Celebrate the Chinese New Year in San Francisco

With about 80,000 residents, San Francisco's Chinatown is the largest Chinese enclave outside Asia. This makes it a great spot to celebrate the Chinese New Year, which begins on February 14th this year. While you're there welcoming the Year of the Tiger, check out the Dragon's Gate, the symbolic entrance to Chinatown, located at the corner of Bush and Grant.

Plan a Trip with Books for Kids

If you're planning to spring trip to the greater Boston area with your kids this spring, we recommend that you get them excited about the area you're going to visit by having them read up on topics of local interest. For example, Henry Hikes to Fitchburg by D.B. Johnson, which is based loosely on Henry David Thoreau's Walden, would be great from someone who wants to learn more about the great thinkers of historic Concord, MA. The book describes Henry and his friend, who both want to go to Fitchburg, and shows that people can have different approaches to life. While his friend works to earn money to take the train there, Henry walks through the countryside to enjoy nature and think.

For more book suggestions, see our complete list of recommended titles.

New York International Children's Film Festival

The New York International Children's Film Festival (NYICFF) offers an abundance of excellent films scheduled February 26-March14. Click the link above to check out their exciting lineup. And remember that while you enjoy new, international, compelling films with your family, NYICFF will donate money to New York City public schools each and every ticket purchase!

To buy tickets and raise money for NYC schools, simply:

1) Go to http://www.gkids.com/
2) Click on "NYC Screenings"
3) Select a school to sponsor from the "Select My School" Menu
4) Purchase tickets

Voila! The school you choose earns $3 for each ticket you purchase!

Learning About African American History in NYC

Mapping the African American Past, known as MAAP, is a project that uses video, audio, maps and images to showcase historic sites and people that teach about black history in New York City. You can learn about stops on Underground Railroad, read inspirational stories, and find out about slave revolts. This web site was designed for teachers and students but is wonderful for anyone who wants to know more about the experience of African Americans in New York.

Boston's Ski Train

Feel the need to get outside for some exercise after all that holiday feasting? Take the ski train from Boston's North Station to Fitchburg, and then grab the free shuttle to the slopes (about 20 minutes from train station). Wachusett Mountain ("Wachusett" is the Algonquin Indian word for "The Great Hill") offers skiing and snowboarding on 100 acres of terrain. And on clear days, look for views of the city from the mountaintop.

Boston Sculpture

Boston is home to a plethora of interesting sculpture. One piece we especially like is Free At Last which stands in the Marsh Plaza at Boston University. This 20-foot sculpture depicts 50 doves (each representing one of the 50 states) and is engraved with quotations from Martin Luther King, Jr.

Reasons to Visit Hawaii Now

There are plenty of reasons to visit Hawaii this winter. Let's start with the great weather: hurricane season (which runs from June 1 to November 30 in Hawaii) is over and Hawaiian temperatures continue to be wonderfully warm throughout January and February, when much of the rest of the U.S. is not. Winter is also whale season, when as many as 50% of the world's humpback whales migrate to Maui to get away from Alaska's icy waters, to meet other whales, and to bear offspring.

Visit the Tropics in NYC

When the temperatures drop below freezing in New York City, as they did today, it is a great time to visit the Butterfly Conservatory at the American Museum of Natural History. This annual exhibition of 500 live tropical butterflies and moths never fails to delight visitors of all ages and, well, every stripe. Come mingle among the sulphurs and swallowtails, monarchs and morphos and more, all flying freely in the Museum's toasty, climate-controlled conservatory. Eager explainers and illustrated displays offer lessons in everything from life cycles to camouflage.

NYC Cold Weather Tip

On a cold, snowy NYC day like today, we recommend that you warm up with an Irish coffee -- the Kinsale makes the best in town.

Philadelphia's Mummers

Even if you missed the Mummers Parade, Philadelphia's New Year's Day tradition, which features string bands, "fancies," "brigades," and comics who dress in elaborate costumes and march north on Broad Street to City Hall, you can still capture some of the excitement from the event with a visit to the Mummers web site or the Mummers Museum.