New York: Statue of Liberty Crown tickets now for sale

If art museums and stodgy art galleries aren't really your thing, be sure to check out Figment on Governors Island in New York City this weekend. The celebration, now in its third year, was created as an alternative to the city's traditional art scene—the completely free outdoor event encourages collaborative and participatory projects. Attendees essentially become artists for a day. The festival's name comes from Andy Warhol, when he was asked about his tombstone: ''No epitaph, and no name. Well, actually, I'd like it to say 'figment.' " There are a ton of events and projects scheduled, starting on Friday. They range from something as simple as a coloring table or a community poem to the elaborate-sounding Chorus in a Box, where participants dial their cell phones to get a looped tape of a song, which they are then encouraged to sing (or something…sounds like you have to be there). Some other interesting activities include Hula-hoop dancing, a Plant Parenthood adoption event, and a Frisbee-designing session, sponsored by the Children's Museum of Manhattan. There's also an artist-designed mini-golf course and a sculpture garden. The 2008 celebration attracted more than 10,000 participants, and organizers say they're expecting more this year. The only thing they ask you to bring? Your creativity (and maybe a snack). Another happening of note in New York City this weekend is the World Science Festival with speeches by prize-winning scientists and other programs. Figment is Friday through Sunday and free. There's a free ferry to Governors Island. For more info, go to figmentnyc.org.

Luminato, a festival of arts and creativity, will host more than 140 music, theater, dance, arts, literature, and food events in Toronto, all in the hopes that regular people will have an "accidental encounter with art." Most of the festival's events are free—public art installations, dance parties, short film presentations (including a quadruple feature of animated Edgar Allan Poe stories), and street performances make up the bulk of the scheduled activities. The festival starts Friday and goes for 10 days. The schedule is massive (try this at-a-glance calendar to make sense of it all), but it's easy to spot a few highlights: On Saturday, the festival organizers will attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the largest guitar ensemble. The current record is 1,802 guitarists performing together—Luminato has invited 2,000. In a public vote on the event's website, Neil Young's Helpless won as the chosen song for the attempt (download the music and lyrics here). Luminato also brings some cool public art installations to Toronto. One highlight is Binary Waves (pictured), in Toronto's financial district. The work lights up when there are invisible electromagnetic communications signals present—you can imagine what it looks like at 5 p.m. on weekdays. The installation is part of a work called Communications/Environment. Next weekend, sample the city's cuisine for just $5 an item in the 1,000 Tastes of Toronto event. If you're looking to make a vacation of it, note that more than 30 hotels are offering hotel packages, with some including event tickets. Find out about admission to ticketed events here. For more info, visit luminato.com or call 416/368-3100.

Now that I've (barely) recovered from macaron withdrawal, I wanted to thank you again for all of the advice you gave me before I left! Your comments were a great resource as I scouted the city. I made it to almost every macaron establishment mentioned in the comments, so stay tuned for a slide show about my discoveries and preferences. I'd particularly like to thank Melissa Whitlock, Kate, Anne Buchanan, and Melissa for their suggestions. Thanks also to Elizabeth and Margaret for their recommendations of Studio 28 and all the movie houses along rue Champollion. When I stopped by the Art Deco movie palace Grand Rex, though, I learned it has the unfortunate habit of dubbing all its international films into French. I'll be compiling all my research into an article about destination-worthy cinemas throughout the city. Carla in Canada suggested a great falafel place in the Marais—thank you! L'As du Fallafel was fantastic. Let me follow that up by saying that if you continue along rue des Rosiers towards the Pompidou center and make a right at Rue Vielle du Temple, you'll spot a park lined with benches a little bit up on your left; it's an ideal falafel-eating location. I'll be posting more Paris articles and hotel reviews in the coming weeks—plus, if all goes well, a somewhat-humorous video about trying to crack the Velib bike system. As always, your feedback is welcome!

United will stop accepting cash for passenger purchases of cocktails or other items on flights, relying on credit and debit cards instead It joins other plastic-only airlines, such as Frontier Airlines, US Airways, and Southwest Airlines. [Chicago Tribune] US Airways says soda, juice and coffee will be free again for domestic coach passengers Thanks to protests by travelers like you. [Chicago Tribune] New fees might mark the end of free airport shuttle service by hotels Officials in Washington, D.C. are proposing that "area hotels pay a $2.50 fee every time a hotel shuttle picks up passengers at Ronald Reagan National or Washington Dulles International airports." If successful, other airports around the country might force hotels to charge for shuttle service. [The Fairfax Times via Upgrade: Travel Better, republished at 4:24 p.m. with a clarified attribution] First train to Laos A new bridge across the Mekong means that you'll be able to take a train to Laos from Thailand—a 2-mile trip. [Guardian] Machu Picchu: See it before it's gone [The Expeditioner] TripAdvisor's Dirtiest Hotels "Motels of horror" and others. Mapping L.A. It takes a village to figure out the city's neighborhoods. [L.A. Times]