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If you find yourself near Kirkland, Wash., a suburb northeast of Seattle, you'll definitely want to join the town's locals for a party by the water. Starting Friday at 2 p.m. and running through Sunday, this neighborhood right on Lake Washington will play host to Kirkland Uncorked, a festival of the "greatest hits" of festivals—wine, gourmet food, arts and crafts, and jazz. Vino is definitely the star of the show; be ready to taste more than 100 selections from about 20 Washington state wineries. The festival is free; admission to the Wine Garden for tastings is $25 at the door (see Wine Garden hours here). The event is in Marina Park, 25 Lakeshore Plaza Dr. and nearby downtown Kirkland, about a 20-minute drive from downtown Seattle. Come for the wine, stay for the dogs and cars. Sunday is the CityDog contest, where local dogs will compete for the cover shoot of Seattle's CityDog magazine. You can enter your pooch's pout for only $10; proceeds go to Pasado's Safe Haven. There's also a classic car show, featuring hundreds of hot rods and the like. PREVIOUSLY Oregon and Washington Getaways, From $89 Seattle: Eat Like a Local

After lengthy negotiations and paperwork, travel guru Rick Steves received the go-ahead to take a film crew to Iran for a 10-day shoot in May. They passed through Tehran, Esfahan, Shiraz, and Persepolis. Steves considers the forthcoming show to be a valuable window into Iranian culture—especially given the increasingly tense political relations. The show won't air on public television until January 2009, but you can get a preview at Steves's blog, which he updated from the road with fascinating anecdotes and photos. I recently chatted with Steves about the trip and how daily life has changed since his prior visit in 1978, when Iran was on the eve of transforming from a monarchy to an Islamic republic. On his recent return, Steves found the "decadent" society he remembers ("miniskirts were shorter in Tehran than Paris") replaced with a top-down theocracy. But he tried to observe the country without cultural judgment. "I didn't want to go to a mosque and think of it as menacing, but rather as a beautiful community activity," he said. Steves made a point of attending a Friday prayer service while in Esfahan, where he joined 5,000 worshippers and armed guards in a mosque with a bright mural reading "Death to Israel." Ruminations he later posted to his blog include initial feelings of apprehension, familiarities he noticed in the service, and unexpected moments like when he made eye contact with a worshiper who winked back or when he caught another man checking a cell phone. Steves was generally struck by a lack of spirituality. "I learned that if you really want your populace to be spiritual, the worst thing you can do is require it of them," Steves said. "I found Turkey to be much more spiritually alive than Iran." As he met individual Iranians in different places, Steves tried to understand what was important to them. "I've never had so much fun talking with people," he told me. No one could guess where he was from, and when Steves revealed he was American, he says they were most concerned about how he viewed their president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and President Bush—and how he was going to edit the footage of Iran. "They just assumed that I was going to spin it to sound pretty scary," said Steves. The crew filmed at the University of Tehran, and Steves was disheartened by the lack of student expression: "a strictly enforced dress code, no non-conformist posters, top-down direction for ways to play, segregated classrooms and cantinas, and students toeing the line." But he did point out that there are more women than men in higher education. While riding the subway, Steves noticed women-only cars, and brought them up in conversations with Iranian women. "They think of it as respect for women to provide a women-only car; they're not required to go in there, but they have the option." The Iranian government requires women to wear headscarves. Steves discussed the ways that many locals expertly, even stylishly, wore their scarves and how "a wisp of hair could be ravishing." The restrictive dress code also puts an emphasis on facial features that has created an obsession with perfecting noses. Steves's slide show includes a photo of a woman—one of many he encountered—noticeably recovering from a nose job. Even female tourists must cover their heads, and anyone traveling independently needs to hire a local guide (unless visiting relatives). However, Steves said the policy didn't seem to be strictly enforced. "I met a lot of Europeans using a Lonely Planet guidebook, and they technically had a guide, but he was off somewhere having tea." Iran wants to boost its number of Western visitors, according to Steves, who believes the country will challenge but also charm Americans. As for the footage of his trip? "I hope people will get the same value out of the show that they get when they travel to a place—that they will better understand it," said Steves. He added that many Americans don't even realize Iranians are Persian, not Arab. "We can all learn more about Iranians, regardless of politics or agenda; I'm bold enough to say it's practical to know somebody before you bomb." What are your reactions to his trip? Would you consider visiting Iran? PREVIOUSLY Persepolis: An Artist Depicts Her Iranian Childhood Real Deals: Iran Guided Tour, 13 Nights, $1,600

Robert Niles answered our questions about theme parks today. If any journalist in the country should know the scoop, it's Niles—given that he is the editor of ThemeParkInsider.com, which offers reviews and consumer news. Below, he talks about the upcoming Harry Potter attraction plus other hot news. What's hot? Toy Story Midway Mania at Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly Disney-MGM Studios) and The Simpsons Ride at Universal Studios Florida are this year's two new big attractions. Later this year, look for an American Idol attraction at Disney's Hollywood Studios, where park guests compete on stage. Next year, Universal will debut its Hollywood, Rip, Ride and Rockit roller coaster and Sea World will debut its Manta coaster. And, of course, the Big One arrives in 2010 in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal's Islands of Adventure. Also, I'm excited about the plans for Disney's California Adventure. Pixar's John Lasseter is calling the creative shots now at the Disney theme parks. He's a former Disneyland employee and a real theme park fan, which is what you want in a corporate boss! The plans are to revamp the look of much of the park, and to add a massive new land based on the movie "Cars." The plans look spectacular, and Toy Story Midway Mania is just the first step. How will the ongoing construction of "Harry Potter's Wizarding World" at Universal's Islands of Adventure affect attendance at the surrounding parks in Orlando? Will it really draw a lot of people away from Disney? I think that a lot of people will put off visits to Orlando in late 2008 and 2009 to wait for Harry Potter in 2010. Especially with gas prices high and the economy weak now. Harry Potter's debut makes it easier for people to say, "hey, we can't afford it this year, but let' wait fir Harry Potter anyway." That's why I think you'll be seeing more deals coming from the parks as they try to keep attendance up in the meantime. Universal's three on-site hotels won't be able to handle half the prospective visitors who will want to stay on-site for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter when it opens. Will Universal construct a new resort in time for the opening? Not that I've heard. I suspect that prices will, uh, be going up at those hotels in 2010, though, in response to the demand. So late 2008 or 2009 will see some bargains available for people who want to visit Universal before Harry Potter, and get that front of the line pass. I also think that there remains a lot of confusion in the marketplace about Harry Potter. Many theme park fans think that it is going in somewhere at Walt Disney World, which is not the case. Every time I've visited WDW over the past two years, I have overheard guests talking about Harry Potter. A lot of fans are awaiting Disney's response. What's your opinion about paying a fee for the right to "jump the line"...which is a service that a few theme parks now offer? I just got back from Orlando, where we stayed at the Royal Pacific Hotel, on-site at Universal Orlando. One of the perks of staying at Universal's three on-site hotels is that you get unlimited "front of line" access to all (okay, all but one) the rides and shows at the two Universal Orlando theme parks, for no extra charge. I tell you, that was the best value I've ever had in a theme park vacation, and I'm going to have a hard time going back to Universal without that perk. The key, though, was that the perk was unlimited. With many paid line jumping services, including the one Universal offers to non-hotel guests, you get only a limited number times to skip lines. I'd try instead to visit the parks on a day when attendance is not that heavy, and to arrive first thing in the morning, when lines haven 't built up yet. That's a better deal than spending money on the skip pass. But If I were visiting on Fourth of July, or another busy weekend, I'd definitely consider buying one. What's your advice for people visiting a park, including any tips on mistakes to avoid? Arrive before the park opens and do the "biggest" roller coasters and thrill rides first. Then move to the higher capacity dark rides and shows. Get the big stuff out of the way before lunch, they you can enjoy the rest of your day, wandering around doing whatever catches your eye. Also, parents need to manage expectations. Parents try to get "full value" from the tickets and march their kids through the park like they are Sherman headed through Georgia. Plan for a sit-down lunch, time in the afternoon back at the hotel pool or taking a nap and don't push the kids too hard during the day. Look for playgrounds (like Disney's Tom Sawyer Island) where kids can run around, too, instead of just waiting in line and line. What are the most popular and top-rated rides among readers of ThemeParkInsider? The Amazing Adventure of Spider-Man at Universal's Islands of Adventure truly is a great ride. But Disney's Twilight Zone Tower of Terror won our Best Ride in America tournament earlier this year and a handful of other rides approach Spider-Man in rating popularity, including Expedition Everest and Disneyland's classic, Pirates of the Caribbean. Disney passes are supposed to be good forever. Will there be any way to redeem Pleasure Island passes after Disney closes the park in September? Disney will credit you the value of unused Pleasure Island tickets toward the purchase of some other Disney ticket. Bring them to any Guest Relations booth, or call Disney's guest relations number, (407) 939-6244, for details. If you have one of the Magic Your Way tickets with the Pleasure Island add-on, those still expire two weeks (I think) after first use. What's up with Six Flags? Six Flags' management is trying very hard to move away from its old, thrill park image. At the same time, that's what their parks were built for, so the transition is going slow. Six Flags has added Thomas the Tank Engine and Wiggles attractions at many of its parks, and continues to promote its Bugs Bunny and Warner Bros. toons, too. But those appeal more to younger kids. There's still a gap there for families with older elementary kids, that Six Flags is not yet appealing to. From what my readers tell me, Six Flags' best park, overall and for families, is Great Adventure in New Jersey, though Magic Mountain here in LA has improved dramatically under the leadership of park president Jay Thomas. I'd pick Magic Mountain if all I wanted was coasters, too. MORE FROM BT A roundup of this summer's hot theme parks