Roundup: ‘Sex on beach’ couple avoid jail in Dubai; inauguration-travel advice; WeHo’s Bastide shuts doors

For many of you, it’s a short workweek, and holidays are already on the mind. If you’re flying this weekend, don’t take off without a look through the resources that L.A. Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm put together for you in her post “Helpful Websites for Thanksgiving Travelers.” A little preparation can go a long way in avoiding holiday-weekend frenzy.

Dubai | The British pair sentenced to jail for having sex on a public beach in Dubai have had their three-month prison terms suspended. Vince Acors and Michelle Palmer, who pleaded not guilty to the sex charges and have long maintained that they were only kissing, will soon be deported. Read  about it here and on the L.A. Times’ Babylon & Beyond blog, “DUBAI: No Jail for Couple Convicted of Sex on the Beach.”

Washington, D.C. | Tourism may be down at the end of 2008, but it’s seeming like it will skyrocket in late January — at least in one part of the U.S. The inauguration of Barack Obama in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 20 is expected to draw unprecedented masses. If you’ll be one of them, read some important advice in “Inauguration Day Update: Get a Metro Pass Now.”

Restaurant news | West Hollywood restaurant Bastide has unexpectedly shut its big doors, with reports that owner Joe Pytka is looking to “re-conceive.” What that means in the long run not even his surprised staff knows; what it means for us hungry Angelenos is that we’ll have to hunt down good ceviche elsewhere. Read more on L.A. food blog Daily Dish.

- Susan Derby, Special to the Los Angeles Times

[Photo: Bastide, when it was open for service; Stefano Paltera / For the Los Angeles Times]

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 25, 2008 at 8:15 am by Susan Derby and is filed under Good Morning, Gourmet, Los Angeles, News, Tips & Advice, Washington D.C.. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.