Tourist

Despite past assurances that tourists are safe in their country, Mexican tourism officials are again faced with trying to explain away another report of crime against foreign visitors. The latest incident took place in the resort town of Acapulco, where six Spanish tourists on vacation were raped Sunday by masked gunmen. Unlike many crimes involving drug violence in the country's interior states, the rapes took place near the beach, where the tourists were renting bungalows near four-star hotels.

BEIJING - An 85-year-old tourist from Palo Alto was buckled in his seat last month on a plane preparing to depart Pyongyang, North Korea, when a flight attendant pointed him out to two men in uniform. They promptly escorted him off the plane. The man, Merrill Newman, a retired financial executive and Korean War veteran, has not been heard from since. Newman was seized Oct. 26 at Pyongyang's Sunan International Airport, but the case was initially kept secret at the urging of his family.

Peek.com , a new site that helps tourists find and book activities, has added Los Angeles in its latest expansion. The site is trying to do for tourist activities what Expedia.com does for booking flights and hotels. The site went live in parts of California and Hawaii in October, but it added results for Los Angeles this week. Users traveling to Los Angeles or residents who are simply looking for something to do can go to the site and search for nightlife, sightseeing tours, restaurants, or arts and culture activities.

When reporters for national magazines and tourists from around the world recently began showing up on Abbot Kinney Boulevard, veteran shopkeepers saw the attention as validation that they had turned the once-desolate stretch into a hip strip. Now, however, that pride over what GQ magazine called "the Coolest Block in America" has turned to anxiety for some longtime merchants and residents who say Abbot Kinney is getting too posh for its pants. The arty, indie fare that used to dominate the boulevard is being replaced by $1,400 handbags and $600 boots from Italy.

A 600-year-old statue residing in a museum in Florence, Italy, has one fewer finger on its right hand thanks to an American tourist who came in contact with the artwork and broke off a digit. The tourist, whose name has not been reported, allegedly broke off the right pinky finger of the statue while attempting to measure it. The incident is thought to have been an accident, but officials in Italy questioned the American and are weighing what action to take. Reports have described the tourist as a 55-year-old man from Missouri.  PHOTOS: Hollywood stars on stage The statue, which is thought to depict the Virgin Mary, dates from either the 14th or 15th century.

PETRA, Jordan--After four days of difficult Middle East diplomacy, President Obama headed home Saturday after playing tourist at the elaborate ruins of Petra, an ancient city carved from sheer rock faces of surrounding mountains. The remains of monasteries, burial tombs and baths from the Nabatean civilization more than 2,000 years ago are the pride of Jordan, Obama's final stop in the region. The archaeological park attracts half a million visitors a year, and Obama, dressed in khaki slacks and a Navy windbreaker, seemed as awestruck as any other tourist.

A shark attack on a surfer Sunday was the latest in a series of such incidents off the Hawaiian coast this year, a skein that has injured several swimmers and closed beaches and last week led to a dramatic rescue by two good Samaritans of a German tourist whose arm had been bitten off. But some authorities are warning against any “Jaws”-like panic. “The sharks are always out there. We'll go along for months at a time and nothing happens, and then we'll get one, two and three,” Maui Fire Department Capt.

As Christine Darlene Calderon strolled down Hollywood's Walk of Fame with her coworker just after sunset Tuesday, an amusing cardboard sign caught her eye. She pulled out her cellphone to snap a picture of men displaying signs asking for money with four-letter insults and a smiley face. Moments later, according to a law enforcement sources, one of the men demanded that she pay $1 for the pictures. When she refused, police say, two of the men allegedly pinned Calderon's coworker against a wall.

The Los Angeles Police Department plans to increase patrols in the Hollywood tourist district after the fatal stabbing of a woman earlier this week by a transient, Chief Charlie Beck said Friday. In an interview with The Times, Beck said he had discussed the situation along Hollywood Boulevard with incoming Mayor Eric Garcetti and incoming City Atty. Mike Feuer. In addition to adding more undercover officers and horse-mounted patrols, Beck said there has been some discussion about how to better deal with the aggressive panhandling along the boulevard.

Smart Destinations , which offers sightseeing passes in several destinations, this week launched its "Go Select" pass in Los Angeles . Both visitors and locals can save money with the pass when they visit two or more attractions in the Southern California area. The deal:  Go Select lets you choose your own attraction itinerary or opt for  preselected themed packages with titles such as "Kid Friendly" and "Hollywood Stars. " After purchase, you receive an email with a QR code (similar to a bar code but it also works with smart phones)

HONOLULU - The giant sandbox known as Waikiki Beach, a sunny two-mile-long strip of paradise, welcomes 4.5 million tourists annually. There's only one problem: The sand that makes the beach famous has been slipping into the sea for years, leaving an ever-shrinking shore with vacationers crowded beach mat to beach mat at water's edge. The last few times I visited, I steered clear of the beach because it didn't seem like much fun. Too many people, too little space. So it pleased me to learn about a beach-widening plan that revolved around pumping sand from a couple of spots offshore to the beach.

LAKE TAHOE - Under a golden canopy of quaking aspen, red Kokanee salmon swim up Taylor Creek on the south edge of Lake Tahoe to spawn just as their larger cousins do in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. In their wake come black bears, merganser ducks and other predators seeking to feed on the passing horde, which is estimated at up to 50,000. At times, it seems as if you could almost walk across the 2-mile-long creek on the backs of the colorful fish. Yet this annual October ritual of nature remains one of Lake Tahoe's better kept secrets.

An influx of tourists clogging narrow, curving hillside streets for the perfect view of the Hollywood sign is irritating local residents who say the traffic is creating safety issues. The once-sleepy Hollywood tour bus business has become increasingly competitive . Just a few years ago there were only a few operators offering Hollywood sign viewing tours. Now, there are more than 40 tour companies running buses and vans in and out of the canyon. In response, fliers and signs have started to crop up in the neighborhoods most affected by the traffic.

APELDOORN, NETHERLANDS - Dozens of black-and-yellow squirrel monkeys scampered around us, some running above on high ropes, others swooping in close to us as we walked. This was one of the many delights of the Apenheul, a primate park in rural Netherlands where monkeys, apes and lemurs are allowed to run free. The squirrel monkeys hopped easily onto the arms and shoulders of park visitors, who snapped pictures of the spectacle with cameras and phones. Our daughters, ages 4 and 8, squealed.

State parks and towns adjacent to Yosemite National Park have a message for Californians: We're open for business. The government shutdown of national parks, forests, memorials and monuments that began Tuesday inadvertently has driven folks away from outdoor areas unaffected by the federal action. "Most people don't know the difference between a national park and a state park," John Koeberer, chief executive of California Parks Co., which operates concessions in national and state parks, said in a statement Wednesday.

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. -- The federal government shutdown on Tuesday has left Colorado officials scrambling to keep emergency relief and recovery operations continuing in the wake of last month's massive flooding.  Gov. John Hickenlooper announced Tuesday morning he authorized the use of state money to pay Colorado National Guard troops so they can continue with flood recovery. Under the shutdown they would not be paid, according to the governor's office. “We can't afford to lose one day in rebuilding areas destroyed or damaged by the floods,” Hickenlooper said in a news release.

When the doors of the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum in Dallas open to the public today, it will mark the launch of what is expected to be among the top five tourist spots in the Texas city. "It's a beautiful museum on a beautiful campus," Phillip J. Jones, head of the Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau , said Tuesday. He said he expects 300,000 to 400,000 travelers will be drawn to the center at Southern Methodist University . But it's not the only new tourism generator in town.

Japanese millionaire Daisuke Enomoto spent $21 million to become a space tourist but accuses the company that was supposed make it happen of brushing him aside with little more than "sorry, no refunds." A federal judge in Alexandria heard arguments in Enomoto's lawsuit against Space Adventures, which made its name brokering deals with the Russian space agency to put half a dozen "space tourists" in orbit for $20 million or more. Space Adventures wants the lawsuit thrown out, saying Enomoto was disqualified in 2006 because of a chronic kidney-stone condition.

JOSHUA TREE, Calif. - In the high desert of California, they came for the cactuses and the contorted monzogranite formations, for the open space, for all the reasons so many have come before - to explore; to get married; simply to think. But Joshua Tree National Park was closed Tuesday, indefinitely, so they gathered instead at a nearby cafe, to complain about their government. "The government doesn't seem to care," said Rosie Rivera, manager of the Park Rock Cafe. "It's us, the people down here, who have to pay for their disagreements.

Why leave it to the tourists to win all the game-show grand prizes? The luxury trips to Aruba? The bedroom sets and patio furniture? Now that summer is over and tourism is slow, it's time for those who live in Los Angeles to shine. "Let's Make a Deal" films four days a week, two shows a day, in Hollywood. It always needs an audience. Unlike "Jeopardy," you don't have to pass a test to play. What you do need to do is be on -- enthusiastic, smiling, ready to jump up and down and dance.