Insider
Out to Sea
The USS Monitor Center
Sail over to Mariner’s Museum in Newport News, VA, and be among the first to check out the $30 million addition. The recently opened USS Monitor Center allows visitors to experience life aboard a wooden sailing ship and one of the world’s first ironclads. With more than 60,000 square feet of gallery space, this is one of the largest international maritime history museums. www.mariners.org
Kiosks of the Future
Airport Shopping
Whether you’re thinking a PSP game would make the perfect last-minute gift or you’re desperately in need of some high-quality earphones for the trip, Sony ACCESS has it all. These new automated retail kiosks are aiming to satisfy on-the-go travelers at the Indianapolis and Dallas/Ft. Worth airports. Thanks to Sony, buying electronics is now as easy as grabbing a bag of chips. www.sony.com
Back Pocket
Travel Guide
Not everyone needs to know that you’re a tourist. Design-conscious travelers can blend right in with these tiny alternative travel books from style bible Wallpaper magazine. With New York under its belt, and Miami and San Francisco recently published, Wallpaper City Guides has 20 more locations on the way, including Las Vegas and Chicago. Let these mini guides help you make the most of only 24 hours in a city or lead you to all of the hotspots over a week’s vacation. www.wallpaper.com $8.95
Raise Your Glass
New Exhibit
The Corning Museum of Glass, located south of Rochester, is hosting the “Curiosities of Glass” exhibit in its West Bridge Gallery through October
21. Collections of odd and mysterious objects, including prosthetic eyes, scientific instruments and items made from rare earth and uranium glasses— dating from antiquity to the present day—will be on display. www.cmog.org