City Skylines

I do not claim to be anything more than slightly artsy. However, if someone asked me who my favorite artist is, I would in a heartbeat say James Blakeway. He is an incredible photographer and founder & CEO of Blakeway Worldwide Panoramas, Inc. He is best known for his incredible panoramic shots of city skylines, world attractions and national parks.

There is something about city skylines that make me incredibly happy. In fact, there is a quiz on sporcle that I love to play where you look at pictures of city skylines around the world and guess the city name. Maybe it's the fact that if you are looking at a city skyline, you are somewhere lively and exciting. Or maybe it's the way the city lights shine against the night sky. Or maybe it's the way that the size of a big city humbles me and reminds me of how small I am in comparison to this massive and incredible world we live in. Here are some of my favorite city skylines and panoramic photographs:

Part of the beautiful Chicago skyline. Chicago is probably my favorite city in the United States. I have many fond memories of a missions trip, family vacations, and trips with friends to Chicago.

Santa Barbara, where I spent my freshman year of college at Westmont. Pictures of Santa Barbara remind me of a year spent close to my Aunt Paula, Uncle Ben and Granny. It also reminds me of the few, but wonderful, friends I still have in Santa Barbara who will be graduating from Westmont this spring!

The glorious Grand Canyon. Just the mention of the dreaded Kabob Trail will send my entire family into fits of laughter. On a more serious note, I do not know how you can look at this picture (let alone, the actual thing) and deny the existence of a divine creator.

There are clearly thousands of other beautiful city skylines and panoramic images besides the three I have just posted. However, no other view evokes quite the same emotions out of me than the following two-

Now I know it's not the best quality, but you can't mistake that glorious Neon Kahler hotel sign- this is obviously Rochester. It's not much of a skyline, but every time I drive down Highway 52S, past all the downtown exits, and look to the left and see all the Mayo Clinic buildings, my heart is content; this is home. Although I never fully appreciated Rochester until I left it, I realize now how blessed I was to be raised and educated here. Rochester is and always will be home.

Minneapolis. My true home away from home. I have spent a majority of the last two years here and have so many "favorites" in this city- favorite restaurants, favorite coffee shops, favorite lakes, favorite rollerblading areas, etc. I will absolutely miss all the coffee dates, rollerblading adventures, runs around Lake Calhoun, girls nights downtown that will happen while I am away. Thankfully, I get to come back to this in December! What a beautiful place.

At this point, I'm sure you're wondering what the point of all this city skyline talk is. The reason all of these places I have shown you are so special to me is because I am emotionally connected to them in some way, mostly through experiences with family or friends. And in ten days, I will be introduced to another skyline that I can guarantee will be one of my favorites:

This is Florence, Italy. Starting August 29th, Florence will be home for 3 1/2 months. I am absolutely thrilled for this adventure and want to keep you updated on my journey. This truly is una vita bella, a beautiful life.

Ciao,

Sarah