Colombia - December 2012

This year, we spent a wonderful Christmas in South America!  Despite the heat, the mysterious country of Colombia was a wonderful place to vacation.  I discovered the grand architecture of Cartagena, delicious coconut-lime lemonade, and how much I love snorkeling.  I narrowed my 800+ photos down to these favorites.

Christmas in Cartagena

Outside the Old City Wall

Balcony Flowers

A Peek Inside

Colombian Graffiti

Fishing

Colorful Wares

Street View

Yum

Sunset Shadows

Look Up

Pink

Cartagena Square

My Favorite

Dancers

Happy Holidays

Island Critter

Tropical Paradise

Sandy Fun

Our Colorful Hotel

Across the Street

Island Road

Downtown Decorations

Intra-Island Bridge

Jellyfish!

Heron Waiting

Hidden Bell

Swan Fence

Looking Back at Providencia

Overlook

Stormy Weather

Island Cemetary

Seahorse Santa

Pastels

Hopscotch

I Fly

Palm Tree Path

Beach Bar

Sunset

Last Island Morning

Flying Back to Cartagena

Whimsical Cartagena Street

Lizard Door

Policedog

Shabby Chic

Soft Salmon

Blue Sky

Famous Colombian Sculpture

Music Festival Poster

Starry Night

Heading Home

China - December 2012

In early December, I stepped foot in China for the first time. Despite the worst flight of my life (no in-flight entertainment, fluorescent food, various broken bits of the plane lying about underfoot), the week was wonderful.  Guangzhou is an industrial city less visited by tourists, but we had a jolly time exploring, and mostly by foot.  We attracted a lot of attention as we were often the only non-Chinese people around.  It was fun to see how delighted people became when they realized one of us spoke Mandarin! My main impressions of the city: the food is amazing, the tiny alleyways exotic and mysterious, and everything is delightfully cheap (our apartment was about $30/day).  On our last day in China, we traveled outside the city to quickly check out Macau and Hong Kong.  Seven days was a tad too short to do everything on our list--looks like we'll have to go back someday.

Rainy Hotel View

Palm Trees

Guangzhou Pearl River

Architecture

High-Density Housing

Tea Market

Market Street

Market Street 2

Portal

This is China

Stuffed Noodle Street Food

Delicious Egg and Biscuit Street Food

Savory Pancake Street Food

Archway

Christmas in China

Vine-Covered Walkway

Traditional Porches

Ornate Railings

Tuk-Tuk

Restaurant at Night

Outdoor Mall Giant Poster

Housing

Sugarcane Juice

Tree-Lined Street

Macau!

Part of the Macau "Strip"

The Hong Kong Skyline

The Wonderful World of Chocolate

Purchased in Norway and London by my wonderful significant other for me: