My European friends and I sampled the local cuisine at a local micro brewery (and some of the beer too). We took a course in beer brewing from Herr Vogel himself and received a certificate! Many thanks to Catherine and Hans-Dietmar for making our visit to Karlsruhe memorable. 
Arrived in Karlsruhe on Monday. Karlsruhe is located on the edge of the Black Forest close to Germany's border with France and the Rhine River. Founded only 300 years ago by Margrave Karl-Wilhelm, the city’s plan resembles Paris, with streets laid out in rays, like a fan, from the central point of the count’s palace.
On Monday this week, went to dinner with a fun group of new friends at a restaurant on the shores of Lake Michigan, and we had to have a picture with this sign. Illuminated by the headlights of 2 cars and taken with a camera phone, the quality is not great and the message - not subtle at all.
Built in the 14th century then remodeled some 400 years later in the baroque style, the Royal Palace (Szent György tér) accommodated Hungarian royalty for 700 years. Now it houses the capital's most visited museums and galleries.
Our hosts treated us to a sumptous meal and wine tasting in Budapest on Thursday night, preceded by a visit to the Castle area and a tour of Heroes Square afterwards.
Also known as Matthias Church, this church was built in the 13th century. Then in the 14th century, it was completely rebuilt but as a Gothic hall church. However, because Europe was plagued with so many Gothic churches, the reconstruction was never completed. When the Turks had control over Hungary, this church was the primary mosque although the interior furnishings were all destroyed and a 1686 siege caused the tower and roof to collapse. However, this church was again rebuilt in the 19th century but this time in the Baroque style. Sadly, the church was so heavily damaged during World War II that it took more than 20 years to rebuild.
In the south courtyard of the bastion stands a bronze equestrian statue of St Stephen (Szent István), the first King of Hungary; it is the work of A. Stróbl and dates from 1906. The plinth, with four lions and the reliefs on the sides depicting scenes from Stephen's life, was designed by F. Schulek.
Our host guided us on a tour of Budapest on April 20 . Just right of center on the farside of the Danube you can see the white Parlaiment building with the red dome roof. You can find other photos of the Parlaiment on this blog taken from different perspectives on previous visits.
I arrived at my destination outside of Glasgow by a tortuous route. Scotland decided to have their biggest snow storm in recent memory on the day of my arrival - 14 inches in some parts of the country! Glasgow airport was closed most of the day, and my overseas flight was diverted to Belfast where we sat on the runway for about 5 hours where they waited for the weather to clear. Finally we flew to Edinborough airport, where after a long delay we were loaded on buses for the hour or so drive to Glasgow airport. Arrived about nine hours late, but at least I arrived in the same day - something that was not looking like a sure bet a while earlier.
We stopped for lunch and relaxation at this lovely beach resort. The delicious lunch buffet was worth at least 5 of the many pounds I brought back as a souvenir!
Good friends Bradley and Rajaram pose with some of the local statuary.
The two structural shrines collectively known as the Shore Temple were built by Pallava, King Narasimha Varman II (AD. 700-728).
Here we see two of the five temples at this site collectively called the Five Rathas. The five temples plus various other animal carvings are all carved from the same huge rock.
The church of St. Thomas is located on a hill overlooking Chennai. St.Thomas (the Doubting Thomas from the Bible) is believed to have preached here between the years 52 and 70. He was murdered here and the church contains his relics.
Chennai is the capital of the state of Tamil Nadu and is one of the four largest cities in India. With an estimated population of 6.90 million (2005), the 368-year-old city is the 31st largest Metropolitan area in the world. Temperatures while I was there reached daytime highs of 30C.
This is one of two beaches in the city. A very nice beach, despite a lot of trash in the sand on this part, and the water was warm but almost no one swimming! Modesty prevents western-style bathing suits, so those that do swim do so fully clothed.
I arrived in Chennai at 2:00 am Monday, Feb. 5. I didn't get much of a chance to see India until the following Friday when I took this shot of a Hindu temple near the beach in Chennai.
The walls, ceilings and columns of this beautiful cathedral are made from white marble. The church is enormous and richly decorated. It is one of dozens of churches in downtown Guadalajara. A different church is easily visible from just about every vantage point.
Hundreds of colourful candies and confections for sale in an indoor market where anything from shoes to clothing to every kind of fruit and vegetable imaginable can be purchased.
I arrived in Guadalajara on Sunday, December 11. Guadalajara is one of the largest cities in Mexico, with a population of over 6 million people. The weather was great all week with mid-day temperatures in the 28C region and cloudless blue skies.
