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Although Betsy and I were married in June, we did to get to take our honeymoon cruise until September. Our cruise visited the southern Caribbean and lasted a little over a week.
One of the islands we visited was Antigua. While there we tired the island ad visited Shirley’s Height, an old military lookout and gun battery overlooking the Antigua coast. It was there that I got this picture of the coastline.
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Betsy and I made several trips out west when we were younger and could hike and enjoy nature up close and personal. We often had to get up at the crack of dawn in order to reach our next destination. I got this early morning picture of the Montana sky in 2012.
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Several years ago we made a birthday trip to Florida so Betsy could visit her over brother. We traveled down the east coast of the state and spent a couple of days at Oranon beach. Although our hotel room overlooked the Atlantic Ocean, I was able to get this pretty picture of the evening sky as the sun set behind us.
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Someone in our house has a birthday this month. I like it when Betsy’s birthday rolls around because she can no longer say she’s a year younger than I am.
We usually try to take a trip to celebrate the happy occasion, although I will admit that the trips have gotten shorter as we’ve gotten older. But it is still nice to get away for a day or two. The picture above was taken four years ago when we went to Cass Railroad State Park in West Virginia. (Someone really enjoys steam locomotives!)
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One day while visiting the Grand Canyon in June, 2011, we were at Mather Point as the sun was setting. That’s when I captured this photo of the setting sun at the Grand Canyon.
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When Betsy and I went to Mt. Nebo State Park in Arkansas, we did more than just watch the sunrises and sunsets. We also did quite a bit of hiking, especially when we were younger and could get around more easily.
One of our favorite hikes was to Mt. Nebo Falls. Since the waterfall was near the top of the mountain the water flow was never very high, but it was a pretty little waterfall. The hike to the base of the falls was rated as strenuous — the hike back up felt even more so. But it was a hike we made several times and we enjoyed it each time.
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When visiting the Grand Canyon in 2011, we got to Pima Point fairly late in the afternoon. The scenery here, as at all the overlooks, was spectacular. But the light was also pretty spectacular. I really like this image and the memories it brings back.
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For many years Betsy and I hav celebrated Christmas by attending Biltmore’s Candlelight Christmas. The decorations are always marvelous, and seem to be the perfect way to celebrate such a festive season. This year was no exception, and we very much enjoyed visiting the house and seeing all the decorations. This is a photo of the library — I think I could spend many happy hours there!
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In 1987 I was one of five professors from our college that spent a summer teaching English to the some of the faculty and staff of our sister college in Tianjin, China. One day our hosts took us and several of our students to see the Summer Palace in Beijing.
The Summer Palace was an imperial garden during the Qing dynasty, and is a vast collection off lakes, gardens, and palaces. The architecture was in a traditional Chinese style.
The ornamentation on the roofs of the palace was exquisite.
On of the features of the Summer Palace was the Long Corridor, a covered walkway that contained approximately 14,000 paintings, most of which were derived from classical Chinese literature.
Water makes up three-quarters of the grounds of the Summer Palace. Kunming Lake is the largest of the bodies of water and provides a beautiful and relaxing sight.
Another outstanding attraction of the palace is the Marble Boat. In reality it is a tea room, but it was built in the style of ships in the Chinese navy.
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Betsy and I enjoy going to Mt. Nebo State Park in Arkansas during February or March because we can enjoy watching the sunsets from the back porch of ‘our’ cabin on top of the mountain. I got this picture of the setting sun on March 17, 2025.
