An Army brat, I grew up moving from state to state, and sometimes different countries. I spent the better part of five years in Europe, even went to the American high school in Wiesbaden, Germany for a couple of years. I have been to Paris. Toured Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg. Went skiing in the Austrian Alps. Sailed past the White Cliffs of Dover. Spent a night in many German cities and cruised up and down the Rhine. But do I have pictures of any of that? Nada. Not a one. All the more reason to go back to snap a few. Later on down the road, I spent time in Vietnam. During my tenure in the Orient, I visited Hong Kong twice, and took an R&R in Taipei. Spent three days in the Philippines. Saw a lot of Vietnam. Do I have pictures? Sadly, precious few. It wasn't until I finished college a few years later with a degree in, of all things - wouldn't you know it? - geography, and started traveling on business that I began taking pictures on an irregular basis. Most of what's below was shot in the USA. There are a few from Canada and Mexico, too. No matter where you go, it's easy to find beauty or fun in your new surroundings.
Wait before placing your laptop on the conveyor belt at the airport security checkpoint. The guy in front of you may have placed a metallic object in his pocket, causing the alarm to go off. That slows everyone down, including you. By the time you get through the metal detector, your laptop, having already passed security, might have been stolen by an accomplice of the guy in front of you.
