How to take better photos of your friends

Love foreign supermarkets as much as we do? Now you can prove it. Many of our readers such as these guys) enjoy buying fun gifts at local supermarkets when they travel. We're looking for ones to print in Budget Travel's next issue. Send your pics to us by email: letters@budgettravel.com. Or post your story in the comments section below. Thanks! (The image on the left is of a $4 bag of dates with a silly label on it -- "Dat'cha!" --that was recently for sale at the Julius Meinl store in downtown Vienna. But surely you've found supermarket souvenirs that are more fun or exotic than that. Hope to hear from you soon!)

You'll find some of my favorite photos in our new issue of Girlfriend Getaways on page 14 ("If He Looks Fun, Invite the Bellman"). Tara Donne shot some fabulous stills of different prop ideas for some themed party nights: movie night, game night, spa night, and dance night. The photo for game night is my favorite. (See a low-resolution version of it here). Check out the Pictionary pad with an adorable "head over heels" drawing, sketched by me (in less time than it took for the sand to run through the timer). You can find more of Tara's photography at TaraDonne.com --Rebecca Simpson, Senior Picture Editor

Why write a blog about your travels? Maybe it's because you want a chance to win $500 in our "Blog-Off Contest." Or maybe it's because you eventually want to become a professional travel writer like Rolf Potts, who explains how he jump-started his career in this blog post. Or maybe you just want a more intense travel experience. At least, that was the case for friends Holly Corbett, Jennifer Baggett, and Amanda Pressner, who hit the road for a year to blog about their round-the-world travels. They call themselves The Lost Girls, and here's how they describe the main appeal of blogging a trip: "The simple process of articulating a personal travel moment and sharing it with strangers all over the online world can make you more appreciative and grateful for the opportunity you had to take the trip in the first place." For 10 tips on how to start a travel blog, click here to read an online Q&A; with the Lost Girls. And if you have a favorite "non-professional" travel blog (even if it's your own), let us know by posting a comment.

In a ridiculously adorable new feature, we're spotlighting babies born recently at top U.S. zoos. Speedy red river hog triplets, a 95-pound baby rhino, and an Asian elephant named Mac, who loves splashing in his pool, are a few of the newcomers. Want to know where to spot an okapi? Or how to bypass long lines for a glimpse of panda cub Mei Lan? We've got fun facts, tips for planning a zoo visit, and plenty of photos--just try making it through this slide show without cracking a smile!