Travel

BUCHAREST, Romania - Twenty-three years after communism collapsed, the Palace of the Parliament, a gargantuan Stalinist symbol and the most concrete legacy of ex-dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, has emerged as an unlikely pillar of Romania's nascent democ

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. - When Lise Luckie and her husband Len need to flee the hustle and bustle of their advertising business in Montreal, they make a beeline for the Mirror Lake Inn. "It's so welcoming," said Luckie. "The people here are so nice.

AUSTIN, Texas - The United States is fighting a messy war alongside an unreliable ally in Asia, residents are deeply divided between conservatives and liberals, a new health care law just took effect and the nation is struggling with racial and ethni

MERIDA, Mexico - The crystal skulls have spoken: The world is not going to end.

Though the Mayans never really predicted that the world would end on Friday, some New Agers are convinced that humanity's demise is indeed imminent. Or at least that it's a good excuse for a party.

JERUSALEM - No other city in the world exudes spirituality and inspires devotion like Jerusalem, home to important shrines of Judaism, Islam and Christianity.

DENVER - A storm that has dumped more than a foot of snow in the Rocky Mountains was causing problems for travellers as it spread across the Plains on Wednesday.

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. - A federal permit allowing the S.S. Badger ferryboat to dump coal ash into Lake Michigan has expired, and it's uncertain whether the vessel will be able to operate next year.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - The state tourism department's $1.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - For more than 20 years, state park officials in Massachusetts have encouraged locals to get off the couch Jan. 1 and take a hike — nothing too strenuous, but a healthy way to start the new year.