Give winter the cold shoulder! Escape to these warm, relaxing, waterfront retreats that specialize in de-stressing packages, pampering treatments, and amazing meals.The COMO Shambhala Retreat spa is known for its holistic approach to vacation de-stressing, combining elements from the ancient Indian tradition of Ayurveda with Asian-inspired treatments such as Thai massage.The resort is located on 1,000 beachfront acres, where garden, oceanfront, and villa rooms welcome you with sleek Balinese furniture, white cotton linens and natural wood accents.Rest: A small pavilion built over the island's amusingly named Boiling Hole wetlands is the best spot for light yoga, meditation or just relaxed, solitary musing.Relax: In the Stress Management program (from $3,312, including accommodations, meals, airport transfers and tax), consultants build a system of therapies, outdoor activities and well-being lectures that help you feel more balanced and rested. [Read the full article]

A good night's sleep tends to leave you feeling refreshed, alert, and upbeat. According to a new study, it may also make you look healthier and more attractive to others.To test whether there's a grain of truth in the notion of "beauty sleep," researchers in Sweden took photographs of 23 men and women ages 18 to 31 after they'd slept for eight hours.They then repeated the process, except this time the researchers kept the volunteers up for 31 hours straight after allowing them to sleep for just five hours the previous night. (For both snapshots, participants were instructed to wear no makeup, keep their hair loose, and perform the same grooming beforehand.)When the researchers mixed up all the photos and asked 65 people to rate how attractive, tired, and healthy the study participants looked, the photographs of the well-rested people scored significantly higher. [Read the full article]

Buying gifts for co-workers can be pretty tough. You have to draw that line between "fun" and "appropriate" so you don't offend anyone or come across as unprofessional (especially to your boss).You probably don't know all of their favorite candy flavors, colors and candle scents, and you'd probably feel weird asking. You have a ton of other gifts to buy, so you're probably sticking to a pretty tight budget, and to top it all off, you may not even like all of your co-workers.All of this can add stress to an already busy holiday season, so to take the hassle out of office gift-giving, here are our ideas on what to get everyone in your office, handily broken down into two price points: Inexpensive and dirt cheap.You can have a little more fun with the people in your office that you've worked with for a while or know well. [Read the full article]

Within seconds of answering the phone to discuss his latest film, documentary director Amr Bayoumi is talking about female orgasms.While it might seem unusual for an Egyptian man to be talking so frankly about intimate matters, Bayoumi is something of an expert in the field.His film "Sex Talk," which features compatriots revealing details of their physical relationships, is his second exploration of a subject still largely considered taboo in Egypt.But, insists Bayoumi, the most unusual aspect of his conversation is his willingness to talk and make movies not just about sex -- but about what he calls "normal" sex."In 2005 I was thinking of making a small film interviewing women speaking about their moment of pleasure -- orgasms," he said."In the process of researching this I tried to find books or academic studies ... and discovered there isn't anything focusing on normal sexual relationships in Egypt. [Read the full article]