This year hasn’t been easy for a lot of people throughout the world, but I think we’re all looking forward to 2009. I wish everyone health, happiness and of course, many adventures in the year ahead!

If you can’t be in NYC to watch the famous crystal ball drop in Times Square, it will now be on display all year round. Time to plan that trip to New York!

Trying to decide how to celebrate the new year? Here are some ways the locals celebrate in countries around the world:

Portugal: Eat 12 grapes for each strike of the clock at midnight for good luck.

Netherlands: Eat a ring shaped food such as a donut to “come full circle” in the new year.

Peru: Walk around the block with a suitcase to bring travels.

Italy: Wear red underwear for good luck. (They wear yellow in Peru!)

Japan: Ring bells to dispel evil temptations.

Source: EveryDay With Rachael Ray

Elite Island Resorts is running one of the most creative travel promotions I’ve seen in a long time. With their “Roll Back Your Stock’s Value” deal, guests can pay for a room in one of their properties with shares of deflated stock in select companies. When you transfer stock to Elite, they will give you credit for it as it was valued in July 2008, before the market crashed, up to $5,000 per room. For example, if you have 100 shares of Aetna stock, currently valued around $27/share, Elite will trade you for a $4,000 room credit because it was worth $40/share back in July.

Clearly, Elite is banking on a profit when the market turns around, but I’ll leave it to you to decide if it’s a good deal.

Elite Island Resorts Roll Back Your Stock’s Value Promotion

Will and I love our country’s national parks and this month we’re off to Death Valley! We’ll check out some canyons, salt flats and the famous sand dunes!

Read about the last leg of our trip to Peru, a visit to Lake Titicaca, in My Adventures. Pictures can be seen on my Photos page or by clicking into the album through one of the images posted.

Date of trip: December 2007

On our visit to Peru, Will was adamant that we make a trip to Lake Titicaca. At 12,500 feet above sea level, it is the highest lake in the world that large commercial vessels can navigate and it is the biggest lake in South America. I was a bit unenthusiastic because of the travel time involved, but it turned out to be one of the most interesting and beautiful places I’ve been to.

The city of Puno is the base for exploring Titicaca and there are a limited number of ways to get there. You can fly into Juliaca airport, an hour away, or you can travel by bus or rail. We opted for the train from Cusco called the Andean Explorer which takes roughly 10 hours. Although it’s considered first class and includes lunch, the setup is fairly basic. What makes the Andean Explorer special is its route. The ride through the Andes mountains is absolutely stunning and I think you would be hard pressed to find a more spectacular journey by rail anywhere in the world.

In Puno, we met up with a guide who took us by boat to the famous floating Uros islands. The islands are man-made, woven out of totora reeds by the native people who also build reed houses and reed boats. The terrain is uneven and your feet sink in a bit but it’s very stable considering it’s built on water. Although they speak little English, the Uros people are very friendly and love visitors. They showed us how the islands are built and rebuilt, took us out on their boats and invited us into their homes. The houses are simple, but have solar powered electricity and even television. Before we left, Will and I had to buy one of the beautiful woven textiles the women create and sell to tourists.

Next we traveled to Taquile, an island which offers great views of Lake Titicaca and Bolivia. Taquile is home to 1700 people, most of them farmers. We hiked around the island, dodged a couple of grazing sheep and ate quinoa soup with vegetables prepared by some locals. We also had some delicious, mint-like tea grown right on the island.

After the tour, which took most of the day, we wandered around Puno, a somewhat unimpressive, small city. We visited a church in the square and a few shops. The main attraction is clearly Lake Titicaca and to see the best areas, a boat tour is a must.

Calling Lake Titicaca unique is an understatement. Where else can you meet people that not only build their own homes, but create the actual land they live on? There have been few times in my travels that I’ve been as inspired and impressed with the locals as I was on this trip. The islanders on Lake Titicaca are proof that no matter what conditions people find themselves in, they can accomplish amazing things working together.

For more pictures, please visit my Photo Gallery or click on any of the photos posted above.

Lake Titicaca Links:
Peru Official Site
Puno
Lake Titicaca
Andean Explorer Train

Most towns decorate for the holidays but, according to America’s Best & Top Ten, these U.S. locales celebrate Christmas best:

1. LEAVENWORTH, WASHINGTON
Your Bavarian Getaway transforms itself into a virtual snow globe of Christmas Magic. Crowned “the Ultimate Holiday Town USA” from the A&E Network and featured in 06 & 07 by Good Morning America, Leavenworth welcomes you with Roasting Chestnuts, Holiday Characters, Old Fashion Caroling and pure simple Christmas Magic. Join us as we celebrate this special season and fill your heart with memories for a lifetime.

2. DURANGO, COLORADO
Old West Christmas Families use found items from the Old West for ornaments and trimmings, including cowboy boots as stockings, chaps as table runners or bridle bits as garland to wrap around stairwells or railings. They also have a Polar Express, where kids show up in PJ’s, and they hop on a locomotive train which rides 30 minutes out of town to the “North Pole,” where Santa is waiting and gives them a little bell.

3. WOODSTOCK, VERMONT
Words like “romantic”, “magical” and “historic” are often used to describe this quaint village that has been called “the prettiest small town in America”. First settled in 1768, Woodstock retains the elegant charm and rugged character of American antiquity. Wassail Weekend kicks off winter excitement in Woodstock! This festive annual holiday event is held the second weekend in December and features three days of holiday shows, beautiful music, a parade of riders, horses and carriages, a historic house tour, a medieval banquet, a 19th Century Christmas celebration at Billings Farm & Museum and many more activities throughout the village. Voted one of Vermont’s 10 best winter events.

4. KENNEBUNKPORT, MAINE
Kennebunkport and Lower Village of Kennebunk are nestled between the Kennebunk River and the ocean–”the port” being on the east side of the river and Lower Village on the west. Kennebunkpork Christmas Prelude includes a tree lighting ceremony, a River Tree Arts concert, a chowder luncheon, candlelight caroling and Santa’s arrival by lobster boat. There are three tree-lighting ceremonies – Dock Square in Kennebunkport, Lower Village of Kennebunk and the lobster trap tree in Cape Porpoise; about a dozen Art and Craft Fairs; approximately 12 venues serving either breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea or dinner; programs sponsored by the Historical Society; and 12 programs of music celebrating the season. Santa still arrives by lobster boat escorted by two very special “lobster elves”. The Kennebunkport Business Association’s Christmas Prelude is now in its 26th year. For each of these years, business people have worked with the community to recreate the spirit and joy of the Christmas season.

5. MOUNTAIN VIEW, ARKANSAS
The locals pay tribute to their centuries-long musical heritage by caroling in the caves, in a huge amphitheater located in Blanchard Spring Caverns, where the sound is incredible! Also they make corn shuck angels (made out of corn husks and string) that hold various musical instruments like fiddle banjos and dulcimers, and a guy whittles spools into ornaments.

6. NORTH POLE, ALASKA
Driving through North Pole, in any season, you will see why we capture the imaginations of visitors to our great state. When you visit North Pole, you’ll experience great outdoor venues, highly charged youth sports and arts activities, friendly faces and pleasant conversations with friends you just meet in the local stores, year-round Christmas decorations, and street names and light poles that reflect our motto, and now Santa Claus Lane boasts three beautiful traffic circles within a quarter mile—certainly an experience for the record books! No visit to North Pole would be complete without a stop at the world famous Santa Claus House. As an extra treat, mail your postcards from our U.S. Post Office (Santa’s Zip Code is 99705!) so that friends and family can receive mail postmarked from North Pole, Alaska.

7. ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA
In their 38th year as host of the Scottish Christmas Walk Weekend, The Campagna Center is proud to launch Alexandria’s holiday season with the fresh scent of heather and the festive melody of bagpipes throughout the quaint streets of Old Town. The Scottish Christmas Walk Weekend events, with the exception of the Parade and the Holiday Designer Tour of Homes, will be held at the George Washington Masonic Memorial. The Memorial is located at 101 Callahan Drive (at the intersection of King & Callahan) in Alexandria.

8. MACKINAC ISLAND, MICHIGAN
Just a frozen 20 minute ferry ride from the northern tip of Michigan, this town of only 500 people celebrate Christmas like they did a century ago — people travel only on horse and buggy, since cars have been banned for 100 years. Among the town’s traditions, Santa visits every child to hear their Christmas wish, they have an annual island Christmas bazaar where they sell unique crafts and their decorations are full of lots of green, red and lilacs, which is a special local color.

9. NEW ORLEANS, LA
Welcome to Christmas New Orleans Style! Join with us as we celebrate the spirit of our city aglow with twinkling lights, festive iron-laced balconies, and garland decked streetcars. Converse with Historical Characters as they stroll the streets of the Vieux Carre and share their love of New Orleans; learn the secrets of our award winning cuisine at Cooking Demos; visit our historic homes and museums decorated in festive holiday colors; and find treasured holiday gifts as you stroll our quaint streets and shop with our local merchants. Papa Noel hotel rates are available and make it easier to spend more time at Christmas New Orleans Style. Restaurants continue the French tradition of “Reveillon” dinners. The icon of our city, 200 year old St. Louis Cathedral, will host a variety of weekly concerts, and additional Special Events for all ages will bring family and friends together to fall in love with New Orleans all over again!

10. SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS
Every year the city dresses itself in lights to celebrate the Holiday Season. The Riverwalk slips on thousands of lights and the parks dress up with 40′ Christmas trees. We’ve tried to give you a taste of what you’ll discover when you visit downtown SA this year, whether you’re a local or coming for a visit. Residents pull out all the stops to make this Christmas memorable, from piñatas and mariachis to riverboats and twinkling trees. Instead of turkey, they make tamales. Some of the traditional Mexican decorations include figurines made from cornhusks wearing colorful dresses. Finally, they stage an annual spiritual and spirited procession, “La Gran Posada,” a moving reenactment of the first Christmas eve.

Greyhound is hoping to help those who can’t fly make it home for the holidays by bus with their “Travel Stimulus Package”. The promotion includes the following deals:

Friends and Family Companion Fare: Up to three companions can travel at 50 percent off with the purchase of one adult standard walk-up fare. A three-day advance purchase is required.

10-Day Advance Purchase Fare: 10-day advance purchase fares are 75 percent off adult standard walk-up fare. Every day, 250 tickets will be available for purchase until they are sold out.

Expanded On-Line Discounts: Fares are priced at a 20-percent discount off the adult standard walk-up fare.

Holiday Bounce-Back Coupon: For all tickets sold in terminals during the holiday period (Dec. 15 – Jan. 5), customers will receive a coupon for 20 percent off their next trip during the redemption period (Jan. 6 – March 31).

You can read the press release here or visit www.greyhound.com for more information.