The End of the Line

Many thanks to everyone who visited my photo blog in 2018!

It's always exciting to find out where people live, and this year saw visitors from more countries than ever. Visitors came from 44 countries around the world: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, China, Czechia, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Moldova, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Russia, Seychelles, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and Venezuela.

I hope you enjoyed seeing a new image and the story behind it every Monday. Sadly, after 100 posts and due to lack of visitors and responses to this blog, this will be the final post. You can see my photos by visiting www.annsullivan.zenfolio.com.

River of Lights

The River of Lights is a holiday tradition in Albuquerque, when the city's BioPark Botanic Garden is transformed into a wonderland of colored lights in whimsical shapes. 

There are turtles, dinosaurs, elephants and zebras, ships and flowers, bees and horse-drawn sleighs. The exhibits change from year to year, but they are always magical. It's a great family event enjoyed by people of all ages. My daughter and I went three years ago, and she returned with friends on at least one other time.

I'm Listening, Santa!

This black Labrador retriever is listening to Santa Claus very intently. I took this image as a volunteer photographer at a 'pet photos with Santa' event for a local cat rescue. I volunteered several times, and this is by far my most favorite photos of animals with Santa or the Easter bunny.

An Animal to Admire

Bison are incredibly well equipped to survive the harsh winters of Yellowstone National Park and the Great Plains. Their heavy coats protect them from temperatures as low as -25 degrees F. Their bodies are so well insulated against the cold that snow and freezing rain that land on them don't melt. This is why bison are often seen with faces totally covered with snow or frozen moisture as they exhale. Bison use their massive heads to sweep aside deep snow as they search for the grass below. 

Their adaptations notwithstanding, about nine of every 100 bison will die during the winter. Most of these were ill, injured, old or in poor condition at the start of winter. Young bison facing their first winter have a higher mortality rate, with between 20 and 40 of every 100 not surviving. Major causes of death include accident, lack of food and predation.

Colorful Domes

I reached back in my photo files for this image of some of the colorful domes of a church inside Moscow's Kremlin.