Thank goodness it’s finally Friday. I don’t know about you all, readers, but it’s been a pretty hectic week for me and I’m more than ready to sleep in tomorrow. Kind of. Anymore, sleeping in really means 10 am. But! Regardless, here’s some of the best stories I’ve found this week. Pretty stuff to keep you smiling, first.

First of the links, my awesome and gorgeous friend Charli has posted a delightful guide for those of you who might be shopping for a travel-loving Valentine. No subliminal messages there, I swear. Go check out Abroad Outlook!

So, this one only came across my radar this week but was published a little bit ago. Regardless, The Diplomat’s fascinating article about the history of the Silk Road. Of course, I’m a bit of a history nerd and when you combine that with travel, things become exponentially awesome.

Geek and Sundry added a ton of stops on my list when they published an article featuring the Geek-themed Restaurants You Need to Visit. For those of you who are unaware, I’ve got an ever-growing list of places I can’t wait to visit this website. And, let’s face it, for personal reasons.

Now, this isn’t geeky exactly, but it is likely to affect many of us who love to travel and have cute attachments with wet noses and wiggly butts. Amtrak is reportedly expanding its program allowing pets on their trains.

Finally, I might be a little biased about this event, but I’m getting even more excited for Planet Comicon with every announcement. But… Alan Tudyk! Shiny!