In late August, four friends took a cross-country trip on Route 66, not only to celebrate being sexagenarians, but also to raise funds for KidsVoice, an advocacy program for 5,000 abused and neglected children in Allegheny County.

This week the four -- Merle McGee of Richland; John Stolze of Cross Creek, Washington County; Jere Cowden of Sewickley; and his brother Van Cowden of Cross Creek -- were honored by the organization for raising $5,500 for the nonprofit agency.

The idea for the trip, which took them 4,000 miles westward down Route 66 to Southern California and then north to Seattle, emerged when Messrs. McGee, Stolze and Cowden turned 60 earlier this year. Van Cowden, 67, came along for the ride.

Throughout their journey they posted photos on their Web site of "Carnie," a 20-inch-tall dinosaur -- representing the Carnegie Museum of Natural History's dinosaur exhibit -- with many of the sights they saw.

You can read about their adventures at www.kicksforthekids.net.

New York City preservation officials turned down a proposal to paint the exterior of the Guggenheim Museum in the yellowish hue originally selected by its designer, Frank Lloyd Wright.

Since 1992, the landmark museum on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue has been light gray, and it will remain that way when an ongoing renovation is completed next year, thanks to a 7-2 vote by the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Officials at the museum had no intention of changing the color, but at least two groups had lobbied for a return to the color that was on its walls between its opening in 1959 and the first of several face-lifts four years later. Since 1963, the museum has been various shades of off-white.

Two commissioners, Pablo Vengoechea and Stephen Byrns, opposed the museum's plan to keep the status quo, saying they thought Wright would have preferred a warmer color.

Thomas Krens, director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, agreed that Wright's palette may have been different but said that gray is the color that has been most closely associated with the building over the decades and any big change now might seem radical.

The Guggenheim is undergoing extensive renovations to repair cracks in the building's structure. The work is expected to be completed by spring.

An amusement park with a spy theme is planned as part of a major entertainment complex in Spain, according to organizers who announced the project in Orlando at the Attractions Expo of the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions.

The park, named Spyland, will be part of a massive leisure complex called Gran Scala that is being planned for the Zaragoza province of Spain. The entertainment district is expected to include 32 casinos, four theme parks, mega-hotels, shopping and other attractions.

Construction on Spyland is scheduled to start in late 2008, with a projected opening date of 2010, according to Didier Rancher, a promoter of the project.

Spyland will be a family attraction, Mr. Rancher said, with rides and interactive activities based on the history of secret agents around the world. Visitors will be able to play the role of spy, undertake missions, collect clues and infiltrate fictitious borders as they move through six zones in the park, including a small water park called Aquantica. Guests will also be able to test technologies used in spying. Stunt shows will be based on the escapades of real spies.

Details at www.spyland-international.com.

Get warm, fish rich, travel cheap. That's the advice from Field & Stream magazine, which names 10 destinations where you can go fishing this winter and escape the cold without busting your budget.

Seven of the 10 destinations offer average January high temperatures of 60 degrees or above, with some well into the 80s, the magazine said. The three spots with lower temperatures -- Bull Shoals State Park, in Arkansas; San Juan River, in New Mexico; and Lake Amistad, Texas -- are worth the chill, according to the magazine, because of the quality of winter fishing.

Some of the destinations, like north-central Florida's Ocala National Forest, even offer free camping, the magazine said. Grand Isle, La., also has camping, for $12, while Everglades National Park offers camping for a $2 fee -- or you can splurge for an $85-a-night room at a lodge like the Ivey House in Everglades City.

Also recommended by the magazine are fishing expeditions in Aransas Pass, Texas (with camping at nearby Mustang Island State Park); and Castaic Lake and Lake Casitas, in California.

Two sites outside the United States on the magazine's list are Long Island in the Bahamas and East Cape Baja, Mexico.

Details at www.FieldandStream.com.

JetBlue will offer nonstop service from Kennedy International Airport in New York to Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic beginning Jan. 10, and two new luxury resorts are also under construction on the Caribbean island.

The Ritz-Carlton plans to build a 220-room luxury property, opening in 2010, in the Cap Cana community near Punta Cana, while the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts will build its first property at Casa de Campo, to open in the winter of 2009. The Caribbean's first Maxim Bungalows are scheduled to open in Cofresi Beach in January, with units ranging in size from studios to two-bedroom suites. Additional Maxim Bungalows are scheduled to open in Juan Dolio in late spring of next year.

Santo Domingo's Sans Souci Port is reopening, with Royal Caribbean's Legend of the Seas inaugurating the renovated port on Dec. 16. The port will eventually include four separate ship terminals with docking areas; a shopping mall and duty-free shopping area; a beach club; two 900-room hotels and convention center; and a luxury condominium development. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2010.