East Lyme, Ct. gives you three good reasons to spend your long holiday weekend within its town lines. First and second, is the Niantic Lions Club 30th Annual Lobsterfest and Chicken BBQ which is held in the same location as the 48th Annual Niantic Outdoor Arts & Crafts show. Anyone cooking lobsters in mass quantities for nearly 3 decades is surely to have it down pat, and if you couple that with over 100 artists and crafters spread over vast green lawns, you've got the makings for a wonderful summer tradition. Both events will be held on Saturday and Sunday, July 5-6, on the East Lyme Town Hall grounds.

Those same days, not far from all the lobster and art, the East Lyme Historical Society will host their Annual Flea Market, Crafts and Collectibles Sale from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the grounds of the Thomas Lee House on West Main in Niantic. These kinds of markets where donations are collected randomly, sometimes provide the most rich shopping experiences. And all of the above benefits some of Niantic's best charitable organizations.

Western Massachusetts is such a hotbed for fine artisans and varied crafters, and this time of year, the region is flooded with new talent, familiar faces, and much excitement. This weekend, July 4-5, is set for Great Barrington's Berkshires Arts Festival where over 175 juried artists gather to show and sell their wares.

The Festival is geared for families too with live demonstrations and workshops for both adults and children, great food, and plenty of live music. The opportunity to meet and speak with so many talented artists and craftspeople is an inspiring experience. The show is held under large outdoor tents, and in Ski Butternut's lodge. Held rain or shine, the festival is worth the drive out to the Berkshires.

Adults pay $10, seniors $9, and students $5. Children under 10 are free and a weekend pass is available for $13 if you plan on seeing all the festival has to offer - and it will take 2 days! Hours are Friday, July 4, from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; and Sunday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Want to stay a while? Visit the Berkshire Visitors Bureau for lodging information. And take a peek at last year's show here.

If you find yourself on Cape Cod over Fourth of July week, you might want to take advantage of a couple of programs designed to lure people to Hyannis, which is the downtown village in the town of Barnstable and arguably the region’s central business district. On Thursday, July 3, the galleries and studios of Pearl Street (just a couple of blocks west of the major Main Street intersection with Center Street and Old Colony Road) will host “Artscape 1st Thursdays.” Studios include the Shirley Blair Flynn Center for the Creative Arts, the Guyer Barn, ArtSpace, Breakdown Lane, and a new cooperative gallery called The Cultured Pearl. Complimentary appetizers and beverages will be served, and attendees can receive a 20 percent discount on dinner at participating restaurants by getting their brochure stamped. Another Thursday evening staple, the TD Banknorth Summer Stroll, with entertainers livening the Main Street scene, begins the same night and runs from 6-9 p.m. The Amazing Richard, a magician, will perform near Palio’s Pizzeria at 435 Main Street. Inca Son, an Andean musician, will play across the way near Kandy Korner at 474 Main Street, and Rebecca Marona will draw caricatures and do free face-painting in front of R&S Avenue, a children’s boutique at 547 Main Street. Go to hyannismainstreet.com for more information on the 120 shops and 40 restaurants in the district.

Combine tickets to the Red Sox and a day of discount shopping and it's a perfect getaway for many. That's just what Boston Marriott Copley Place Hotel and Wrentham Village Premium Outlets are offering with their "Short Stop and Shop" Package.

Although they tout this for international visitors, it's available to all. Included are:
- three-night or four-night accommodations for two
- two tickets to Red Sox game
- round-trip transportation for two from the hotel to the outlets, for a day of shopping
- one $25 Chelsea Premium Outlets gift card
- one $5 VIP Chelsea Premium Outlets discount coupon book

Four-night package dates:
- July 5-9, with tickets on July 7 or 8 (Boston vs. Minnesota)
- July 25-29, with tickets on July 28 or 29 (Boston vs. Los Angeles)
- Aug. 31-Sept. 4, with one set of tickets on Sept.1, 2 or 3 (Boston vs. Baltimore)

Three-Night package dates:
- Aug.17-Aug. 20, ith baseball tickets on Aug. 17 (Boston vs. Toronto)

The four-night package price is $919; three-night $739 (including tax; excluding alcohol, parking, and gratuities). Availability is limited. For reservations, call 1-800-228-9290 and ask for promotional code ZJL.

I spent the weekend in Baltimore and Washington, D.C., visiting old friends — and I am
happy to report that the cherry blossoms (and the crowds) are out in full force. My friends and I had a great time, especially buying crap souvenirs for our kids from the sidewalk street vendors on the periphery of the National Mall. I took it upon myself to conduct an informal poll of street vendors that revealed that sales of $5 Obama ’08 T-shirts are extremely brisk, while sales of Hillary For President shirts are coming in second place. And John McCain? Well, not so much. My intrepid research shows McCain fares slightly better among the upscale crowd on M Street in Georgetown, where sales of $45 rhinestone campaign pins at Ann Hand show Obama again coming in first, McCain second, and Clinton all but a blip on the bling radar.

As far as cool neighborhoods go, Washington, D.C.’s Georgetown is near the top of my list. The shops, boutique hotels, restaurants, bars, and bookstores could make you forget it’s almost cherry blossom time over at the Tidal Basin. Hotel Monticello (on Thomas Jefferson Street off M Street) is a comfortable, spacious, quiet, recently renovated all-suite small hotel that offers packages for weekends of pampering, romance, or traveling with family. A deluxe king suite starts at $149 (but prices go up as the weather warms up). The Old Stone House, D.C.'s oldest known dwelling, is just up the street. Nosh on sushi, gourmet pizza, or pastry with a mean cup of cappuccino at Marvelous Market (on P Street at Wisconsin Avenue). Snack on shawarma or a falafel at George’s, King of Falafel on 28th Street off M. Next door is a great place for dinner: Zed’s Ethiopian Cuisine, where you’ll scoop up spicy chicken and beef dishes with injira, a spongy bread. A romantic dinner for two, with drinks, is around $50. If you don’t mind the 15-minute walk to the Foggy Bottom Metro station, Georgetown is a great area to stay for a weekend getaway.

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.

Last winter Patricia Harris and I had a very cool winter break in
Provincetown, which, as we reported, does NOT go into hibernation until
muscle-shirt weather. In fact, from November into April the community takes
on a friendly vibe of cozy, bright spaces that banish the chill of winter.
At the time, we met Dan Hoort, who runs the Somerset House Inn, one of those
stalwart guest houses that keeps its doors open all year. Last year Hoort
started a restaurant guide for his guests so they could figure out where to
eat in the off season. It was a hit, and went up on the town tourism site.
This winter he's gone one better, adding shopping, services, and events on
his own site. Want to know which bar or club
is open? What's playing at the Provincetown Theater? When Leather Night is
at the Crown & Anchor's Vault Bar? Dan's got it all.

Posted by David Lyon, Globe Correspondent

With the increasing popularity of food tours that focus on local cuisine, even celebrity chefs, it's no surprise that someone is offering kosher cooking vacations.

Cookeuro has scheduled one-week programs in Emilia Romagna in May, Tuscany in July, and Provence in November. Besides shopping, sightseeing, and cooking demonstrations with local experts, participants will learn about Jewish communities in the region.

Cost is a steep $3,400, air fare not included. But if your interest is piqued, this might seal the deal. A sample menu in Tuscany: bread salad, pasta, veal with a sauce from stock, stewed peppers, and chestnut cake.

Learn to salsa, check out Mercury, or try a Russian steam bath. Tom Long includes these and more in his 10 Ways To Forget About Winter in the Sunday Globe's Travel section.

Or if winter's already too much for you, consider a trip to one of the Happy Places where Eric Weiner, author of "The Geography of Bliss,'' says natives have found contentment.

Also on Sunday, Globe Travel writer Tom Haines maps out Quebec City's year-long 400th-birthday celebration and Jaci Conry takes us on a trip to Hingham.