NEWS STYLE TIPS TRENDS

Follow in their dance steps

Maybe your ticket to one of the 2009 official inaugural balls got lost in the mail, but that doesn’t mean you can’t visit some of the sites where Barack Obama and Joe Biden will party Tuesday night. The National Building Museum, above, venue for the Commander in Chief’s Inaugural Ball for active-duty and reserve military, has been the site of inaugurals since Grover Cleveland. This great 19th century brick building at 401 F. St. N.W. features an interior that borrows much from 16th century Italy, including enormous Corinthian columns inspired by a Michelangelo design. The museum offers free Inaugural Ball Tours, which include photos of past festivities from Cleveland to George W. Bush, at 2 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays in January (except today) and 2 p.m. Fridays through Sundays in February and March. Info: (202) 272-2448, www.nbm.org

-- Mary Forgione

Road stories

Plenty of books have made the trip from print to online, but Web-to-print is a road less traveled. Facebook is betting some of its 150 million users will pitch in to contribute to the social network’s first travel book. More than 600 have downloaded the iGo iWrite application so far. It lets users submit their travel stories and read through those of others to help decide which make the cut. Caveats: Read the “publishing terms” before submitting your work. The bottom line is that you don’t get paid and you give up some rights. But if you like the idea of getting published, this is one experiment that could be worthwhile. And who doesn’t need an excuse to spend more time on Facebook?

-- Susan Derby

Film fun

As an antidote to economic anxieties, the silver screen is pure escapism. Beginning Thursday, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival ushers in 11 days that allow us to suspend our disbelief collectively. With more than 200 films, documentaries and shorts from 41 countries, including the Czech Republic’s “The Country Teacher,” pictured above, the spotlight shines brightly on the “international” designation in the festival’s name. “We’re taking the audience . . . to countries they are not used to seeing,” said executive director Roger Durling. Besides the films, “we have incredible red-carpet events with Penelope Cruz, Clint Eastwood, Mickey Rourke, Kate Winslet,” Durling said. “It doesn’t get any bigger than this.” The Platinum Pass ($1,600) offers priority seating to these tributes, regular and special screenings, panels, galas and several parties. Other options priced at $225 to $900 permit a customization around events, films or even time frames. The 4 Pak ($50) grants four admissions to regular screenings. Info: www.sbiff.org.

-- Benoit Lebourgeois

Stuck on you

With so many accessories on the market for your iPod, you have to wonder what’s next. We found a simple iPod holder for travelers that will make you wonder why no one had thought of this sooner. The iStik carrying case lets you put your iPod Nano almost anywhere on your clothes. Slip it in the case and put the magnetic fastener under your clothes, in, perhaps, a shirt sleeve or pocket. Magnets on the case and on the fastener hold firm to your clothes. Price: $19.95 or $24.95, depending on the model. Info: www.goistik.com

-- Hugo Martin

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