Highlights of the 2011 Indianapolis Auto Show

The Entrance.

Funny Shopping Bags from Europe

Crazy Europeans. You're going to need to know what to expect these days if you plan on shopping over there. Forewarned is forearmed!

As always, anything received in email is fair game for posting. These were received from my friend, Dimi.

Another Beautiful Fall Day in Shakertown

I was in the neighborhood yesterday and decided to stop by for lunch. My lens caught a lot of beautiful views. Click the link to learn more about Shakertown. For tourism info click here.

Wieliczka Salt Mine An Astounding Subterranean Salt Cathedral

I received these photos in email from my friend Rob Rose. And as you know, my policy is that anything received in email is fair game for posting.

Image Credit Flickr user magro kr 

Deep underground in Poland lies something remarkable but little known outside Eastern Europe . For centuries, miners have extracted salt there, but left behind things quite startling and unique. Take a look at the most unusual salt mine in the world.

The Bengals Experience

I haven't had a chance to see the new stadium, so I jumped at the chance to drive up to Cincinnati to watch the pre-season home opener against the Carolina Panthers Thursday night. A good time was had by all.

The stadium by day.

Carolina Panthers Kicking Game

I'm a big fan of the NFL kicking game, so it was a real thrill for me to get to watch the kickers for the Carolina Panthers, number 5 Adi Kunalic and number 10 Olindo Mare, warming up before their pre-season game Thursday night against the Cincinnati Bengals, as these pictures will attest.

Aroldis Chapman of the Cincinnati Reds

He's the fastest pitcher on record-ever! He has been clocked at 106 mph. See him now. No telling how long an arm like that can last.

Lexington's Gratz Park Prepped for the 4th, 2011

Reds vs. Yankees, June 23, 2011

 We took the ferry over from the landing at Riverboat Row in Newport, Kentucky. It cost 5 bucks for the round trip. That's me in the Reds hat, holding a Hooters diet Pepsi. I had the grilled grouper sandwich, in anticipation of a brat with sauerkraut at the park, which I was finally ready for in the 8th inning.

Ottawa Tulip Festival 2011

A few shots from the Ottawa Tulip Festival, taken on 15 May 2011.

A Real Dog-Lover . . . Get it?

This story came to me in email (which means it's fair game for posting) from my friend Rob Rose of Carpenter-Warren Insurance Agency (for all your insurance needs . . .). It appears to have originated at Snopes.com.

I've posted it to my travel blog because the story takes place in England.

* * *

True  Story.

In  2003, police in Warwickshire , England, opened a garden shed  and found a whimpering, cowering dog.  The dog had  been locked in the shed and abandoned.  It was dirty and  malnourished, and had quite clearly been  abused.

In  an act of kindness, the police took the dog, which was a  female greyhound, to the Nuneaton Warwickshire Wildlife  Sanctuary, which is run by a man named Geoff Grewcock, and  known as a haven for animals abandoned, orphaned, or otherwise  in need.

The World's Biggest Ice Skating Rink

A short video of the Ottawa/Rideau Canal in winter.

Winterlude Ottawa and Gatineau February 2011

A few shots from Winterlude, which straddles the Ottawa River with snow sculptures on the Gatineau, Quebec, side and ice sculptures on the Ottawa, Ontario, side. We made it to see the snow sculptures.

Toronto's CN Tower

Toronto's CN Tower on a very cold but clear day in January 2011.

Jim's Seafood on the Kentucky River in Frankfort, Kentucky

Jim's Seafood on the Kentucky River in Frankfort is an old school Kentucky restaurant. It's been there, according to the hostess, forever.

Trees and Waterfowl on the Ottawa River

Today, a beautiful fall day, one hour before sunset.

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Ottawa is a beautiful city, especially when you catch her on a crisp fall day with fall colors in full swing. Be sure to click on each photo, then click on the photo a second time for some great--as if you were there--detail.

A view of downtown Ottawa from the balcony, and the Ottawa River.

A view of the Ottawa skyline from the balcony, using a telephoto lens.

Wayne County, Indiana

In June 2010, I went to visit my Aunt Ruth and Uncle Quentin, who live in Richmond, Indiana. Richmond is a 45-minute drive west from Dayton, Ohio. They live in town now, but they will always be farmers at heart. We have a tradition when I go up there. Uncle Quentin drives me around Wayne County, showing me all the places of interest, some of them the same as my last visit, and sometimes things have changed.

Vote for your favorite photo in a comment.

The tradition begins with a heavy lunch (dinner, as it's called in those parts, and not all that long after a heavy country breakfast) at the current "greasy spoon" of choice. These days its Greens Fork Family Diner in Economy. That's my 80-year-old uncle--he doesn't look 80, does he?

The Arboretum in Lexington, Kentucky

If you live in Lexington, if you're visiting or just passing through, don't visit the Arboretum--it's already overrun. You're not missing anything anyway . . .

Kiev, Ukraine

St. Sophia Cathedral