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NEW ORLEANS - Christmas wreaths and holiday parties gave way to king cakes and street parades as the Carnival season kicked off this weekend along the Gulf Coast.

CHARLESTON, S.C. - A lawsuit against Charleston's year-round cruise industry should be allowed to go forward because plaintiffs may be able to show ships are public nuisances that create soot, traffic and noise, according to a state judge.

BERLIN - For a country that prides itself on efficiency and punctuality, the saga of Berlin's new airport, whose opening was delayed for a fourth time on Monday, has become something of a national joke and source of embarrassment for Germany.

JOHANNESBURG - British explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes has embarked on an expedition that he describes as one of the last remaining polar challenges: crossing Antarctica during the region's winter.

GREENVILLE, Maine - If you love the idea of cross-country skiing or snowshoeing through a snowy forest, stoking a wood stove at midnight, and eating great meals in good company around long wooden tables, then consider a winter adventure in northern M

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Spaceport America officials are urging legislators to limit potential lawsuits from wealthy outer space tourists who take off from New Mexico, saying such a bill is crucial to the future of the project.

HANOI, Vietnam - Nghiem Ngoc Thuy has been slinging coffees to thirsty Vietnamese for 20 years in her colonial-style villa with peeling shutters, and she and her customers aren't too worried that the imminent arrival of U.S.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Listening to Supreme Court justices question lawyers doesn't sound like the stuff of great theatre. But somehow it is — in the hands of one of the city's most acclaimed companies. Elevator Repair Service — the group that performed F.

WASHINGTON - Four years and one re-election after Barack Obama became America's first black president, some of the thrill is gone. Yes, the inauguration of a U.S. president is still a big deal.

PHOENIX - Like the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly, North America's largest indoor butterfly pavilion is emerging from vacant acreage just east of Scottsdale.