Montezuma’s Arizona – an adventure to three Arizona national monuments
24 Sep 2012

Montezuma’s Arizona – an adventure to three Arizona national monuments

by | posted in: Adventure, Day Trips, Historic Site, National Monument, National Parks, Photography, Travel | 2

Arizona is home to 22 national parks properties. Those include national parks like the Grand Canyon and small national monuments like the places I explored last Saturday, Montezuma Castle National Monument, Tuzigoot National Monument and Montezuma Well. These three sites … Continued

Taliesin West – Frank’s Winter Home and Studio
22 Sep 2012

Taliesin West – Frank’s Winter Home and Studio

by | posted in: Adventure, Architecture, Everyday Adventure, Historic Site, Museum, National Historic Landmark, Photography, Travel | 4

Ever since my interior design classes at LDS Business College, I’ve been fascinated by Frank Lloyd Wright’s work. His design philosophy and the actual outcomes intrigued me. I found the simplicity, cohesion and purpose of everything beautiful. So, it would … Continued

All-American Road Trip
4 Sep 2012

All-American Road Trip

by | posted in: Adventure, Day Trips, Everyday Adventure, Historic Site, National Historic Landmark, Photography, Religious Sites, Travel | 11

When I arrived in L.A. from China, I began a two-week road trip with family. My sister and her husband picked me up at LAX and we drove to Utah. On the way we stopped at the Las Vegas temple … Continued

Beijing, part two
3 Sep 2012

Beijing, part two

by | posted in: Adventure, Architecture, China, Historic Site, Photography, Religious Sites, Travel, UNESCO World Heritage | 1

Our journey to Beijing took us on two trains; a twenty four hour overnight train to Xi’an and another eight hour D train to Beijing. Last time we were in Xi’an we saw the Terracotta Warriors. Ever since then I … Continued

Western China’s Ancient Remnants
24 Jul 2012

Western China’s Ancient Remnants

by | posted in: Adventure, China, Historic Site, International Parks, National Parks, Natural Wonders, Photography, Travel | 0

From the Mogao Caves we hopped in a taxi for the day to visit a few other sites outside of Dunhuang including a 2,000 year old wall and gate and Yadan National Park where Zhang Yimou’s Hero was filmed. 1,000 … Continued

The crown jewel of Buddhist grottoes – the Mogao Caves
10 Jul 2012

The crown jewel of Buddhist grottoes – the Mogao Caves

by | posted in: Adventure, China, Historic Site, Museum, Photography, Religious Sites, Travel, UNESCO World Heritage | 2

The main draw for Dunhuang and why the town gets any real attention is because of the Mogao Caves, a series of ancient grottoes that have been preserved by the desert with a brilliant collection of statuary and frescoes that … Continued

Dunhuang, camel trekking near a desert oasis
9 Jul 2012

Dunhuang, camel trekking near a desert oasis

by | posted in: Adventure, China, Natural Wonders, Photography, Travel | 9

We reached Dunhuang a couple of hours later than expected the next day and made our way to the Dune Guesthouse to arrange our adventures for the next couple of days. Since we arrived late, we didn’t really have time … Continued

Lanzhou, Gansu
8 Jul 2012

Lanzhou, Gansu

by | posted in: Adventure, China, Museum, Photography, Travel | 1

On the way to Dunhuang we stopped in Lanzhou, the capitol of Gansu province on a long layover. As we woke up on the train we looked out the windows and saw desert landscape that reminded both Aaron and I … Continued

Pandas are so darn cute!
28 Jun 2012

Pandas are so darn cute!

by | posted in: Adventure, China, Historic Site, Photography, Travel, UNESCO World Heritage, Zoos & More | 2

I wrote this as I snaked across the Chinese countryside from Chengdu, Sichuan to Lanzhou, Gansu on a 21 hour train ride. Chengdu was well worth the trip. The highlight had to be our trip to the Giant Panda Research … Continued

What big ears you have! – the giant Buddha of Leshan
28 Jun 2012

What big ears you have! – the giant Buddha of Leshan

by | posted in: Adventure, China, Historic Site, Photography, Religious Sites, Travel, UNESCO World Heritage | 5

Many years ago I saw Samantha Brown on the Travel Channel visit this colossus and I told myself I would go there someday. That day has come and gone and it was pretty darn cool. It is the biggest Buddha … Continued