Here are some highlights from my travels. Feel free to download full-sized images.
Hobbiton – New Zealand, North Island. This is where the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films were shot. Taken in November of 2019 (the Antipodean spring).
Taken on a horseback ride at Treetops Lodge and Estate – New Zealand, North Island.
Queenstown – New Zealand, South Island.
Lake Tekapo in the Mackenzie Region – New Zealand, South Island. We stopped by on our way to Mount Cook (which is called “Aoraki” in Māori, the indigenous language of New Zealand).
Lake Tekapo in the Mackenzie Region – New Zealand, South Island. We stopped by on our way to Mount Cook (which is called “Aoraki” in Māori, the indigenous language of New Zealand).
The Three Sisters rock formation in the Blue Mountains, a three-hour drive west of Sydney – New South Wales, Australia. As Aboriginal legend has it, three sisters from the Katoomba people fell in love with three brothers from a hostile tribe, starting a war. A witchdoctor transformed the sisters into rock to protect them. But before he could reverse the spell, he died, taking their lives but forever immortalizing them in stone.
Sydney Opera House – New South Wales, Australia.
Hiking in the Daintree Rainforest with an Aboriginal guide – Queensland, Australia. 9 of the world’s 14 most venomous snakes live in this rainforest! And even the plants can be dangerous.
Daintree Ecolodge – Queensland, Australia. Taken in November of 2019 (the Antipodean spring).
“Trying to Remember the Color of the Sky that September Morning” by Spencer Finch, the only piece of art commissioned for the National September 11 Memorial Museum. The sky over Manhattan was a rare, clear blue on the morning of 9/11/01, as New Yorkers who were there frequently testify. Each of the 2,983 tiles is painted a slightly different shade of blue to represent the 2,977 victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks as well as the 6 victims of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Each tile is unique — just as each of the victims was — and they all coalesce to form the striking blue of the sky held in New Yorkers’ collective memory. The words that form Virgil’s line of poetry from The Aeneid were forged by New Mexico artist Tom Joyce using recovered steel from the World Trade Center. Behind the wall lies the remains of victims who have yet to be identified through DNA testing. The Chief Medical Examiner of the City of New York vowed to identify all human remains and return them to their families, no matter how long it takes. What a poignant and powerful piece of art Finch created to immortalize those who lost their lives.
One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.
New York at midnight from the Empire State Building, the city’s second-tallest building (after One World Trade Center).
Midtown Manhattan – New York. Taken from the Lotte Palace Hotel.
Turkeys and a deer at Post Ranch Inn. Taken in Big Sur, California.
Bixby Creek Bridge – California. Located in Big Sur.
Garrapata State Park – California. Taken a few miles south of Carmel in Big Sur, California.
Big Sur Coast – California. Stunning coastline on my birthday trip in 7/2018.
Big Sur Beach at sunset – California. On my birthday road trip, Shawn and I stopped by this gorgeous beach at sunset.
Kitchen inside Le Château de Vianden – Luxembourg. This reminded me of a witch’s lair!
View of Vianden – Luxembourg. Taken from the chairlift on our way up to the Indian Forest and château.
Dinant – Belgium. Taken during Shawn’s and my visit to Belgium in spring 2018.
Delft – the Netherlands. Charming Delft is famous for its blue pottery.
Canal in Delft – the Netherlands. Delft is a city known for its famous blue pottery.
Kinderdijk – the Netherlands. A stormy day at the Dutch village of Kinderdijk, famous for its historic windmills.
Red Tulips at Keukenhof Gardens, Lisse – the Netherlands.
Tulips at Keukenhof Gardens, Lisse – the Netherlands.
“All You Need Is Love” – the Netherlands. Display at Keukenhof Gardens in Lisse.
Dutch Clogs – the Netherlands. Taken at Marken, South Holland.
Barracks at Auschwitz II – Birkenau – Poland. These barracks housed children.
Auschwitz II – Birkenau Extermination Camp – Poland. Taken in the spring of 2018.
Auschwitz I Concentration Camp – Poland. Taken in April of ’18.
Aerial View of Oahu – Hawaii. Taken on a helicopter ride with my aunt in November of ’17.
A Courtyard in St Andrews, Scotland – United Kingdom. A charming area that lies between North Street and the Scores in St Andrews, UK.
Theater of Dionysus – Greece. Taken from the Acropolis in Athens, Greece on my Syrian refugee volunteer trip in September ’17.
Mural done by Residents of Ritsona Syrian Refugee Camp – Greece. This is located outside the Distribution Center, where I volunteered with a humanitarian relief organization called Cross Cultural Solutions (CCS) in September of 2017.
Man with Street Dog in Chalkida – Greece. In September ’17, I volunteered to help out at a Syrian refugee camp in Greece called Ritsona. Here is a photo of a street dog with a man. The man asked me to take their photo!
Street Dog in Chalkida – Greece. In September ’17, I volunteered to help out at a Syrian refugee camp in Greece called Ritsona. Here is a photo of a street dog patrolling one morning.
The Roman Pool at Hearst Castle – California. Taken on my road trip up the coast in spring ’17.
Itsukushima Shrine – Japan. This is the “floating” torii gate off Miyafima Island, Japan. It is UNESCO World Heritage site and is only submerged in the water at high tide.
Hiroshima Castle – Japan. The castle was constructed in the 1590s, destroyed by the atomic bombing on August 6, 1945, and reconstructed in 1958.
Shukkei-en Garden in Hiroshima – Japan. This garden was a short walk from ground zero, the spot at which the atomic bomb (“Little Boy”) was dropped.
Canoe at Shukkei-en Garden in Hiroshima – Japan. This garden was a short walk from ground zero, the spot at which the atomic bomb (“Little Boy”) was dropped.
Kinkaku-ji (“Temple of the Golden Pavilion”), a Buddhist temple in Kyoto – Japan.
The Still-Snowy Mountains of Nikko – Japan. Taken in April ’17.
Garden at New Otani Hotel in Tokyo – Japan. Taken in April ’17.
Cherry Blossoms at Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden in Tokyo – Japan. Taken on my trip to Japan in April ’17.
Cherry Blossoms at Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden in Tokyo – Japan. Taken on my trip to Japan in April ’17.
At Westminster Abbey in London – United Kingdom. Taken during a December visit to a friend who lives in London.
December the 1st in London (East Lawn) – United Kingdom.
Tower Bridge, London – United Kingdom. I visited a friend in London after my master’s graduation, in 11/2016.
Steingaden Abbey, Bavaria – Germany. Founded in 1147 and later rebuilt in the Rococo style.
Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh – United Kingdom. Photo taken in 11/2016.
St Andrews, Scotland, at sunset – United Kingdom.
Boyd Lake State Park, Loveland – Colorado. Taken during a visit with extended family in July of 2017.
“Lover’s Leap” in Rock City Gardens, on Lookout Mountain – Georgia.
