CTB Take Flight

Ho ho ho it is that time of year where many people travel. Living abroad it is the one holiday pretty well everyone is going somewhere. Many people travel back to their home countries to share the holidays with friends and relatives, while others go on beach holidays or other fun travel destinations. Each year thus far we have gone home for Christmas, but this year is different. We are going to Siem Reap, Cambodia to see the temples of Angkor Wat.

I love ancient history and Egyptian and Roman art and architecture are my favourite. I love exploring old temples, churches and reading about days long gone. It amazes me how such incredible structures could be built without modern technology. Angkor Wat promises to dazzle and awe in the same way.

Bags are almost packed and 1 more sleep before we get on a plane to one of my most anticipated locations and adventures in travel. Since we have been living in Shanghai we have had the chance to see many amazing places and meet fantastic people. From the Terracotta Warriors and Great Wall, and huts on a hillside where every cell relaxed and became tranquil, to a hustle and bustle of a busy city. My love of history has built this next destination up in my mind as the best yet and I just can’t wait.

We are gone for 10 days and I will have my iPad, so I can try to blog. I do not have a cord to download photos from my camera to the iPad, so you may have to wait for images :0)

All the best wishes for a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Travel safe….

Stay tuned….

2012 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 6,200 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 10 years to get that many views.

Click here to see the complete report.

2012 was a great year at CTB. Thanks to Jennifer over at my  Sardinian Life finding me and connecting me to many other wonderful bloggers out there in cyberspace.  I started joining in the photo challenges sharing my love of photography in a way I never thought possible. Blogging became a hobby, an outlet and hopefully improved  my writing over time.  My blog started out as a way to share our daily experiences with friends and family and in 2012 I was able to connect with  many new online friends and share with more than 80 countries around the world. A big thank you to all of you out there because without your support I may not have reached these heights.

What will 2013 bring? Well I hope to continue my weekly musings and joining in the weekly photo challenges, but with new restrictions on the Internet in China my fate is unknown. Just this past week the BBC posted an article on China’s mistrust of the Internet with the new government. The firewalls are tightening up and access to blog sites and allowing residents of China to access certain websites is becoming more and more difficult.  My view on China has always been a positive one and sharing customs and insight to my readers that they may not other wise experience. Let us keep our collective fingers crossed that CTB doesn’t go into darkness. I will keep posting weekly as long as I can.

Happy New Year. All the best for 2013…and happy blogging 🙂

Stay tuned… There are lots more stories to be told 🙂