Around the globe, people celebrate the Christmas holidays in December of every year. Although it is often regarded as a religious holiday, different cultures and areas of the world celebrate it in a variety of ways. Here are some of the ways that people celebrate Christmas in a few of the places I have visited in the past year.
 
EUROPE- Christmastime in Europe is truly a spectacle. Often, cities will decorate town plazas, squares, and streets with sparkling lights, evergreen trees, and large ribbons. Stars, glowing shapes, and garland are also popular decorations within European cities. Such decorations make European cities such charming places to be during the Christmas holidays.

     It's nearly 2013 and time to gear up for a whole new year. Part of moving on is accepting and learning from the past. With that in mind, I'd like to say farewell to the fantastic past year with this countdown of the years top articles. Thank you all for joining me in this life journey through the world! The world is truly an amazing place with hundreds of lifetimes worth of beauty, discoveries and secrets. I know that I will never be able to experience them all, however I hope I've inspired you in at least some small way to venture out and discover your own slice of the world.

     There are few reefs around the world that are as beautiful as Australia's Great Barrier Reef. The reef stretches from Rockhampton to Cape York and is visible from outer space. The Great Barrier stretches for over 1,600 miles (2,600 km) and encompasses over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands. Australia’s northeastern reef line is comprised of over 12,000 species of coral, tropical fish, mollusks and other exotic inhabitants. Find places to stay in Cairns on Expedia that are fairly close to the reef if you decide you want to experience it for yourself.
     The closest I’ve been to experiencing something as majestic as the Great Barrier reef was when I snorkeled near Puerto Rico, but the amount of coral and variety of living organisms just doesn’t compare. This underwater paradise is nothing new when it comes to bucket lists, so it should seem as no surprise that I’ve decided to feature the reef. I love the beach and swimming in the ocean as much as the next guy, but I’m much more of a land-lover. So - I think I would limit my under-worldly explorations simply to two: the Great Barrier Reef and the Lechuguilla Caverns in New Mexico.
(Photo via www.desktopia.net)

     We’re in a state of economic crisis that this world has never quite experienced before, which means it has never been more important to spend safely and to focus spending habits toward those who need it the most. The world is nearly split, black and white, between the ridiculously rich and those living in extreme poverty. All of the countries in the world are affected by the ‘global economic crisis,’ with the worst being that of the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan and Brazil, among countless others. I run a travel blog and I don’t have much of an economical voice, however I do understand how focusing where my money goes can have a tremendously positive effect on those who are suffering.