Pittsburgh. Phew. This picture is from 1999 when I had gone back in the summer for a visit. I miss this town, not that there was much for me to do there when I was under 21 but I did love living there. I spent a lot of time walking over those bridges alone, sometimes w/ friends, but mostly w/ my thoughts. I came out of that place w/ one lifelong friend & some good memories.
Savannah. I went there on a road trip from Pennsylvania w/ Harmony to visit her brother & family for New Year's 2000. We rang in the millennium w/ fireworks & dancing & seeing the ocean. I was amazed by the willow trees. I've seen them before but never like that. I felt horrible that I didn't know how to drive a stick shift & poor Harmony had to drive the entire way by herself. If only I had known! And I'm bad at getting into conversation at times, especially when I don't see someone day to day, so I hope that ride wasn't too boring for her. When I do get talking about things though I never seem to shut up. ;) Harmony is the friend I got out of Pittsburgh & she's one of my favorite people in the world. It's hard to believe it's been 10 years since then.
My dad's house. Maybe the most stable thing in my life has always been my dad never moving from my childhood home. My parents are divorced & we lived w/ my mom. We moved around quite a few times but my dad always stayed put. There is a tree on the side of the yard that has bright red berries. It's a favorite of mine & makes me really happy just thinking about it. I took this picture in 2002.
White Sands New Mexico. I made a detour when I was moving cross country from NY to LA in 2003. My brother was with me & we wandered around White Sands for a while. It's one of those places I've wanted to go to my entire life & I'm not really sure why. It was pretty cool though - everything looked like it was covered in snow but it's all sand. So pretty & so weird. My car left w/ an insane amount of sand in every inch of it but it certainly was worth seeing.
Trees! Something that has always made me happy in life is the beauty of a good tree. This one lives in Beverly Hills. It's gigantic. I took this picture in 2006. I can only hope one day to have property & have lots of trees, all my favorite ones, just for me to sit & stare at. Ah to dream...
Huntington Gardens. This place is gorgeous! I can't get enough. And it deserves two pictures b/c it also has a nice fountain which I find myself being really interested in a good fountain for some reason. Also taken in 2006.
Letchworth State Park in upstate NY. My friend Erica got married here in 2007 (another one of my favorite people in the world). This place is beautiful but really it's an overall reminder how how beautiful things are in the North East. I miss it despite the blizzards & humidity. It holds some really pretty sights.
San Francisco. So pretty there. I loved the row houses & the park. I only went up there for a couple days but would love to go back sometime. This picture was taken at Alcatraz in 2007.
NYC. I have never really made up my mind about the city. For a while I found that every time I went there I was reminded of why I wouldn't want to live there. The time I went when I took this picture however (2007), I was able to spend more time wandering around & I find now that there is a lot I'd like to see still. Perhaps sometime in the future I'll spend a little more quality time there.
Paris. Wow wow wow. Finally. In the 10th grade I got the sad sad news that I couldn't go on the French club trip to Paris b/c there wasn't enough room on the plane. I was a late last minute payer & therefore had last consideration. 15 years later, 2008, I got to spend a few weeks - (yes weeks! That was my big vacation.) in this beautiful city. A friend of mine was studying there for the semester & I came to visit. There is still a ton I haven't seen & I would love to go back sometime w/ a friend. I took this photo at the top of Notre Dame & the other near the Eiffel tower. The photos below I took at the Louvre. That place is amazing & I plowed through it in 3 hours quite satisfied.
England! London! Kensington Gardens! I went to London for the weekend while I was staying in Paris. I loved it there except that I was in town alone & afraid to spend a lot of money b/c everything costs twice as much for an American in London. I would love to go back there again. So much to see. I went to lots of museums there. I walked lots & lots of places. Loved the huge clouds in the sky. It felt very comforting.
While I was in England I took a trip out to see Stonehenge - another place I've longed to go to my entire life. I went there super early in order to do the inner circle thing... which basically means I can go inside the roped off area to see the stones up close. While I was there a group of women were performing some kind of ceremony. It's all about timing right? Seriously one of the most satisfying trips I've ever made.
When I returned to France I visited Versailles & Pere Lachaise Cemetery. This sculpture emerging from the water at Versailles is absolutely breathtaking & that particular day it was gloomy outside & made it even more amazing. I wish I could have spent more time there. This picture from the cemetery was on my 2nd visit there. I definitely could have spent hours more there. I also made a trip to Monet's House & Gardens which remains to be my absolute favorite place ever. I wish I could live there. It's quite beautiful & the second I stepped into the garden I felt more at home than anywhere. It's quite inspiring.
This year I took a trip to Rochester where I had gone to college. I guess I have a thing for cemeteries. I wish I spent more time visiting this one when I lived there.So I set my sights in the future on Seattle, Vancouver, Ireland & Italy. I want to see more far off places!
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