Seattle

Melville, N.Y. – October 21, 2026 -- A student in Cologne, Germany, has won the 52nd annual Nikon Small World photomicrography competition with a photo of ink droplets suspended in midair inside a printer as it prints. Nikon Instruments announced the winners, with first place going to Ole Bielfeldt.

Bielfeldt rebuilt a printer so the paper moves instead of the printhead

Bielfeldt wanted to know how a printer places ink onto paper so precisely. His first attempts failed. The printhead moved too fast to keep a small area in focus, and the droplets were too fast for his camera's shutter speed.

Seattle – October 20, 2026 -- Seabourn is turning its Earth & Ocean restaurant concept into a fleetwide culinary philosophy, with locally inspired menus and new dining experiences coming to guests at sea and ashore.

The philosophy pairs regional specialties, seasonal produce and culinary traditions with gourmet ingredients sourced worldwide for their quality, flavor and craftsmanship. It takes its name from the Earth & Ocean restaurant that Seabourn introduced in 2018, which offered rotating menus built on fresh, locally available ingredients.

Chef's Market Finds put regional dishes on the menu

In The Restaurant, menus will feature "Chef's Market Finds," highlighting local ingredients from the regions where each ship is sailing. Examples include:

Seattle – October 20, 2026 -- Zillow has launched a connector that lets Claude users browse homes for sale or rent, check home values and estimate what they can afford without leaving the AI assistant.

Setup takes four steps in Claude's settings

Users open Claude, go to "Customize," select "Connectors" and connect Zillow. From there, they can ask specific questions, such as finding three-bedroom homes for sale in Denver under $600,000 with a garage, or apartments for rent in Seattle under $2,500 a month.

Listings, maps and affordability tools appear in the chat

Claude can show Zillow listings with photos, prices and other details, plus interactive maps, home value estimates and affordability tools. Links lead to the full property pages on Zillow. In the same conversation, users can request a tour, contact a real estate agent or explore financing.

Seattle – October 19, 2026 -- Homeowners can now check for hidden water leaks in about five minutes using two meter readings and a free online Water Leak Rate Calculator from Simply Leak Detection.

A $2,777 bill covered seven months of use

The company points to a July 2026 Arizona's Family report on Phoenix homeowner Cameron Green. His bill covered seven months and 344,000 gallons of water use after a city-owned transmitter stopped reporting readings. Green said an underground leak, invisible from the surface, contributed to the high usage.

The reported total reflects overall consumption, not the leak alone.

A moving meter can reveal a problem

A meter that keeps registering water use while fixtures, irrigation and water-using appliances are all off can reveal a problem that would otherwise go unnoticed. Homeowners do not have to wait for the next bill to look for it.

Pompano Beach – October 16, 2026 -- The 30-year fixed mortgage rate now averages 7.4%, the highest since November 2023, even as the US housing market tilts toward buyers for the first time in years. The 15-year fixed rate averages 6.73%, up from 5.53% a year ago.

Sellers outnumber buyers by 58% nationwide

In August, there were 58% more sellers than buyers, the widest gap since Redfin began tracking the data in 2013. The National Association of Realtors puts supply at 4.9 months at the current sales pace, the highest in almost ten years.

Homes.com reports that inventory rose in 70% of 930 markets, while buyers stayed cautious. Seattle listings climbed 21.5% to 15,959 homes, yet sales fell 12.8%. In Nashville, listings rose 18.7% and sales dropped 7%, with sellers offering incentives of up to $36,000 and lower commissions.

Seattle – October 16, 2026 -- Holland America Line is adding Bar 1873 to Oosterdam, a two-story atrium bar with cocktails, live piano and a three-meter illuminated tulip sculpture, and bookings are now open for cruises aboard the transformed ship.

The bar debuts as part of Holland America Evolution, the cruise line's fleet update. Oosterdam also gets a reimagined Crow's Nest with expanded live music.

A glowing tulip anchors the Deck 2 atrium

London-based design firm SMC built Bar 1873 around Oosterdam's central atrium on Deck 2. The three-meter tulip sculpture, inspired by the Netherlands' national flower and the line's signature orange tulip, is visible from several vantage points and casts patterns of light across the space.

More than 200 heritage and repurposed objects, bespoke artwork and a visual timeline of the company's history surround it. Vintage-style maps and custom artwork add Dutch cultural and maritime touches.

Seattle – October 15, 2026 -- Holland America Line is offering up to 50% off cruise fares on select 2026 holiday sailings, which include Thanksgiving dinner, Brunch with Santa and a Christmas Eve Feast of the Seven Fishes at sea. The celebrations run across Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and New Year's voyages.

Ships get decorated, and New Year's Eve ends with a champagne toast

Whether a ship is in the Caribbean, Antarctica or Australia, the line promises seasonal décor, ceremonial tree lightings and special programming. Entertainment includes carol singing, holiday movies, crew performances and family activities. A New Year's Eve celebration welcomes 2027 with parties across the ships and a champagne toast.

Shipboard culinary teams also build gingerbread villages. Each ship gets its own design, and the teams spend hours planning, baking and assembling the pieces.

Seattle – October 15, 2026 -- Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines have refreshed their international Suites menus on flights to Asia, Europe and Oceania. The new dishes come from named chefs and are paired with a new premium wine selection. Guests can pre-order up to five entrée options on eligible domestic and international flights.

Seattle chef Brady Ishiwata Williams adds Tokyo and Seoul dishes

James Beard Award-winning Chef Brady Ishiwata Williams has worked with Alaska since 2025. His signature beef entrée is already a guest favorite on flights from Seattle to Tokyo, Seoul and London.

His new Suites dishes are Miso Glazed Black Cod with kimchi fried rice and traditional banchan on flights to Tokyo-Narita, and Galbi-Glazed Chicken with fried rice and banchan on flights to Seoul-Incheon. His menu is open for pre-order now.

Seattle – October 14, 2026 -- Expedia Group's new Unpack '27 report identifies seven travel trends for 2027, from one-night getaways to hobby-led rentals in landlocked US cities. The report draws on first-party data from Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo, plus global traveler research and social listening.

Trip Snacking turns one-night stays into the norm

Hotels.com searches for one-night stays are up nearly 10% year over year. Some 79% of surveyed travelers plan to book a one-night stay in the coming year, rising to 83% among Gen Z and Millennials. Their reasons: celebrating a milestone (34%), seeing a show (32%) and resetting between longer trips (28%).

Seattle – October 13, 2026 -- EcoFlow's new TITAN Series, on sale from Oct. 13 on the EcoFlow website, offers whole-home battery backup starting in the $2,000 range for a standalone unit. The lineup has three models: TITAN 5000 Plus, TITAN 5000 and TITAN 5000 Classic.

The flagship runs a 3-ton air conditioner without a soft-starter

TITAN 5000 Plus delivers 7.2kW of output from a 5kWh battery. That is enough to run a 3-ton central air conditioner, a refrigerator, a TV and lights at the same time, with power to spare. In homes with solar, output rises to 10kW with EcoFlow's X-Fusion 2.0 PV Boost.

The battery uses a 40160 tabless 2C LFP cell, which EcoFlow calls an industry first. Capacity scales in 5kWh steps from 5kWh up to 30kWh. Solar panels and generators can extend runtime during long outages.