By Ben Abramson, USA TODAY

Travelers in search of umbrella drinks on warm beaches have plenty of appealing options across the USA. For those looking for a different type of trip, the National Trust for Historic Preservation has just released its 2010 Dozen Distinctive Destinations list, highlighting "cultural and recreational experiences different from those found at the typical vacation destination."

With an emphasis on places that combine vibrant street life and a well-preserved past, this year's list is more than just charming small towns with gallery-strewn streets – though there are plenty of those. St. Louis is singled out for its historic neighborhoods, and Huntsville, Ala., for its combination of southern tradition and thriving aerospace industry.

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Yesterday at Stand EM245 of World Travel Market – Croatian National Tourist Board   :

Croatian National Tourist Board promotes an image of Croatia as attractive tourist destination welcoming visitors from around the world. Croatia is well-known for its preserved environment and unspoilt surroundings. Richly indented Adriatic Coast has been declared among the cleanest seas in the world.

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The Northern Velebit National Park  has received the European Destination of Excellence 2009 award

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According to figures from Croatia Tourist Board, in 2008, National parks in Croatia were visited by more than 2 million visitors, from which there were 1.7 million foreigners.

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This Saturday, December 6th, is the National Day of Tango.  It is coincidentally also the birthday of tango legend Carlos Gardel and orchestra conductor Julio de Caro.  The city is celebrating in a festival called “The Grand National Milonga” at 8pm on Avenida de Mayo.  A dance floor eight thousand meters wide will be cleared, from Bolivar to Bernardo de Irigoyen.  Over 10 orchestras will perform on 3 different stages for the estimated 20,000 people that will attend.  So if you’ve ever heard of this dance called the tango, this would be the time and the place to check it out.

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National Geographic Traveler has just published its annual destination scorecard and Mendoza, Argentina’s beautiful wine region, has come out a winner.According to Southern Cone Traveler, the scorecard is created by keeping the following conditions in mind: “environmental and ecological quality; social and cultural integrity; condition of historic buildings and archaeological sites; aesthetic appeal; quality of tourism management; and outlook for the future.”After rating 109 sites this way, Mendoza wine estancias came out as number 10!The article praises the beauty of Mendoza city, as well as its excellent restaurants and many plazas, and says that the wineries around the city are green and welcoming.If you need any more reasons to visit Mendoza, the article is available in full in this month’s National Geographic Traveler.

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Diego Maradona made a surprising announcement last Friday when he announced that he would be willing and honored to coach the Argentine national soccer team.According to Reuters UK, Maradona’s statement followed the surprise announcement of Alfio Basile, the head coach, saying that he was leaving the team.The announcement was prompted by the erratic and somewhat poor performance of Argentine in the World Cup Qualifying games that has left that unsure they will even make it to the World Cup.Despite the fact that Maradona is Argentina’s most beloved soccer player of all time, he is not a favorite to win the coaching position.Other, more experienced coaches, including Miguel Angel Russo, Sergio Batista, Diego Simeone and Carlos Bianchi, are all considered more likely to get the job.

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On the border between the state of Colima and the state of Jalisco is the Colima volcano complex, which has two main volcanic peaks: One is the Nevado de Colima, 4220 meters high, which is inactive and covered with snow most of the year. It is the 7Th highest peak in Mexico. The other is the Volcan de Fuego (fire volcano), 3960 meters high which is very active and constantly smoking. Recently, there have been a large number of both lava and ash eruptions, some of which needed evacuation of nearby villages. The live volcano can be climbed as long as its not showing any signs of volcano activity.

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