According to my Jeep, we hit 100 degrees this weekend in Charlotte to it's time to take it back to the winter. This is the view of South Lake Tahoe from peaceful Zephyr Cove, just five miles away.
This photograph was captured with a Sony DSC-S70 camera.
This replica of the famed Mosque of the Booksellers in Morocco is sponsored by none other than the King of Morocco. Learn more about the Mosque and the Moroccan World Showcase in my previous photos — I can't overstate how much I enjoy visiting the Moroccan World Showcase!
This photograph was captured with a Sony NEX-7.
This 1,243 foot-long bridge was the final section to be completed on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Work began on the Blue Ridge Parkway on September 11, 1935. Construction of the Linn Cove Viaduct began in 1979 and was completed in 1987. It consists of 50 concrete pieces that were poured indoors at a nearby facility and then lowered into place by crane. The Viaduct was needed to provide access around the giant boulder fields of Grandfather Mountain without destroying them by cutting a tunnel through them.
This photograph was captured with a DJI Phantom 3 Professional drone.
Our annual beach trip to Wild Dunes on Isle of Palms, is getting closer! Nothing says summer like sand between your toes and some time out on the water. This split-hull boat is the Delphinus. We've taken a few trips on her out to Boneyard Beach in the past. I think it's time to start planning some excursions for our upcoming trip! If anybody has any suggestions, let me know!
This photograph was captured with a DJI Phantom 3 Professional drone.
Early mornings on Beech Mountain are nearly always breathtaking. This photograph was taken from the back deck at Slopeside a little past 7am as the sun was rising over the mountains. As the sun began to burn off the haze, the valleys below were left with what can only be described as rivers of clouds flowing through them. Beech Mountain is the highest U.S. town east of the Rockies and times like this remind you that it's really nice to be on top of the world!
This photograph was captured with a Sony NEX-7.
I'm not a fan of the house elf story arc in the Harry Potter films but I did think this was a clever storefront tucked away around the corner in Diagon Alley at Universal's Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
This photograph was captured with a Sony NEX-7 (the predecessor to the excellent a6300).
This world-famous monument/fountain is located in the south entrance to the Luxembourg Gardens in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. It was designed and sculpted by Jena-Baptise Carpeaux. The women in the fountain represent the four parts of the world and were initially criticized as "thin, unhealthy women with wasted flanks... furrowed thighs... twisting around in a bizarre circle without any grace." Ten years later, after Carpeaux's death, it was heralded as a masterpiece.
The best part for me about strolling past these statues and through the Luxembourg Gardens is recalling Ernest Hemingway's musings on wandering through the gardens with his young son when Paris was the burgeoning writer's hometown and he was so poor he'd have to hunt for pigeons in the gardens with a slingshot between paychecks.
This photograph was captured with a Nikon D90.
The attention to detail is what really makes Tampa's Oxford Exchange shine! Case in point: this is the patterned marble tile that greets you when you arrive. I don't think the architects and designers planned the prism rainbows but I wouldn't put it past them!
This photograph was captured with a Sony NEX-7 (the predecessor to the excellent a6300).
The greatest thing about the Illuminations fireworks and laser light show at Epcot each night is that it gives you about 20 minutes of complete alone time wandering around the countries of Epcot when everybody else is looking the other way.
Solitude in the Disney Parks is a rarity... unless you know where to look for it. Once you start looking, you'll find it everywhere. The whole point to Disney is to relax and enjoy yourself. Most people lose sight of that on the drive down I-95.
This photograph was captured with a Sony NEX-7.
We were treated to an amazing sunset on our recent cruise to the Bahamas! It was a full moon as well, which I think explains the drastic color shift from the black water to the nearly daylight-blue sky. Either way, it made for a very relaxing wait for dinner as we were sipping champaign and enjoying the sunset.
This photograph was captured with a Sony NEX-7.