Let's be honest: Glasses, those middle school horrors that went hand-in-hand with braces and blemishes, are no longer about to ruin your image. These days, people who need 'em don't wear them or trade them for contacts, and those who don't need 'em buy expensive frames with no prescription. If anything, glasses are just another accessory to add to your look. Hey, look what it did for Tina Fey. New York is chock full of places to get the most expensive, most unique, most whatever-you-want-them-to-be glasses. Thus, our picks for best places to make a spectacle of yourself.

Winivian Resort, Connecticut [NYTimes/Suzanne DeChillo]

·The Northeast becomes new must-see destination for spa seekers [NYT]
·Remote Japanese islands best spot for next summer’s eclipse [BBC]
·Meanwhile in Omori, Japan, a ghost town becomes a boom town [IHT]
·Train vs. plane when traveling in Europe [MSNBC]
·Where to find the best bars across the U.S. [BW]
·Las Vegas and Orlando to get their very own all-ice bars [USAToday]

Luxor, Egypt [Flickr/Selva]

·Cruising the Nile in style, spa and butler service included [CNT]
·Just in time for NY Fashion Week, Philly gets a très chic boutique [Philebrity]
·Virgin America’s debut “Entourage Air” flight gets live-blogged [Jaunted]
·A guide to scoring bargains in London [CNN]
·Finding respite blocks from Bryant Park’s Fashion Week madness [NYT]
·The key to finding cheaper flights lies in the layover [USAToday]

Crown Street in Surry Hills is only a five-minute walk from Sydney's Central Station, but it's a world of difference from the city in terms of the variety of dining. At least every second (if not every first) shopfront offers some sort of flavor you couldn't get at its neighboring venue, meaning you could stay for weeks and still not sample everything on offer. There's everything from super chic to complete dive, but the good food far outweighs the bad.

The Americans may lay claim to naming rights, but when it comes to locating the best of the world's haute hamburgers Paris is surely battling for top-tier supremacy. The secret's in the beef: as vociferous carnivores, no one cares more for the quality of their mince then the French. Of course hamburgers aren't all about blood-red meat and golden-fried frites. At five-star palace hotel, The Crillon, moist tuna replaces beef while even vegetarians are pulled in to the circle of love with a tofu option that - while leaving purists cold - is good news for grazers. As for pronunciation, just drop the 'h' and give it a French twist. Vive le 'amburger.

Ten years ago, you'd have been hard pressed to get a cup of coffee in London that wasn't a suspect, murky beverage made with instant granules. Times have changed thanks to the Starbuckization of the old tea and two sugars culture. Now of course, you can't swing a cat without hitting one of the generic chain cafes. You may be within 50 meters of your closest caffeine fix at any one time, but wouldn't you rather go somewhere with a bit of atmosphere and charm? The traditional cafes serving egg and chips are also closing at an alarming rate. But you don't want egg and chips anyway do you? You want to linger over a perfect cup of coffee and perhaps a croissant that isn't three days old. You want to read the newspaper and take in the ambiance. We've put together a guide to London cafés with a bit of character where you'll be happy to stay awhile and smell the coffee.

The Marina District gets a rap as the holiest-of-holy mecca for the mating rituals of the popped-collar East Coast post-college transplant and the overly blonde and strangely orange-skinned ex-sorority-girl. But fear not, there are actually quite a few great watering holes for those with a little less to tap from their trust funds for a night of heavy drinking. All of the places listed here are "SF casual," attire-wise (which spans the gamut from t-shirt and jeans to um, t-shirt and jeans, with the usual smattering of polos and tube tops.)

Scottsdale, Arizona [Flickr/David A. Porter]

·Scottsdale gets its own beach, lounging pods included [Globorati]
·Italy’s government slashes funding to the coutry’s cultural institutions [NYT]
·“Quick casual” restaurants make a comeback in the Big Apple [NYS]
·Dubai’s Burj skyscraper officially world’s tallest building [Gadling]
·The Dallas Airport’s “ultimate makeout spot” [Jaunted]
·A debate over nude sunbathing in Hamstead [Londonist]

Bryant Park, NYC [Flickr/Wallyg]

·NY Fashion Week is here, where to spot industry big wigs [BBM]
·LA’s Mondrian debuts its $40 million facelift today, indoor loveseat swings included [Globorati]
·Europe to get a new 5 euro coin [TPB]
·W Hotels announces empire will expand to include London come 2010 [HC]
·JFK baggage handlers accused of pocketing jewels [NYP]

If you want the best Thai food in the city -- possibly in the country -- you go to Thai Town. Everybody knows that. But sometimes even a die-hard lover of Thai cuisine like myself will look elsewhere to satisfy her cravings. What can I say? Sometimes I'm just not in the mood to drive around for four hours looking for parking, only to risk getting mugged on the seven-block walk to a tiny fluorescent-lit dive. Sometimes I want luxuries like a parking lot. Fortunately, there are plenty of designer Thai restaurants in LA offering Americanized or fusion versions of authentic Thai cuisine in sexy, sleek environments. So next time you're in the mood for Thai without street cred (but with cloth napkins), here are a few places to check out.

"The poets have been curiously silent on the subject of cheese," the English writer G.K. Chesterton said. Unless their mouths were filled with a buttery gouda, it's hard to imagine why. Cheese is the nectar of the gods, or at least that's what we call it in my home state, Wisconsin. Picture my surprise when I moved to the DC and realized cheese shops in the city are scarcer than Mike Gravel supporters. Attention cheese lovers: If Kraft singles and Safeway just aren't cutting it anymore, here are a few outposts of good cheese in the wild, wild District of Columbia. Suggestions welcome in the comments or via the tipline.

I love candy, and in college, I discovered that only two degrees of separation come between the heir of Just Born (maker of PEEPS) and myself. I envisioned a future career in PEEP research (which I was already conducting via microwave), but then all my friends started applying to grad school and "real" jobs, so I tossed my dreams aside and became a teacher instead. Such is life, but luckily New York feeds my sweet tooth with options ranging from the old-school mom-and-pop shops to the flashier, sugar-high venues that suck away my last shreds of sanity.

San Francisco has an abundance of fantastic, authentic Chinese food restaurants. These are not them. No, this post is about awesome ghetto Chinese delivery joints. These comfortingly predictable holes are where the stoned, the lazy, the too-tired-to-cook, the fatties and the singles get 76% of their sustenance. Why do we love them so? You never need a menu to order because they all have the same, delicious shit! They're cheap! They bring the food right to your door! Uh, they're cheap! This list compares the best of the mediocre (the good doesn't deliver) with helpful categories including greasiness, best dish, delivery speed and MSG. Just for fun, I've also included their health department scores. But don't let a low number throw you off. That's where the flavor comes from!

Hawaii [Flickr/Concept Junkie]

·Exploring the big one in Hawaii [IT]
·Air Canada ditches life vests, so much for safe over sorry [Jaunted]
·Rod Stewart loves the Hamptons [NYS]
·Mapping Memories: An Urban Story Map [PSFK]
·Liverpool’s Capital of Culture program includes gigantic spider [Times]