(Getty Images) SAN JOSE - When Canadian house cleaner Marlene Trithardt needed a tooth replaced, she drove past her local dentist's office in Alberta and flew to the beach paradise of Costa Rica - to save money. Trithardt is one of a growing number of North Americans who turn south for medical care lured by lower prices, contributing close to 0.8 percent of Costa Rica's gross domestic product. "I chose to come here because I find in Alberta the prices...

It's video that makes even non-aviation geeks take notice. California photography and film professor Cy Kuckenbaker spent the day after Thanksgiving filming every plane that landed at San Diego International Airport during a five hour period. He added some tricks in post-production, and then shortened the video to twenty-five seconds. "San Diego has an unusual flight path that brings the planes in low right over the center of the city," Kuckenbaker tells PetaPixel. He had recently moved into a neighborhood...

Is it any surprise that Las Vegas comes in on top? (Getty Images) Yahoo!'s annual tally of top destination searches is out and -- no surprise -- Las Vegas leads the pack. More surprising is that Chicago (at No. 2) topped London, New York and San Francisco. Another curiosity in the top 10: Dubai. The Top 10 Destination Searches 1. Las Vegas 2. Chicago 3. London 4. New York 5. Washington, D.C. 6. San Francisco 7. San Diego 8. Dubai...

The Sistine Chapel of Los Andes A boy walks in front of the altar on Dec. 8 in the Sistine Chapel of Los Andes in Curahuara de Carangas, Oruro department, 160 miles south of La Paz, Bolivia. (AP Photo/Juan Karita) ORURUO, Bolivia — The colonial-era house of worship known in Bolivia as the "Sistine Chapel of the Andes" was filled with flowers over the weekend for those celebrating two weddings and seven baptisms on the wind swept mountain plateau. Although...

(Getty Images) When Apple ditched Google maps on its iOS 6 software earlier this year, there was loathing amongst users. Now, police in one town have gone as far as calling Apple maps "potentially life-threatening." The app had dangerously misplaced the Australian town of Mildura 45 miles from its actual location. Apple maps wrongly led people looking for Mildura into "the dusty, sun-baked trails of Murray-Sunset National Park," according to the Guardian. Area police have dealt with four separate cases...

(Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris) What would you do with $40,000? How about $50,000? Or, $60,000? Would you spend it on a hotel room for one night? Celebrities, royalty, and business titans have no trouble dropping this kind of cash for a one-night stay at the world’s most exclusive, and expensive hotels. Like to have a chandelier in the bathroom? No problem. Need a butler to iron your blue jeans? Done. Need a bedside fridge for your caviar? Of...

London-bound passengers from New York's JFK and Newark could see see fares shoot up, now that the discount carrier Virgin Atlantic is going steady with Delta. (Getty Images) What does Delta Air Lines' 49 percent acquisition of Virgin Atlantic Airways, Ltd. mean to the consumer? Nothing good, I'm afraid. It further concentrates pricing coordination among the few airlines that fly from the United States to London Heathrow. Although the alliance is put forth as offering super customer benefits, the real...

Proof of Noah's Biblical Flood Under the Black Sea (Getty Images) He's the man who found the Titanic in its deep underwater grave. Now, famed ocean archeologist Robert Ballard believes he's uncovered evidence that the story of Noah's Ark and the biblical flood were based on real events. It all starts with a controversial theory that the Black Sea was once a freshwater lake surrounded by land, until it was flooded by a massive amount of water from the Mediterranean...

The new Google Maps application is demonstrated in New York on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012. The world's most popular online mapping system returned late Wednesday with the release of the Google Maps iPhone app. (AP Photo/Karly Domb Sadof) Apple gave millions of iPhone iOS 6 users an early Christmas present: Google Maps are back. The trouble started in the fall, when Apple chucked the popular Google Maps and replaced it with its own mapping program. The complaints began immediately. The...

(Getty Images) Hailing a cab is about to get a lot easier in New York City. Starting February 15, you can use a smartphone app to "e-hail" yellow cabs. It's part of a one-year test program supported by the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC). E-hailing cabs is already working in London, and the TLC commissioner says they can't avoid technology that could potentially benefit customers. While proponents say it'll be easier for you to get a cab...

(Getty Images) As civilian space travel becomes a reality, doctors worry that not everyone who can pay for a ticket is healthy enough to head to the final frontier. Since governments have been sending crews to space for years, the possible physical impacts of space travel are well-known. The human body responds differently to gravity in space, which translates into "motion sickness, nausea, sinus congestion or dizziness," S. Marlene Grenon, a vascular surgeon at the University of California,tells NPR. The...

Southwest says it can reduce no-shows and generate more revenue by adding the cancellation fee on restricted tickets. (Getty Images) DALLAS — Southwest Airlines doesn't charge customers to change their flight plans after buying a ticket. But soon they'll pay a fee for not canceling a ticket before the flight. The airline outlined the new policy Friday at an investors' conference in New York. Right now, Southwest lets passengers who don't use their ticket apply the price toward a new...

Stay Comfortable and Rested During Your Flight with These Tips Airplane flight is often the quickest way to get to a destination, although it may not always be the most comfortable. Flying high in the sky at an altitude of 30,000 feet with a plane full of passengers can be quite an experience! Try these tips for staying comfortable and rested during your flight, whether your destination is a couple of hours away or halfway around the world. What to...