One should always read about a location before visiting it. And I don't mean just reading the guidebook.

There are countless wonderful reads out there--both fictional and historical--that will provide far better perspective and understanding to a place than a guidebook could ever dream of doing.

Better guidebooks usually have a section recommending appropriate literature to read before stepping foot on the plane and I highly suggest you pick up at least one of these books. Perhaps an even better source for appropriate literature, however, can be found on the National Geographic Traveler website. The Ultimate Travel Library contains the suggestions of travel professionals who were asked "to name the books that have most enriched their sense of place and best informed their peregrinations."

The results are nicely organized by region and then by country. The lists aren't extensive, but the books included are quite powerful in their ability to conjure up a true understanding of far off lands.

Columbus, Ohio is listed as a city that has the best neighborhood as a place to retire. It's actually first on AOL's money and finance list. And to think I almost already live in the Short North. I could walk there if I felt like it. I'm not surprised about the Short North. It is my favorite section of the city, and, in a life without kids, I'd probably live there myself. What surprises me about the report is the comment "Not much in the way of nature around Columbus."

WHAT!!! There are parks galore in the Columbus MetroPark system that rings the city. Because of its proximity to I-70, I-71, I-670 and 315, The Short North is about a 20 minutes drive from at least four of them. Most of the parks have programs every week and there are biking, hiking and picnic area shelters at each. At least three of them have nature centers. A few weeks ago we went on a 3 1/2 mile hike called Howl at the Moon at one of them. This was a dog and kid friendly event that took us through woods and around fields bursting with fall wildflowers. The park system if fabulous and it's FREE.

We've already mentioned some spooky travel-related titles for folks who may find themselves in Louisiana, California or Indiana this Halloween. But how about a suggestion for folks who may be visiting our pals across the pond? Walking Haunted London is a collection of 25 walks that explores the city's ghostly past.

Home to Sweeney Todd and Jack the Ripper, London is considered to be one of the most haunted capitals in the world. This guide features original walks that highlight this sinister side of the city. Author Richard Jones (who looks scared silly and/or really creepy in this photo) is owner of a tour company that organizes ghost walks and other London tours. The book features easy-to-follow route maps for each walk, as well as information on dates and times when ghosts are most likely to appear. Which is handy to have, of course, because you wouldn't want to travel all that way and miss out on a paranormal sighting, right?

From narrow alleyways to the Tower of London, this ghostly guide will take you on a spine-chilling journey into the darkest parts of the city, ensuring a hair-raising look at London.

Does the thought of traveling to Indiana frighten you? It might if you've read any of Haunted Hoosier Trails, which explores scary spots throughout the state. This guide to Indiana's "Famous Folklore Spooky Sites" visits 75 haunted locations in the heartland, including the Hazelcot Castle, the Slippery Noodle Inn, the 100-Steps Cemetery and the Point of Death. Organized by county, each chapter reveals chilling historical details about the state's horrors and haunts.

Author Wanda Lou Willis is a fifth generation Hoosier and folklorist who has carefully researched all these ghoulish tales. In fact, she found so many that she had to write a second book as well: More Haunted Hoosier Trails includes visits to Hannah House in Indianapolis, and Indiana University in Bloomington, believed to be one of the most haunted campuses in the country. Although the books were published a few years back, they'd certainly serve as good guides to the scarier side of the Hoosier state.

Home & Abroad; Matching People to Places is a rather cool website that will help build your vacation itinerary based upon your personality and likes.

Here's how it works. Pick from one of the nearly 100 locations featured and then plug in the dates of your trip and the number of days you will be traveling. Then choose an appropriate theme (Action/Adventure, Adult Escape, Artsy, Cupid, Family Time, Connoisseur, History Buff, Inner-Einstein, Local Culture, Musical Journey, Must See, On The Town, Outdoorsy, Take it Easy, Shop till you Drop, Sports Enthusiast, Where the Expert Goes, and World Scholar).

As a test, I settled on Berlin combined with the History Buff category. The site then provided me with 12 pages of places to visit and admission costs for each. After I picked the ones I was interested in, the site created an itinerary based upon average time spent at each location and their proximity to each other. The coolest thing is that each location was nicely plotted on a Google map as well. Unfortunately, the site does not provide information on transport to get there and estimated travel time between sites.

The final page is where the site makes its money. This is where one can order hotels, flights, car rentals, and other travel necessities.

Overall, I was rather impressed with the concept and site. The themes are varied enough to cover most travel desires and personalities and the final recommendations were robust enough to fill up most any schedule. Perhaps what I will use this most often for, however, is finding things to do in my own hometown depending upon the mood I'm in--be it cultural, musical, artsy, adventure or whatever else strikes my fancy.

After years of battling over the thousands of pieces of pottery, jewelry and bones, taken from Machu Picchu 90 years ago, Peru is winning the war. The artifacts were lent to Yale University for 18 months but the university has apparently kept them ever since one of its alumni, U.S. explorer Hiram Bingham, rediscovered Machu Picchu in the Andes in 1911.

Like museums in Greece or Egypt trying to get the United Kingdom and other countries to return their ancient treasures, Peru has been fighting to get back theirs from the US. Since we officially frown on imperialism, why do we drag our feet returning that stuff?

Today marks the 50th year anniversary of the day the space satellite Sputnik was launched into orbit by the Soviet Union. That day the space race was on.

These days, if you have the money to do it, it's not uncommon to travel to space on a private venture. That's what Richard Garriot is going to do next year. He'll be the 6th private citizen to have this ultimate get-a-away experience.

My experience in Milan was speedy and dirty; I had a several-hour layover in the city that I spent wandering around outside the train station. I literally had pesto between my toes, a pigeon that ate some bad Chinese pooped all over me, I witnessed one of the drunk men lounging on the overgrown grass outside the station break a bottle over another drunk guy's head, and I paid 3 Euro ($6) for a can of juice. Needless to say, I felt I had little incentive to return, when there are so many other wonderful places in Italy, until I read this article about Milan's magnificent canals.

I might have extended my layover if I'd known that Milan has a series of canals that stretches three times longer than Venice's famous waterways. Emanuele Errico, chairman of Lombardy canals, maintains that "this density of canals joining a great city to the surrounding countryside is an example that is almost unique in the world."

Regional leaders are hoping to refurbish the centuries-old system that made landlocked Milan a top Mediterranean port. Around 70 percent of the canals, which were once overseen by Leonardo Da Vinci, need to be rebuilt. Whether or not they are, I've now got a reason to visit Milan.

Thanks to Astilly on Flickr for the photo of a canal in Milan's Navigli District.

Russia's national carrier, Aeroflot, has made a lot of progress in the last few years. Once abhorred by the general public as a "dangerous" carrier (although their record is no more tarnished than any domestic airline), a few new Airbus aircraft, superjets and an international advertising campaign have surged the company into the present. Now you too can enjoy the paltry legroom in coach, paper-thin seats and an indifferent, completely hostile ground crew.

But Aeroflot has one juicy perk that most other carriers don't have: a delightful communist past. And though most of the crew and staff are tight lipped about the Soviet days, some of their aircraft ooze it.

Enter the Tupolev Tu-154.

For as long as I remember, Tijuana has been an absolute joke.

This Mexican border town, just south of San Diego is the armpit of Mexico where under-aged American high school students go to drink beer and frat boys go to watch donkey shows. The place is smelly, rundown, dangerous, and nothing like the rest of Mexico. Its name alone has become synonymous with cheap dives and armpits in general.

This wasn't always the case, however.

I had no idea, but smelly little Tijuana was once the playground of the rich and famous long before the days of Las Vegas. During the 1920s and 1930s, the border town offered up cheap alcohol, casinos, prostitution and horse racing--all of which were impossible to find in California at the time. As a result, a bustling Vegas-style metropolis exploded (and along the way, gave birth to the Caesar salad and the margarita).

Much of Thailand's cultural history and art is found in its temples. There is a mix of ancient temples that function as museums. Built centuries ago, they remain as indicators of just how long grandness has existed here and are one way to trace the conflicts that arose in the country. Parts of temples were destroyed in war, such as with Ayuthaya, now a UNESCO site. It was once the commercial capital of Thailand, then Siam, until it was trounced by the Burmese. There are still many Buddha statues with heads intact in this extensive complex. This video by Glenn Keisel on You Tube has some wonderful shots of various temples and national parks around the country. Ayuthaya is included. The photos aren't labeled so you won't know exactly which photos are from which temples, but this will give you a taste of temple hopping. The traditional Thai music makes for a perfect background.

Cold War relics are simply a joy to explore. For me, it's their proximity to recent history that makes them so fascinating; it wasn't so long ago that they were very active and very serious in their role to protect our fair lands from the communist menace. Today, they are almost comical in the fear and paranoia so deeply imbued throughout.

Bunkers are some of my favorite Cold War relics. Not only are the located underground, but they represent the ultimate Cold War fear: nuclear annihilation.

With the Cold War over, governments around the globe have begun decommissioning a number of such bunkers. Some have simply "disappeared" while others have been purchased by civilians.

Recently, Sophie Campbell of The Telegraph, burrowed into Kelvedon Hatch--a three-story government bunker in Essex, England which was purchased in 1994 by a local farmer and has since been turned into a rather cool museum.

Confucius's birthday, according the events listing calendar of the Hong Kong Tourism Board's Web site isn't until October 7. I thought it was today. The calendar I have marked it as today, but I'll go with the tourism board. Unless, we go with this other source that says that in the Western calendar, Confucius's birthday is today. Today is also National Teacher's Day in China. Since Confucius was a wise teacher and philosopher, I'd say this is a fitting tribute.

Confucius, who lived 551 BCE-479 BCE, is responsible for promoting the ideas still central to Chinese thought. For example, your own well-being comes from respect for parents and family. And that guarding your mind guards your actions. These are pretty simplistic descriptions, I know, but read here for more.

In Beijing, the Temple of Confucius is also the Beijing Capital Museum. This temple is smaller than the Temple of Confucius in Qufu, Confucius's hometown and is the third largest ancient architectural complexes in China. If you go here, expect festivities--which, I bet, includes food.

Here's a Confucius saying I found that fits travel: Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart.

With Native American Day coming up on Friday, September 28 (yes, that's tomorrow) and National Public Lands Day on Saturday, here are three places you could go to honor both public lands and and the United States's Native American history. I'm mentioning these three because: I've been to all of them; they are national parks, thus public lands; and although there is similarity between them, they are quite distinct. Although, these are the three I've chosen, these are not the only places where the Anasazi lived in the U.S. Anasazi means Ancient Ones, by the way.

(The photo, posted by slongtoo on Flickr is from Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico)

Here are is an amusement park I've never been to, but I am sad it is closing. Partly because it holds memories for my husband's family, and partly because it is an indication of how history does change things. It's an era gone by.

Geauga Lake, at least the ride section, has seen its last season. Waterparks, like malls that look like small towns, are in in the U.S. (I don't quite get why people don't go to a real small town to shop instead of a mall that looks like a town. Pet peeve.)

Wild Water Kingdom that adjoins Geauga Lake has grown and grown in the past few years as the crowds on the coasters have diminished. Too bad. Founded in 1888, Geauga Lake is one of the oldest amusement parks in the United States. It started out as a place for picnics. In 1889, when a steam carousel was added, its role as an amusement park to entertain the masses was on it's way. In its 100th year attendance was high, but Cedar Point, also in northern Ohio, has been competition it couldn't keep up with. From what my relatives have said, Geauga Lake was a perfect place to go with kids because lines were not long and the rides were just the right size for the younger set.

I'm wondering what will happen to all the rides? Once when I was writing an article on Christmas light displays in Ohio, I interviewed a man who had bought the huge wooden soldiers from Coney Island (Ohio's Coney Island) in an auction. Coney Island closed as a major amusement park in the early 70s and Kings Island became home to some of its rides. This photo is from Geauga Lake Today. If you go to the site, you'll find a gallery of vintage postcard shots.