Sea

What does National Geographic consider the best island in the world? Tahiti? Capri, Italy? Lord Howe Island, Australia? Nope. According to its recent book, "The 10 Best of Everything," it's actually Nantucket, which takes the coveted spot in the ten best islands category.  Nantucket? No disrespect to the Massachusetts hotspot, but it seems a bit of an odd choice on a list that doesn't even include Hawaii, the Virgin Islands, or the Bahamas. Travel writer Leslie Thomas came up with the list for National Geographic and had the following to say about...

By Jessica Bartlett, Town Correspondent Repairing the sea wall breach on Turner Road in Scituate has taken longer than expected after one neighbor refused to give the town an easement to do construction work. But the project now is set to move ahead after selectmen voted unanimously this week to take the easement. According to Scituate officials, who spoke about the matter at a selectmen's meeting Tuesday, the town needs a limited easement along three properties to repair the sea wall breach, which occurred during the storm of Dec. 26, 2010.

On a recent Friday morning, a classroom of teenagers at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School broke up into small groups and spent an hour not answering questions about Albert Camus's "The Plague. " It wasn't that the students were shy, or bored, or that they hadn't done the reading. They were following instructions: Ask as many questions as they could, and answer none of them. The kids wrote in rapid fire on sheets of butcher paper. "Why is everyone acting normal when people are dropping dead?"

WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and the nation's top military leaders pleaded Wednesday for Senate approval of a long-spurned high seas treaty, arguing that the pact will boost national security and American jobs. In a joint appearance before Congress, Clinton, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army General Martin Dempsey, made the case for the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which has been in force since 1994.

VENICE - You can keep your inland towns that rise over farmland or crouch beside busy rivers. Give me a city that turns its face to the sea. I like looking out at urban skylines from the deck of a ship. From here, at penthouse height and away from the tangle of crowds and avenues, you get an almost map-clear view of how a port is shaped. So when I read about a Crystal cruise that left from Venice, nosed into the Aegean and Black seas, and ended up in Istanbul, I started imagining myself peering down at ancient capitals of trade like a king atop a sailable throne.

Few books as slim as “The Atlas of Coasts & Oceans’’ (University of Chicago) present so much information so well. A modest amount of text by environmental writer Don Hinrichsen winds around colorful maps, charts, photographs, and other graphic elements that chronicle the degradation of the world’s seas. Among the sobering facts is this: About half of the world’s population lives along or within 124 miles of a coastline. In addition to surveying the bad news about pirates, pollution, and rising seas, this 128-page atlas offers a few bright spots, such as the potential for harnessing...

You won’t be able to take in all 173 Trails & Sails events at 107 locations, but maybe you can manage 170? The Essex National Heritage Commission invites you to Cape Ann for whale watches and dory rides, Amesbury for house tours of famous residents including the Mary Baker Eddy Historic House, and Lawrence to reenact the Civil War era. How about the Essex County Mushroom Hunt to cap things off? Through Sept. 26 at various times and venues ( outdoor events are weather permitting)

Americana Eilen Jewell Sea of Tears Signature Sounds ESSENTIAL "Sea of Tears" Eilen Jewell plays the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton on May 8. According to rising local singer-songwriter Eilen Jewell, you could hear folk, country, western swing, even a bit of jazz on her previous albums, but part of her roots were left out. Her latest release, "Sea of Tears," aims to rectify that omission with a...

Governor Deval Patrick (right) ran into Joe Kennedy at Centerville Pie Co., the Cape Cod business made famous by Oprah Winfrey . Oprah first highlighted the pie place last year. She mentioned it again on her series finale last month.

Wentworth by the Sea 588 Wentworth Road New Castle, N.H. 603-422-7322, 866-240-6313 www.wentworth.com What we liked most: The how-the-other-half-lives splendor of the accommodations. What we liked least: The food, though good, did not live up to the surroundings, or the price. What surprised us: That the hotel is still here. We lived in New Hampshire back when the wrecking balls were revving up to take down the failing old grande dame.

ORLANDO — The books and movies have long since wrapped up the epic tale, with Voldemort vanquished, Snape lionized, and the young heroes sending their own children off to Hogwarts. But the specter of Harry Potter will continue to dominate the landscape of central Florida for years to come. "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter brought millions of new visitors to Orlando," said Robert Niles, editor of the consumer website Theme Park Insider. "What we're seeing now is a competitive moment, and the Orlando parks are all trying to take advantage of the momentum.

Courtesy of the Boston Harbor Hotel The Boston Harbor Hotel has opened its newest dining option, Sea Grille To Go, featuring an outdoor-friendly menu from chef Daniel Bruce. Sea Grille To Go is located outside on the waterfront, and customers are welcome to enjoy their to-go meals on the hotel's harborside lower terrace. The menu of traditional New England cuisine features soups, salads, and sandwiches, perfect for summertime al fresco dining. Open daily 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Rowes Wharf, Boston.

It's funny — somehow, in all the time we've been getting our classic-games fix playing Battleship, we missed the part where you'll call out, say, B-5, and suddenly find a giant, techno-morphing alien spacecraft on the grid. But hey, if you're Hasbro and Universal, and you've agreed to make a movie based on nothing more than brand recognition of a game, you've got to fill two hours with something . So why not go the "Transformers" route? After all, Hasbro's corporate dreams of duplicating its success with that unabashedly toyetic franchise are...

State Police say a float test conducted Wednesday morning in Rockport showed that swift currents could have swept a 2-year-old toddler out to sea last month, a spokesman said. "We put a float in the water and a diver underneath and they shot out into the ocean," said State Police spokesman David Procopio. "Within 15 minutes, the float and the diver underneath were swept out in the currents. " Procopio said State Police investigators believe there is no evidence of foul play in the death of Caleigh Harrison.

Vietnam is protesting China's fishing ban in parts of the South China Sea that Hanoi claims as its own. Foreign Ministry spokesman Luong Thanh Nghi says in a statement posted on the ministry's website late Tuesday that Vietnam considers China's decision "invalid. " China's seasonal ban begins Wednesday and is meant to curb overfishing in the South China Sea. But parts of the sea also are claimed by Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. The sea has valuable fishing grounds and shipping lanes, and is believed to be rich in oil and gas. Vietnam and China...

An environmental activist group known for its confrontations with whalers and fishermen says its founder has been arrested in Germany for extradition to Costa Rica for allegedly interfering with a shark fishing boat. Paul Watson of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was arrested Saturday in Frankfurt, the U.S.-based group said in a statement Sunday. Sea Shepherd said Watson is accused of violating of ships traffic during filming of a documentary in 2002. The group said the incident took place in Guatemalan waters, when Sea Shepherd encountered an illegal shark...

The Magnetic Fields, ‘Love at the Bottom of the Sea' ESSENTIAL "Andrew in Drag" The most joyous 15 seconds you'll hear in pop music this year come on the chorus of "Andrew in Drag. " Repeating the song title, Stephin Merritt (above) seizes that last word, shooting it wide open while his bandmates pile on their own harmonies. Merritt then curls the expression as if twirling a mustache. It's sheer exuberance and the first indication that the Magnetic Fields are in superb form on their new album.

KADAVU, Fiji - To travel 7,500 miles for a five-star, air-conditioned villa on the beach would have been to miss the heart of Fiji. That was not what I had in mind as I traveled with a 50-pound suitcase of medical supplies from the East Coast to Fiji's Nadi International Airport and on to Kadavu. Rising from the sea in a wall of densely forested mountains, Kadavu, the fourth largest of Fiji's 333 islands, is surrounded by Great Astrolabe, the world's fourth largest barrier reef.

There are two contested races in the Tuesday town election. Board of Selectemen chairman Tom Kehoe is being challenged by Karen Smith-Crawley, former chairwoman of the Harbor Advisory Committee. For Planning Board, where there are two seats available, incumbents Kurt Melden and Rebecca Jaques are being challenged by Ralph Smith, who has served in several town positions. Residents also will be asked to vote for candidates for moderator, assessor (two), library trustee, Housing Authority, and Manchester Essex Regional School Committee.

HONOLULU - The Navy says its use of sonar and explosives could potentially hurt more dolphins and whales in Hawaii and California waters than previously thought. The new research and more thorough analysis are part of an environmental impact statement covering Navy training and testing planned for 2014 and 2019. The Navy estimates its use of explosives and sonar may unintentionally cause more than 1,600 instances of hearing loss or other injury to marine mammals in one year.