Travel

OSLO — Oslo dresses up in white lights ahead of Christmas, but keeps the spirit of the season partly under wraps, as befits a reserved Nordic capital with a winter shroud of darkness and some of Europe’s highest food and drink prices.

It’s hard to top Barcelona, Spain’s most cosmopolitan and fun city. I love the place, and I’m not alone.

BELMAR, N.J. - Environmentalists are trying to dissuade a Jersey shore town from using tropical rain forest wood to rebuild a boardwalk destroyed by Superstorm Sandy. Belmar awarded a $6.

DALLAS - Southwest Airlines Co. will start charging a no-show fee for passengers who fail to cancel tickets before their flights. The company also said Friday that fees on early check-in and oversized bags are going up.

WASHINGTON - President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation and Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington for Civil Rights were 100 years apart, but both changed the nation and expanded freedoms.

MONTOMERY, Ala. - More than two years have passed since Alabama TV audiences have seen ubiquitous ads by VictoryLand casino owner Milton McGregor proclaiming: "You can be a winner, too.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Raising your arm and yelling "taxi!" is the old-fashioned way to nab a New York City cab. Soon, all you'll need is a smartphone app.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Pedicabs will have to follow new rate rules by next summer under a plan Mayor Michael Bloomberg signed Thursday to rein in runaway fares for the pedal-powered taxis.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Superstorm Sandy was not kind to the arts community.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Like a lot of people, I was happy and relieved to see Google Maps return to the iPhone. I'd been frustrated with the Apple mapping software that had replaced it three months ago.