http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/images/viglogo.png It is cold out so I look around the house to find things to photograph. This is a candleholder in our bedroom at night lit by light from my cell phone. Yeah, I know. I was bored! http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3284-what-is-this-thing.html A line of Christmas day worshipers waiting to enter a church in Stockholm for mass. I assume they are hoping to follow the steeples stretching to heavens. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3283-the-way-to-heaven.html Twilight at a train station in suburban Stockholm. I am using the word twilight lightly. In winter, it is almost always twilight there. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3282-station.html 2 parallel walls with round mirrors on them and a wall in the middle with a large circular hole in it created this effect in a shopping mall in Stockholm, Sweden. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3172-circles.html This is where tea comes from. Our bus stopped at a small tea plantation. We sampled some tea and walked around the plantation a bit. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3029-tea-plantation.html Who was here? Or is it who loves whom? People are the same all over the world! In the hillside of Longji, the path passed through a patch of bamboos. This carving caught my attention. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3028-bamboo.html This one takes a bit of explanation. The pagoda is traditional Chinese architecture so are the decorations on the doorway. The writing on top of the gate is Arabic and says there is no God but God (Allah). This is the main courtyard of the grand mosque in Xi'an, China. The city used to be the capital of the empire more than 2000 years ago. After the Capital was moved away, Xi'an served as the terminus for most of the Arab and Persian traders. Over the centuries, they brought not only their goods but their ideas and religion to the point that Xi'an now boasts the largest Muslim population in China. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3027-middle-east-meets-far-east.html There was a wild fire in the Lake Tahoe area a few months ago which filled the air with a lot of smoke. The sun shining, or trying to shine, through the smoke made this unique shade of pink. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3018-onion-flower.html This kid had a blast throwing sand in the water. Isn't it great how children can entertain themselves with simplest things in life? Why do we insist on complicating our lives as we grow older? http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3017-sunset-and-the-beach.html Just goofing around with a few bottles I found at IKEA. The best light source I found was the sun. All the other light sources failed at producing sharp edge shadows. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3016-shades-colors-and-light.html Brand new shopping mall complete with a McDonald restaurant guarded by a newly built, old-fashioned stone lion across the square from the ancient bell tower in center of Xian, China. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-3011-new-and-old.html We had a snow storm last night. It was wet when I started my commute home but the road was already covered with snow at higher elevations. the reflection of lights is much more beautiful on wet road than on the snow. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2984-last-nights-commute.html We had a snow storm last night. it is still snowing. It is not unusual to see a car spun out or stuck in snow in the side of the road in these conditions. My commute takes me from my house at 4500 feet elevation to my work at 6000 feet over a pass at 7200 feet everyday. It is a beautiful drive. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2983-morning-commute.html The top part of this tree has died, I suspect in a very cold storm or perhaps a fire. The bark has fallen away exposing the tortured soul of the tree. The bottom part is still alive and holding the tree up. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2977-dead-or-alive.html Streets of Carson City with Christmas decorations. I kept my speed the same as the jeep in front of me so I could keep it in the same place for the duration of the exposure. I like how this shot came out. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2974-night-driving.html Graymouth, New Zealand at sunset with the sun behind me. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2969-long-shadow.html This beach in Graymouth, New Zealand was so flat that the tides moved more like a river. The water was rushing back when I decided to takes some sunset photos. The clouds were too thick to get any sunset colors so a few photos like this one with the sand so wet it reflected the sky were best I came away with. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2968-flat-beach.html I though this was appropriate for Christmas. I took this one day when I was skiing in Heavenly ski resort in Tahoe. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2967-pine-cone.html I took this one exactly 1 year ago on my way home from work. Sometimes i have to pinch myself to remind myself where I live is not a dreamland. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2966-tahoe-sunset.html Sorry, I didn't know How to categorize this photo. This is a spice store at Bazaar-e-vakil in Shiraz. This ancient shopping mall was built centuries ago and is still in use, although more as a tourist attraction than a place where locals do their day to day shopping. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2965-vakil-bazar.html The tower without the fireworks as seen from a bus stop. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2963-tour-eiffel.html In Paris, they attach fireworks to the Eiffel tower for the Bastille day celebrations. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2962-14th-of-july.html Oh, things they can do with fireworks these days! This is from 4th of July fireworks over Lake Tahoe. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2961-flowers-in-the-sky.html Thunderbirds of the Royal Canadian air force put on a show at the Reno Air races. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2960-thunderbirds.html What they call legacy formation flight. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2959-something-old-something-new.html Fireworks in Washington DC http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2958-4th-of-july.html Tomb of Hafiz (or Hafez) in Shiraz is the place wher people go to pay homage to this 14th century persian poet while seeing and been seen. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2957-hafiz.html The blinking red, yellow and blue lights on the left of the photos are a cop passing me. I think he had a pizza in his car getting cold. I didn't see any accidents of anything that would need the highway patrol's attention ahead :) http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2951-pay-attention.html One of my favorite things is taking long exposures at night. This is what I do on the winter commutes home when it is already dark when I leave office. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2950-night-driving.html Taking off at Reno air races. This is one of the ugliest airplanes ever designed. But beauty was not on the list of things to achieve when they were building this. The titanium tub that surrounds the pilot, powerful guns and all the other features makes this the best plane for close air support. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2949-a-10.html Warbirds on the ground waiting for the ones int he sky to finish the race so they can start racing. Several days of airplanes racing brings the small and normally quiet airport north of Reno, Nevada to life. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2948-war-birds.html I was visiting Yosemite in spring when I passed a bridge overlooking this fall. I just had to stop and try to capture the moment. I was waiting for and elf to jump out from behind a bush. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2947-misty-fall.html Maoris were the indigenous inhabitants of the New Zealand islands before the English settled the islands. We were greeted to a Maori village near Rotorua with war dances performed by a few natives. Visiting one of these villages is an experience I would recommend to anyone visiting New Zealand who is interested in learning about world cultures. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2946-maori-warrior.html A line of life sized soldiers carved in stone adorn what's left of the walls of Persepolis in Iran. This historical heritage is over 2500 years old and is a source of pride for the Iranian people. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2945-stone-warriors.html This village, located in southern China was one of the most serene places I have ever visited. Over centuries, rice terraces are cut into the hills to compensate for lack of flat land. Paths like this crisscross the hillside and connects villages. Provided by man or beast, muscle power is the best means of transport here. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2944-the-path.html This swan got curious about me and my camera when I was taking photos around the Palace of Fine arts in San Francisco one night http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2931-swan.html This way of crossing the street is not unusual. It is actually necessary at times. This man was stuck in the middle of street as cars, motorcycles and bicycles whizzed around him. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2930-be-careful.html I was coming back from dinner, in Xian China, when the water show accompanied by music ended. The reflection of lights in the wet ground made for a beautiful scene. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2929-drum-tower-in-xian-at-night.html Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco in a foggy night. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2925-golden-gate.html I was walking around on a cold foggy October morning in Yosemite National Park looking for interesting scenes to photograph when I came accross this bridge in the Valley. http://www.freeimagebrowser.com/today/p-2924-the-bridge-to.html