Even the words European Christmas markets bring a smile to my face, and a head full of travel plans. I get dreamy, thinking of wandering the paths between rows of booths twinkling with lights, a mug of steaming hot yumminess in my hands, surrounded by the fresh scent of pine and roasted chestnuts, and the crisp night air nipping at my cheeks. 

Every fall, approximately 10,000 tourists from around the world descend on “The Polar Bear Capital of the World,” Churchill, Manitoba. This community of about 800 people on Hudson Bay in Northern Canada is home to the annual migration of more than 1,000 hungry polar bears that pass through town as they wait for the Bay ice to return. The new Smithsonian Channel docu-series POLAR BEAR TOWN documents a season in Churchill, following this extraordinary migration of human and four-legged animals as they collide in unexpected and sometimes dangerous ways.

Most people, outside the west coast, seem to think beaches are only for summer. If it’s not sunny and 80 what’s the point of the beach? No one wants to go to the beach in anticipation of freezing their butt off.

I moved to New England area five months ago, right after my college graduation. While working as a student advisor for international students, I want to explore the east coast during my free time as much as possible. New England is known for its colorful fall foliage, and has been somewhat notorious for its winter freeze. Well, I'd like to prove you wrong.