Last year's Superstorm Sandy devastated much of the East Coast, especially around the mid-Atlantic coastline. New York and New Jersey beaches were hit hard, with scores of houses and even towns wiped out. Many places are rebounding, such as Coney Island, which opened officially for the season in April. Today's Photo of the Day was taken this weekend in New Jersey by Flickr user David Elwood, who also took a shot of Coney Island's Cyclone that we featured last summer. The roller coaster remains are a sad reminder that not everything is back to normal six months later. Many other beach towns have rebuilt and will be open for business this summer, so don't count New Jersey out of your travel plans, they need visitors now more than ever.

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UPDATE: Several commenters have noted that the roller coaster was removed this week as part of the ongoing clean-up of the Jersey shore. A photograph captures a moment in time, and while this scene may not exist anymore, it's still a powerful document of history.

Today is Independence Day in Romania, a country most known for the Transylvania region and its implied ties to the legend of Dracula. It's often overlooked in a traveler's typical European Grand Tour, even among eastern European countries. If you have the time to explore, you'll find absolutely gorgeous country villages, cheap and good-quality wine and beer, and evidently, bad ass old men. From the Flickr archives, today's Photo of the Day by Jon Rawlinson captures five cool Romanians, just shooting the breeze on a park bench. Some commenters have noted the men look like they could be in organized crime, but I'd prefer to just say they are proud to be Romanian and it shows.

If you want to learn more about Romania, you can read the excellent My Bloody Romania series with Lonely Planet author and Romania expert Leif Pettersen.

Add your travel photos to the Gadling Flickr pool to be chosen for a Photo of the Day, or share with us on Instagram using #gadling AND mentioning @gadlingtravel.

[Photo credit: Flickr user Jon Rawlinson]

Public art can take many forms: a mural, a street performer, even a tank as "sculpture." Then there is the many forms of graffiti. How do you differentiate between art and vandalism? This photo of a broken down Muni bus was taken by Flickr user JRodmanJr in San Francisco's Dogpatch neighborhood, presumably in the junkyard. It's hard to say when the bus acquired all of its "artwork," perhaps some of it while in service and the rest after it reached the end of the line. Do you think it's art, or just some spray paint?

Share your artistic travel shots with us for the Photo of the Day. Just add them to the Gadling Flickr pool or share on Instagram with @gadlingtravel and #gadling.

[Photo credit: JRodmanJr]

We here at Gadling are airplane nerds. We take pictures of the view from the gate, our inflight meals, and even take portraits in the bathroom. Even my daughter has become an airplane nerd before the age of 2, stopping in her tracks and pointing to the sky at the sight of a plane flying over. Naturally, this Instagram shot caught my eye, for the view from the wing of runway traffic at Jakarta airport and variety of planes in the queue. An airplane nerd might look at this and start daydreaming about where the other planes are going, how spacious their seats are, and what they might be having for lunch.

Share your best travel photos in the Gadling Flickr pool or with us on Instagram mentioning @gadlingtravel and adding hashtag #gadling to be featured as a Photo of the Day.

[Photo credit: LaurenIrons]

Last night, I posted a photo from Boston this week that I took on Tuesday near the Common and close to the site of the Marathon bombings. The city was starting to feel normal again, and the signs of what happened on Monday were of the positive variety: restaurants offering free meals for first responders, guerrilla fundraisers for the victims and families, and everyone showing their Boston pride with Red Sox shirts and caps.

We went for dinner in the North End, waiting on the street for a table to open at one of the popular Italian restaurants. While we stood outside, several special police vehicles pulled up to the corner to investigate some boxes left on the curb. They quickly cut into them, found them uninteresting, and moved on. Usually the sight of bomb squads would cause some alarm, but moods were light ("Don't they have robots for this?") as we had all adapted quickly to heightened security. Earlier in the day, I had stumbled upon a few bright spots in the North End: a gorgeous Peace Garden in full bloom and a small alley gallery of saints.

I spoke to the caretaker of All Saints' Way, who has had visitors from every country in the world (and will quiz you on what church you attend at home), but he reported fewer visitors this week after the "terrible thing." Too bad, regardless of your thoughts on faith or religion, it was a perfect place to reflect and try to regain some feelings of hope and peace.

We were awoken this morning with a call from one of my husband's colleagues; the office was closed today, due to a citywide lockdown. We turned on the news, took to Twitter and Reddit for updates, and began following the story that seemed like something out of the movie "The Town."

Early lockdowns were just for the towns surrounding Watertown, but soon all of Boston was included. Our hotel, the Marriott Long Wharf, has put up signs to inform us that all MBTA and Amtrak service had been suspended, but did not call us to inform us of the developments. Needless to say, we're still abiding by the lockdown requests from officials and staying indoors.

Our plans today were to check out of our hotel downtown and rent a car for the weekend, checking into another hotel outside the city, but now I was suddenly extra grateful for the leftover pizza and pastries from last night. The hotel has closed except to registered guests, and we were again grateful for the Starbucks in the downstairs lobby, open for business and fully stocked. Hotel security advised us to hold on to key cards if exiting the building, as all visitors will be checked on the registry list and bags searched.

Looking outside, traffic was light and the city seemed a bit quieter than usual on a Friday morning, but one dedicated construction worker remained with his backhoe, digging up dirt. As the morning wears on and media outlets are stretching out their old news and vaguely relevant interviews, life is starting to move on. You can see planes in and out of Logan Airport, and my husband's colleagues were able to rebook their flights for this morning, though taxi rides were delayed by vehicle searches on the road. Taxis began trickling in and out of the queue outside the hotel about an hour ago, but most guests are still coming and going by foot. My baby (late to bed and to rise) finally awoke, and we changed the TV from CNN to Sesame Street.

Hopefully, by the time you read this, the suspect will be apprehended peacefully and the lockdown lifted, so Boston can get back to healing, and we can get back to showing our support to the city's businesses and people.

[Photo credit: Meg Nesterov]

Hello from Boston, my hometown and location for the week. I arrived Tuesday, just about 24 hours after the horrific Marathon bombings, and found the city somber but also kinder and gentler than usual (hardly any cars honking). My first stop was Boston Common, for a walk through the park and gardens. Though the streets were lined with news trucks, and there were more than a few police officers out on patrol, the city felt like any other spring afternoon. On Beacon Street, where thousands of spectators watched Monday's race, I spotted this house with some special decorations on their window boxes: running shoes, left out to support Marathon runners. This is a tradition that locals do each year, but it felt especially poignant now, along with hundreds of runners still wearing their Marathon jackets around the city. Boston is tough, Boston is resilient, and Boston is open for business; come visit and show your support.

Share your Boston memories with us in the Gadling Flickr pool or on Instagram for another Photo of the Day.

[Photo credit: Meg Nesterov]

Nearly every visitor to Paris' Louvre Museum will tell you that, once they fight through the crowds to see her, it is surprising how small the famous "Mona Lisa" painting is in person. Today's Photo of the Day shows both the crowds of tourists eager to photograph her, and the relative scale of da Vinci's lady (30 x 21 inches, if you are wanted to know) to other paintings in the museum. It reminds me of an exhibition by German artist Thomas Struth, who documented museum visitors all over the world, making them the subjects rather than the artwork. We get a sense of perspective about museums, art and travel, and it makes you think maybe you should just get a postcard of the popular portrait rather than take the same crowded photo as millions before you.

Share your favorite travel photos in the Gadling Flickr pool, or on Instagram by tagging @gadlingtravel and using hashtag #gadling. You might see one of your shots as a future Photo of the Day.

[Photo credit: Flickr user Kumakulanui]

Last week, the world lost one of the all-time great film critics, when Roger Ebert passed away at age 70. He was mostly known for his love of movies and long career reviewing them at the Chicago Sun-Times, as well as his witty and wide-reaching Twitter feed. Roger was first and foremost a journalist, and he applied his curiosity and ease of language to many things, including travel.

If you can't imagine how a film reviewer can effortlessly evoke a place, start with a piece he wrote in 2010 on a changing London and a particularly Dickensian hotel at 22 Jermyn Street, later published in a shortened form for the Guardian's travel section. He writes of his 25 years of being a guest at the small hotel, many encounters are positively cinematic, such as meeting the hotel's owner, who appears in his guest room proffering a drink and colorful anecdotes about the neighborhood's characters. He worries about what the loss of businesses like the former Eyrie Mansion (established in 1685) will mean for the neighborhood: "Piece by piece, this is how a city dies," and paints a rich study of a place and time.

I am partial to a good donkey photo. Something about their sweet eyes makes them instantly loveable, and their inherent goofiness is charming. Today's Photo of the Day caught my eye partially because of the subject, as well as the gorgeous landscape in Croatia behind him, but also because of the caption: "Staying Home." Flickr user mmusnjak explains the donkey was uninterested in joining a mountain hike, and more into any food the photographer could provide. Staying home looks pretty good with surroundings like that, especially if guests bring gifts!

Meet any friendly animals on your travels? Share them with us in the Gadling Flickr pool, or on Instagram using hashtag #gadling and tagging @gadlingtravel for a future Photo of the Day.

[Photo credit: Marko Musnjak]

Last week, I wrote a lengthy tribute to guidebooks and the sad news that Frommer's guidebooks would cease publication, and many readers here and on Twitter shared in my grief. Well, it's time to remove the black armbands, because Arthur and his trusty guides are back! Don't place your orders just yet; there's still a lot up in the air, but the key news is that Arthur Frommer has reacquired his name brand from Google and confirmed to the Associated Press that he will resume publishing print, e-book and web content under the Frommer's name. Google has retained all of the original Frommer's content for its own Google+ and Zagat products, so Frommer will need to create all new content and find a new publisher for future books. Skift News has speculated on a few possibilities, as well as provided more details on the Frommer's-to-Google migration. Long live Arthur Frommer, we look forward to what's to come next.

Fear not, guidebook lovers; print isn't dead.

[Photo credit: Darien Library on Flickr]