog, you have to take off your shoes.

Let the howling begin. Uncle Samuel may not know when you've been sleeping or when you're awake but he seems to have a pretty good grip on when The American Traveling Public is not happy.
It should come as no surprise that he keeps lists. So, without further ado, here are the
Top Six travel agents that inspired the most complaints in 2007 (according to the Department of Transportation's Air Travel Consumer Report ):
5. (tie) Priceline.com & Cheapoair.com
4. CheapTickets.com
3. Expedia.com
2. Travelocity.com

And the No. 1 most-complained-about agent:
1. Orbitz.com (Most of Orbitz's complaints dealt with ticketing, boarding, and refunds.)
Now the moment you've all been waiting, last year's rankings for the Top 5 in complaints for US airlines (drumroll, please):

5. Comair
4. American
3. Delta
2. United
And, the top -- or perhaps bottom? -- dog:
1. US Airways
You should know that this ranking wasn't based on overall complaints but on grousing per 100,000 flights.
In individual events, US Airways lead the pack for flight problems, like cancellations and delays, with American running a close second. It also was the frontrunner in bumping problems and customer service. But American took the Gold for the worst in baggage complaints, with Delta snagging the Silver.
So, tell us your stories. Go ahead, kvetch till it hurts. You know you want to.

I am not sure why kids even celebrate Valentine's Day, but nonetheless, they do and positively get all excited for those little folded pink cards with red hearts. If they are the kind to really want to celebrate, at least take them some place that deserves excitement. On Saturday, Feb. 9, the Mystic Seaport - the Museum of America and the Sea, is hosting a Children's Valentine's Day party from 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Bring the kids, ages 4-10, and create special valentines, like a sailor's valentine from shells or decorative cookies as well. There will be age appropriate games, love stories and pink lemonade. IF you want to make it more of a full day, stay on for the Planetarium's special program on bears. Party begins at the Membership Building, where you'll receive a map of the craft locations. Member's pay $7 per child, otherwise it's $10.

The year 2007 stood out as the second worst on record for delayed, diverted, and canceled arriving flights at Logan International Airport and other airports nationwide, according to federal data.
Only 69.68 percent of Logan's flights and 73.42 percent of the nation's arrived on time last year, according to the Department of Transportation. Performance fared worse only in 2000, when the on-time arrival rate reached 65.54 percent at Logan and 72.59 percent nationwide.
On-time arrival rates have slipped every year since 2002, as more planes took to the skies nationally and late-arriving aircraft sent delays rippling throughout the network. Aviation analysts don't expect conditions to improve soon.
"Air travel is now mass transit" rather than an elite mode of transportation, said Calyon Securities analyst Ray Neidl. "Most complaints are still due to late flights, and the government is probably more to blame than the airlines" because it hasn't up graded the antiquated air traffic control system.
The government has been trying to modernize the nation's air traffic control system, which determines how many planes can safely fly through the sky at once, by switching to a cutting-edge satellite navigation system that can help ease delays.
A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman declined to comment on air traffic control and referred questions to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, which compiles the airline data. The bureau spokesman pointed to data showing weather caused 34 percent to 45 percent of the nation's delayed flights last year.
The Massachusetts Port Authority, which runs Logan, also blamed Mother Nature for its worsening performance. Last December, 64.2 percent of the airport's flights arrived on time - down from 76.3 percent in December 2006 - and 67.7 percent of flights departed on time - falling from 78.5 percent of departing flights in the same month the prior year.
"December 2007 was the second snowiest December on record," Massport spokesman Richard Walsh said. "It's also important to note that last winter, Boston Logan did not receive its first snowfall until February."
Posted by Nicole C. Wong, Globe Staff

DAY ELEVEN

Last night ended with a quintessential movie experience: watching the Marx Brothers’ 1937 comedy “A Day at the Races.” That put me in touch with the Hollywood of old:fast-talking men in pork pie hats; women shimmering in backlit, gauzy close-ups; and a kind of mad-cap, hope-over-fear, anything goes esprit de corps.

Though the glamour has diminished in most neighborhoods of L.A., the entrepreneurial spirit runs deep and strong. Small businesses fringe both sides of West Sunset: Mama-y-Padre taco stands and convenience stores; auto body shops run by Armenia brothers; Salvadoran restaurants and all-night retro diners with names like The Brite Spot and Madame Matisse;
funky hair salons and boutiques; junk shops and 99-cent stores. Even in the gentrified zone of Silver Lake, the coffee shops and groceries mostly aren’t chain-owned -- unlike back in Boston, where every street corner has become a luxury ATM booth or DunkinCVSbucks.

But appearances are deceptive. A grungy storefront next to a shuttered theater where a street person has staked his or her claim becomes enchanting at night. A superior vegetarian restaurant called Elf Cafe is hidden behind its
nearly missable storefront. The modest but delicious menu is concocted in an in-full-view kitchen the size of most bathrooms; the chef works with three hot plates and an oven. The elfin waitresses, poised and lovely, flit among the seven tables. They are lovely. The food is more lovely.

More so than any other city, LA looks more glamorous at night. And once that sun simmers behind Sunset Boulevard, those elves sure make a mean vegetable torte and mushroom ragout with polenta.

Posted by Ethan Gilsdorf, Globe Correspondent

Some of the names are familiar: Agnes B, Lacoste.

So many others in "Paris Chic & Trendy'' (The Little Bookroom, $14.95), a guide to 54 of the city's stylish boutiques and vintage stores by Adrienne Ribes-Tiphaine, await your discovery.

And, terrifically, they are organized by arrondissement. In the first check out Pierre Hardy for shoes and bags. In the 4th delight in the ''little treasures'' at Facteur Celeste.

Even if you aren't planning a Paris splurge soon, indulge in the fantasy with this charming little book.

I typically bring plenty of compact flash cards for my camera when I travel, but as a snap-happy shooter, it doesn’t take long for me to fill 6GB worth of card space. That can be a problem if I’m going into the wilderness or away from my computer for a long stretch.

My solution: the Epson P-2000, a small-size, 40GB hard drive that holds thousands of photos (it can also store videos and music, though I haven’t tried to upload these yet). I can pop my Compact Flash or Secure Digital cards into built-in memory slots and upload all my photos (JPEG or RAW format), then delete the images on my cards and keep shooting. The Epson has a vibrant, 3.8” screen that lets me easily view photos so I can delete the bad ones, though I have found the battery dies quickly if I use the screen too much. I’ve used the device on several longer camping trips (at 5¾-by-3¼ inches, it doesn’t take up too much backpack space) and on a cruise, when I didn’t want to take my computer with me.

Now here’s the catch: Epson discontinued the P-2000, but you can get a refurbished model online for $219, including a $30 rebate, which is less than half of what I originally paid. Or you can get the new Epson P-3000, which has a 4” screen and is selling for $299, including $150 worth of rebates.

There is no joy in Beantown. The faith of the faithful shaken not stirred. These past two days and nights small children and haggard men and women have gathered in the streets, scanning the heavens for evidence of the tear: the jagged edges of the time-space continuum no longer whole.
Cue the Greek chorus: Tom and Bill, why didst thou forsake us?
Enough. Get a grip. TheStupidBowlisoverandwesufferedahumiliatingdefeat. (Turn to your best friend and have him/her slap you, then return the favor).
There, better?
Yes, I know it ain't that simple. Go get yourself a hot Ovaltine and maybe a couple Double Stuf Oreos. Still not enough?

You need to get your mind off it. Shuffle over and take a look at writer Eric Weiner's list of the happiest places on the earth. His book is No. 8 on the best-seller list. There are pictures there. Pretty colors.
Now slip on your jammies with the feet built in and get out of here cause you're starting to creep me out.

Moosehead Lake is quickly becoming a sought after vacation spot with its abounding activities for all things winter. Its annual Snofest kicks off this Saturday, Feb. 9 at 9 a.m. with a 100-mile sled dog race. Be sure to arrive to the Moosehead Lake Region early, even check in Friday night, and meet the scores of canine-lovin' mushers and wish them luck on their 50 mile round trip, worth a $5000 purse. There are many viewing areas along the route to kick back with some cocoa and coffee. For more information visit www.100milewildernessrace.org.

The sled dog race is only the beginning. Check out the full calendar to see exactly what you don't want to miss. There will be skating parties, BBQs, a Chili & Chowder Cook off, a family fun snowmobile day, the 4th Annual Chocolate Festival, several bonfires and a snowmobile parade. Pancake breakfast, kid sledding, snowshoeing...OK, you get the point. Tons of snowy fun for all ages. The festival breaks down on Sunday Feb. 17.

A few weeks ago we wrote a Checking In review on Inn Victoria, a truly splendid B&B in Chester, Vermont. Seems we weren't the only ones who were impressed. Innkeepers/owners Jon and Julie Pierce (see photo) recently wrote to tell us that the inn placed #7 in the list of Top Ten Bed and Breakfast Inns in the US in the TripAdvisor Travelers Choice awards.

But any glow over their accomplishment that the Pierces enjoyed was short-lived. They happen to be British citizens. "We have been having some issues with our visa and the US Immigration services do not believe we are doing well enough to qualify for a visa renewal next year," Julie wrote to us in an email. "As we could find ourselves removed from the US next November, we have no choice but to cut our losses. We are considering relocating to Nova Scotia and buying a B&B there when we sell (because contrary to the USCIS belief we ARE great innkeepers!)."

They're also incredibly civic-minded folks who have contributed immeasurably to their local community. When they sell Inn Victoria and move on, New England's loss will be Canada's gain.

Posted by Patricia Harris and David Lyon, Globe Correspondents

During the month of February passengers on select JetBlue flights out of Boston and a few other cities will be treated to breakfast with new Philadelphia 1/3 Less Fat Soft Cream Cheese.

In these days of limited, if any, meal service, breakfast for 500,000 is a welcome announcement.

No word on whether it comes with a bagel, though.

So you’re going on a trip and you have a million things to do before you leave. Get organized (or at least pretend you are) with a website a true list maker will love. The Universal Packing List reminds you what do before you leave (wash the dishes), what clothes and shoes to bring (don’t forget the flip-flops), basic documents you may need (visas, student ID cards), along with generic things all travelers should think about (photocopy your passport and recharge batteries). Plug in where you’re going and it will give you destination-specific vaccinations you should think about getting before your trip. Bringing kids? Staying in a hostel? Have you hired Sherpas? A reminder list tailored to your needs will be generated. The list isn’t exhaustive and chances are you will forget something anyway, but hey, a little preventive maintenance still goes a long way.

DAY TEN

I’m comfortable in foreign places. But it’s disorienting to be alone in an American city with nary
a friend or schedule. These past days in L.A. I’ve felt somewhat adrift, aside from the moorings my friends have provided. But my hosts are busy at work each day, leaving me to wander Echo Park and Silver Lake; walk the clash of Sunset’s high- and

low-brow cultures; get lost on the Glendale strip in search of a grocery store; and climb the staircases and twisted streets that crisscross every precipitous, house-laden hill.
I’ve been in solo and anonymous mode. One of my haunts has been a cafe on Echo Park Ave called Chango, a local hipster hangout where the creative, day-jobless of L.A. look busy. Whole platoons sit in rows at tables behind white MacBooks, nursing a single coffee all afternoon. Moochers like me.

But I don’t mind knowing no one. Which explains my surprise upon seeing a familiar face at Chango -- Jami, a friend from Boston. Jami and I caught up. She and her husband Brian are
trying to make it as screen writers. I had no idea what ‘hood the couple had settled in when they moved here last fall. Seems Echo Park is a good starting place.

In a way, it wasn’t a shock to see her. I’d often run into Jami once a week in Somerville cafes like True Grounds or Diesel. Here, in L.A., the chance encounter seemed just another reminder how mobile we’ve become, and how interchangeable are the backdrops and scenery for our creative pursuits.

Posted by Ethan Gilsdorf, Globe Correspondent

Rick Steves is doing it again. He's giving away his "Rick Steves' Europe Travel Newsletter: Best 2008 Destinations.

Request a copy at his website and you'll receive the 64-page report he calls "my favorite yet.''

Unlike previous issues Steves says this is not a list of his travel priorities but instead "the places that I'm most thankful to have visited recently.''

You'll read about Cinque Terre, Mostar, and Tangier, and in a timely "Take it back!'' list, 20 ways to recover ground the dollar has lost to the euro.

I figured I better start listing some ways to reach your sweetheart's soft spot on Valentine's Day -- heaven knows most of you men need quite a bit of help being creative. A card? Well, sure if you write it. Roses? Good lord please no....not roses, peonies maybe, roses no. Think outside Russell Stover's box [and please don't tell me you buy Russell Stover's]...get up and go some where...plan a day, plan a night, take time to make plans...that's what she wants...to be shown that you took time to think about what she might really like on Valentine's Day. Oh stop whimpering, here's 3 choices to bring your love and your lover to...

1. 5th Annual American Heritage Chocolate Celebration – Feb. 9 - Just before Valentine’s Day [which will tell her you're even thinking ahead!], Deerfield, Mass. Sweep the love of your life off her feet and participate in chocolate tastings, demonstrations, and a hands-on opportunity to create a special Valentine together. Call 413-775-7214 for more information.

2. OK father-in-law, this is a test to see if you are really reading my blog! Couldn't be easier...right in your own Salem, Mass., the 5th Annual Salem’s So Sweet Chocolate & Ice Sculpture Festival takes place between Feb. 8-14. Many of the town's restaurants will feature unique chocolate offerings in the form of desserts, tea, cocktails and signature sauces. A special chocolate and wine tasting starts off the week on Feb. 8. The festival is free...as is love.

and

3. Possibly the best for last...that is if quantity overrides quality, not that quality is even going to suffer here! Find a Saturday afternoon and bring her to the Langham Hotel’s Deluxe Chocolate Bar. This all-you-can-enjoy-without-really-making-a-horrific-scene buffet offers more than 125 chocolate desserts to include mousses, made-to-order chocolate crêpes, milk chocolate passion fruit tarts, truffles, chocolate fondues and more. MORE! Billy...it doesn't get any more clear. THIS is what I want for Valentine's Day.

And if you want to top it off on the official day, go back for Valentine's Day Dinner with seatings from 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. A cost of $80 per person includes champagne on arrival to set the tone for the night. The dinner INCLUDES the only-in-your-dreams-chocolate-buffet mentioned above. Call 617-956-8751 for heaven.

On any day, in any season, a visitor to Selma, Alabama, can read the markers and monuments commemorating crucial years of the Selma-Montgomery marches and the voters' rights movement that took root more than four decades ago.

There is this, at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge, scene of a bloody crackdown on marchers in March 1965.

Beside the bridge there is this, commemorating the early actions of Amelia Boynton Robinson and Marie Foster.

Over at Brown Chapel AME Church, there is this.

The monument notes that in the years after the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the number of black voters increased by more than 2 million in Southern states, and the number of black elected officials multiplied from 72 to more than 2,300.

In recent months, modern signs have risen.

Along the side of Highway 80, just before a turn onto Route 22 and its straight shot to the north, a light blue sign encouraged: "Vote Sen. Obama Feb. 5."

UAL Corp's United Airlines says it will charge some passengers a fee to check more than one bag, a move that may generate $100 million annually as the carrier attempts to offset soaring fuel costs.
The No. 2 US airline is the first major carrier to charge a fee to check a second bag. Some experts have long predicted that carriers would take this step to bolster revenue in an ultra-competitive industry.
"I think this is just the very, very, very beginning," said travel expert Terry Trippler of TripplerTravel.com. "I think it's going to happen throughout the industry throughout the year."
United's new fee of $25 will be charged to customers who purchase nonrefundable domestic economy tickets and do not have status in frequent flyer programs at United or one of its partners in the Star Alliance. The carrier will not charge passengers to check one bag.
Previously, the cost to those customers of checking two bags was included in the fare.
The cost to check items that require special handling -- large, overweight or fragile items -- will now be either $100 or $200, depending on the item.
Major airlines, hoping to build on a recovery that began in 2006, have been experimenting with ways to boost revenue by charging for services and items that once were free. For example, most carriers now charge for meals that previously had been included in the ticket price.
The trend toward "unbundling" goods and services sold on flights serves to generate additional revenue for the airlines and to reduce costs. Unbundling also helps lower base fares and saves money for customers who do not want to pay for certain items. (Reuters)

OK, it pains us to mention the place at the moment, but there is good reason to head for Arizona, and it has nothing, absolutely nothing to do with football (promise!!). The Patriots' desert downer notwithstanding, there is a place to get away from it all with golf, spa, nature, horseback, and family packages, all at the Rancho de los Caballeros in Wickenburg, Ariz., about an hour northwest of Phoenix in the high Sonoran Desert. Who knows? Bill Belichick may be there now, licking his wounds and plotting another assault on 19-0. Among the options at the Rancho are getaway weekends for men (one of which is titled Guys, Guns & Golf) and for women (Giddy-Up Gals and Divot Divas Diversion, the latter for women who want to work on their golf games in a relaxed setting). Weekend packages include two nights lodging and three meals a day and a variety of activities, depending on the package.
The Rancho de los Caballeros is a historic guest ranch and golf club that is celebrating 60 years as a family-owned resort, and they like to think they have the mix just right: WiFi in Western boots, cocktails by the campfire, and pedicures after team penning (for you tenderfoots, that's an Western riding pastime). Accommodations range from ranch doubles to suites with spectacular Bradshaw Mountain and desert views, and rates start at $462 a night, double occupancy, and include three meals daily and use of ranch facilities. Children 4 and under stay free. Call 800-684-5030 or go here for more information and to check on availability.

It wasn't a pretty sight at Sky Harbor Airport at 6 this morning. The Patriots fans, sporting grimy game jerseys and sagging "We're No. 1'' foam fingers, were shuffling bleary-eyed through the check-in lines. They looked like the "Spirit of '76,'' limping with tattered banners and bloody bandages.

Such was the morning after the Super Bowl, the morning after Paradise (and Perfection) Lost. For the diehard Pats fans, who pay any price and bear any burden to follow their team, there was disbelief and desolation. After three victories in the three previous title games, they couldn't imagine any other outcome.

So they were up and out early today, standing by for sold-out flights, eager to leave Phoenix behind. A Super Bowl trip usually is a fantasy getaway, a mid-winter trip to Florida or California, golf clubs and bathing suits and party clothes. But unlike other vacations, this one has a football game at the end of it which leaves you either euphoric or depressed.

New England fans have become accustomed to the euphoria, to yelling themselves delightfully hoarse, staying up all night exulting and strutting like conquerors down the jetways. What made this morning unusually painful was having to see New York fans wearing Super Bowl champion T-shirts and hats and chattering about getting back to Manhattan for the ticker-tape parade.

For the losers, the morning after is even worse than the night before. The news kiosks are stacked with "GIANT UPSET!'' headlines, the TV monitors keep showing the same film clips of Tom Brady on his backside, and bodies are rebelling against a week of too many margaritas and salsa, not enough exercise or sleep and a whopping Visa bill waiting at home.

All the Patriots fans wanted this morning was a large Starbucks and an aisle seat for the five-hour flight home. A week in the desert, without even a sunburn to show for it. So much for fantasy getaways.

Posted by John Powers, Globe staff

My head is heavy this morning. No, not from the Super Bowl party, but yes, from the Super Bowl loss. I am not a huge football fan, but I am a huge sports fan, and even bigger loyalist to all things Boston. And I wanted to be educated on this season that was supposed to make history, so I watched more games than I have any other year. So this morning, as I stumbled around getting the boys off to school, I was beginning to think how to clear my head and move on with the day. So here I am, clearing my head and covering events to move on with....thank goodness the Regattabar Jazz Festival starts this week, because as much as I am a sports fan, I am a music fan. And so it goes...

No better way to start the 23rd year of the Regattabar Festival than with 4 consecutive Dr. John shows this Friday and Saturday, Feb 8 and 9. The early show Friday is sold out, with the others soon to follow, so get online now and get yourself some tickets to New Orleans Jazz at its best. And look ahead to the electrifying accordian of Buckwheat Zydeco show on Wednesday Feb. 13th.

The popular 225-seat venue is located on the 3rd floor of The Charles Hotel in Cambridge, MA. All Regattabar concerts are open to all ages, and you may even spot Kevin Bacon to your left. I think I need to clear my head by purchasing some tickets...and so I go...

Faced with the coldest day of the last decade in South Florida in January, we took a field trip to the John and Mable Ringling estate in Sarasota. The 66-acre complex provides plenty to do indoors, with a little something for every age. We loved the Ca D’Zan (pictured), the seaside Venetian Gothic mansion John Ringling furnished with items bought at auctions of the estates of some of New York’s wealthiest families. Take the guided tour. The art museum features some masterpieces by Rubens, Titian, and Tintoretto and a whole lot of works by (understandably) lesser-known artists.

Children will love the Howard Bros. Circus, a scale model of the famous Ringling Brothers/Barnum & Bailey circus from 1919 to 1938. An entire building was constructed to house the display of eight tents, 152 wagons, 1,300 performers and workers, 800 animals, and a 50-car train. It makes for a long day, and you’ll need a lunch break.

You can go for upscale but reasonably priced Italian at Treviso in the visitors pavilion or counter service at the Banyan Cafe. And chances are, you’ll be back on the beach the next day.

ELLEN ALBANESE

There are plenty of unexpected items for sale at

in Selma, Alabama.

For starters, you could get some fresh produce.

Or a parakeet ...

But it's hard to beat the local fruit.

Waterville Valley, in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, has a deal for the first two weeks of February. The Fab Feb. offer includes midweek lodging and lift tickets, access to the White Mountain Athletic Club, and shuttle bus transportation. Guests who book for three nights will get a $50 voucher for Town Square restaurants and shops. This two-night minimum package starts at $99 per person per night and is valid through Feb. 14. A group lesson can be added for $18 a person. Either go to the Fab Feb. page or call 800-GO-VALLEY.

Posted by Richard P. Carpenter, Globe correspondent

The University of Phoenix Stadium is well out past downtown, sitting in the middle of the desert like a giant silver spaceship. Loud sounds are emanating from inside (vaguely like `Living In The USA' at a billion decibels) and thousands of people have been wandering toward and around it since this morning.

This afternoon's Super Bowl comes out of a Steven Spielberg movie, with everyone from miles around drawn to this massive alien structure and the tribal ritual playing out inside. Well before the gates were opened, star-spangled Patriots fans bedecked in game jerseys and capes and cardboard helmets were milling about, staring at Giants fans as if they'd come from a different galaxy.

The remote setting and high security has made for the oddest of Super atmospheres. Imagine Times Square on New Year's Eve, chopped up and cordoned off by Jersey barriers and high fences and tents with metal detectors and guards patting down everyone with a ticket. It's difficult to get much of a spontaneous party going here, which may be the point.

After more than 40 of these annual foot-fetish festivals, the Super Bowl has been planned and structured and orchestrated to leave almost nothing to chance. The only close encounters we're likely to see today will be on the field (which is rolled out from under the roof to let the grass grow), where the Giants hope to get close enough to Tom Brady to separate his head from his shoulders.

Posted by John Powers, Globe Staff

For a moment last night, walking downtown near the Convention Center, I wondered whether I was in the right city. Where were the Patriots fans, with their tri-cornered hats and knee breeches, their Brady jerseys and foam "Chowda Hedz'' pots? Where were all the Giants fans? Have they moved the Super Bowl on me?

Usually, the host city is hopping by Friday night before football's ultimate game. The main street is jammed with fans, music is booming, team colors are everywhere. Not in Phoenix, though. Last night, there were a couple hundred locals coming out of the Roadrunners hockey game and some folks going into Majerle's sports bar. Just a normal weekend evening.

What's happening is that everybody is scattered around the metropolitan desert. They're up in Scottsdale, down in Chandler, over in Tempe, out in Mesa. This may be America's fifth-largest city (1.5 million and counting), but it's spread across 515 square miles of rock and sand and scrub and cacti. Unlike New Orleans or Miami or Houston or Tampa, there is no Party Central, no place where you can dress up like Paul Revere and stroll around dropping R's and insulting people from Noo Yawk.

In a way, it's actually made the week saner and more pleasant. Most years in most cities, there's no escaping the Super craziness. That hasn't been a problem in Phoenix. Last night, a few colleagues and I walked into the Barrio Cafe on 16th Street, the best Mexican restaurant in the city, got a table within 10 minutes and spent a couple of hours eating freshly-made guacamole, duck in tamarind sauce, carne asada tacos and churros filled with caramel and goat's milk. We didn't see a single tri-cornered hat or hear a broad `A' all night.

Posted by John Powers, Globe Staff

This may be the Valley of the Sun -- it's pasted in the sky like a massive halogen lamp -- but there's nobody anywhere near the hotel pool out by the Phoenix airport. At midday on Friday, the thermometer barely had cracked 50 degrees and isn't going to rise much above the mid-60s all weekend.

So those of us who've been wearing jackets here this week have been chuckling about the hordes of Patriots fans who are about to arrive here for the Super Bowl, packing bathing suits and flip-flops and and sunblock and lugging their golf clubs. Thursday's opening round of the pro golf event up in Scottsdale, where the temperature was barely above freezing with the wind chill, had to be postponed for half an hour because of frost. "I couldn't feel my hands," Brandt Snedeker said, after spraying balls all over the place during his morning practice session.
New England fans have this habit of bringing their weather with them to the Super Bowl. Three years ago in Jacksonville, the mercury was in the 40s for much of the time and the fans were bundled up in parkas and gloves on game day. If anyone wore their bathing suits, they were chlorinating in a hot tub.
Geographical misinformation has something to do with this, of course. Bostonians think that if you're south of Maryland, you're in the tropics. As Rand McNally can tell you, Jacksonville isn't Miami. And Phoenix, while sunny, can be chilly, especially after that halogen lamp is switched off for the night. This is the desert, after all, and even the snakes have gone underground. So if you're headed here to watch the Brady Bunch, save the Hawaiian-print shirt for Tampa next year. Bring a turtleneck.

Posted by John Powers, Globe staff

CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Maine -- After spending a winter day outdoors
skiing, snowshoeing or snowmobiling, it's nice to come home to a hot

meal. "Sugarloaf Cooks" provides plenty of options for preparing one.
It also dishes on plenty of good ways to start the day, from Swedish
oven pancakes to meal-in-a-muffin. Sure, there are the expected crock-
pot favorites, pastas and chiles, but these are balanced with
creative recipes ideal for entertaining, such as salmon with orange-
champagne sauce and Roquefort-stuffed tenderloin with duxelle
topping. The cookbook, published in autumn 2007, is a fundraiser for
a new library/community center for Carrabassett Valley, home of
Sugarloaf Ski Area. It's available for $15 at shops throughout the
area. It's a great souvenir for a good cause.

And speaking of Sugarloaf, mountain crews did a fabulous job grinding
up yesterday's, how-shall-I-put-this-gently, "hardpack," and turning
it into loose granular with even a few spots that approached powder,
at least on the trails I skied this morning: Tote Road, Sluice,
Spillway, Binder and Scoot. If tonight's predicted five inches
blankets that, it should be a fine weekend, indeed.

Posted by Hilary Nangle, Globe Correspondent

The roads not taken in imagination are probably more to be regretted than whether you took the side trip to Verona or to Venice. In the last century, I spent five years in Albany one year and one of my co-workers at the university was My First Indian.

(Though I was born a Midwesterner and for a time was a Californian, both places rich in Native American history, in neither place had I ever seen any of our continent’s Indians. I did meet one of them, too, in Albany. None of this is to recommend Albany as a destination.) My First Indian was an economist, a bright young grad student from a million miles away from snowbound upstate New York, who, like me, liked to chat and proposed many times in the bland confines of our office that he would be so happy to show me around India. He would show me the beautiful countryside, not the crowded cities against which Americans had such narrow-minded prejudice. He would show me fruits and vegetables and colorful places and hospitality – oh, such hospitality – all unlike any others in the world. I stolidly thought of it as akin to being invited to be shown around the moon. I would need training, preparation for zero gravity, have to take up jogging. I thought of it as also stretching the truth, embellishing the realities, because I knew better than to think that India wasn’t taken up, every square inch, by starving people and cows unrelated to any creature by that name in the Midwest. And Bangladesh. What was all that fighting about? What planet was My First Indian from? Not mine. Poor ignorant me.
“India” by Michael Wood (Basic Books, 255 pp., illustrated, $35 hardcover) is a companion piece to Wood’s BBC series “The Story of India,” to be shown on PBS this spring. Wood, a historian, author, and filmmaker, calls this “a traveller’s-eye view of the history of India.

Oh man, I know Sunday has probably been planned for quite some time. Sleep in, read Globe Super Bowl Special Section, put on #12 jersey, order Hungry Man's breakfast, replace remote batteries, tv sound check, beer on ice, wings basting and then spray on your Stetson just before game time. I know, I barely mentioned any of the pre-game routine, but I am here to shout out that you need to slip in one more teensy, tiny thing before the Super Bowl. Get to Hampton Beach by 11 a.m., register for the Special Olympics of NH, 9th Annual Penguin Plunge, throw yourself into the frigid Atlantic at noon time, collect awards by 1:30 p.m. and then head back to your game headquarters with a chest full of doing-the-right-thing-for-Special-Olympics stuff. Oh, and so you have to raise a minimum of $350 in order to be a Penguin Plunger, just bring your checkbook. Hey, your check in the hands of the Special Olympics gives one young heart the hope to play in their own Super Bowl one day. Brady would do it...

The Penguin Plunge is the SONH’s largest fundraiser. Last year, over 775 plungers ran into the icy Atlantic Ocean on Super Bowl Sunday to benefit Special Olympics athletes statewide. Live music by Gazpacho, great food, and spa treatments on the beach make for an unforgettable Super Bowl Sunday morning. Again...Tommy would do it...well, if his ankle didn't hurt so much...

The SeaCoast Inn in Hyannis, Mass., was named the "best bargain in the world" in TripAdvisor's annual "Travelers' Choice Awards."

The inn, located on Cape Cod, is lauded by consumers posting on TripAdvisor as "fantastic," "immaculate," "comfortable," and "quiet," with a perfect location and friendly innkeepers. The inn is closed for the season, but rates on the inn's website are listed as $98-$148 summer, and $68-$108 spring and fall (higher for holiday weekends),

For the complete list of 325 hotels in all categories, visit TripAdvisor's website.

The winners were determined based on the popularity of a given hotel as measured by both the quantity and quality of postings on TripAdvisor and across the Web, along with traveler ratings of certain attributes such as cleanliness. (AP)

DAY NINE

They say L.A. is not a green city. Of course, it’s a cliché to say L.A. wasn’t exactly designed with public transport in mind. But I’ve been walking around Echo Park. I’ve seen a few other pedestrians. A bike path runs along Sunset. It’s possible to get around without a car.

And in another sense, L.A. is very green. One thinks of endless sprawl, cement and asphalt, pollution. But the hills and valleys, at least in Echo Park, are a teeming jungle of growing things (made all the greener since the rains). Life sprouts up in yards, lots and the pitched slopes between every bungalow. I’m no flora expert, but I’ve identified olives, orange and lemon trees; blooming rosemary bushes as big as hedges; towering banana trees; mutant jade, cactus and
aloe; hibiscus and camellia. Palms fringe the sky, dot the ridges and hover over homes like thought balloons. (The homes think: “I wish I had a better view than my neighbor.”)

The storms also brought damage. Palm fronds litter the streets. Tan and twisted palm bark looks like animal skins. In front of one house: dozens of avocados smashed on the street. I look up: more avocados will fall. Now I know what an avocado tree looks like, laden with fruit thick as an apple tree back east.

That one pristine avocado by the gutter, I bring it home to ripen. Now, is it OK to eat it?