Top Twelve of 2012: Photos

With trips to Scotland, Ireland, London, Germany, Austria and Florida - yes, Florida - 2012 seemed to be a year of castles. There were ancient ones, crumbling ones and even one owned by a mouse. Not surprisingly, most of my favorite photos from the past year had something to do with these palatial residences. Even the pictures that aren't of actual castles, represent places or things that a king would probably like to have in or around his home: firearms, beverages, music, carnivals and a space shuttle. OK, so some things don't exactly fit the castle theme but if you were a rich monarch with unlimited resources, what kind of transportation would you want? 

Here are my top twelve travel photos of 2012, an homage to some of the most amazing, fantastical locales I've ever visited. Whether strolling through the medieval graveyard at St. Andrew's Cathedral in Scotland, listening to an up-and-comer at Tootsie's in Nashville or sipping a pint atop the Guinness factory in Dublin, 2012 afforded me a lifetime of memories, great stories and of course, amazing photos. 

Here's to a great 2012 and looking forward to seeing where the New Year takes me. 

Scottish Grave

St. Andrews Cathedral Graveyard, St. Andrews, Scotland

A Disney Christmas 

Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida

see more at http://whereverittakestravel.blogspot.com/2012/12/disney-world-unwrapped.html

Civil War Canon

Antietam Battlefield, Maryland

see more at http://whereverittakestravel.blogspot.com/2012/11/metrowest-daily-news-on-hallowed-ground.html

A Tribute Bell

Charlestown Navy Yard, Charlestown, Massachusetts

The King's Summer Home

Hohenschwangau Castle, as seen from Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany

see more at http://whereverittakestravel.blogspot.com/2012/03/where-to-go-palaces-in-bavariaaustria.html

Carnival Time

Ferris wheel on Navy Pier, Chicago, IL

see more at http://whereverittakestravel.blogspot.com/2012/04/managing-chicago.html

A Lucky Pint

A  couple pints of Guinness in Dublin, Ireland

see more at http://whereverittakestravel.blogspot.com/2012/09/any-pub-in-dublin.html

Lights of Broadway

Music and bars on Broadway, Nashville, TN

Discovery

Space Shuttle Discovery, Air & Space Museum Hangar, Virginia

Spring Thaw

Lake Konigsee, Berchtesgaden, Germany

see more at http://whereverittakestravel.blogspot.com/2012/03/salzburg-side-trippin.html

I Spy an Irish Castle

Dunguaire Castle, Kinvara, Ireland

Shore Sunset

Sunset on the Eastern Shore, St. Michael's Maryland