Bibiloteca Publica del Ejercito y Fuerza Area Mexicanos

I bet you've been wondering when I was going to write about the libraries of Guadalajara. Unfortunately, due to my school schedule and having unlimited WiFi at both school and hostel, I didn't need to seek out a library during most of the month.
I finally wandered across from one the day before I left the city and it did not disappoint.

What better way to end out the year than take you on a tour of an army gunpowder factory turned public library.

Thank you everyone who has been reading my blog and given me support on this new journey. I'm looking forward to 2016 and sharing with you even more about the people and places that make each city an amazing place to live.

Parques Agua Azul y Mirador Independencia

Having been cooped up in classes for most of the month, it was only in my last week that I had time to wander and appreciate the parks Guadalajara has to offer. The city is dotted with green spaces, large and small. On this Wednesday, I visited two- one in the south of the city and another on its northern edge. All thanks to a great BRT line.

Vacation Day at Santa Monica Beach

It was a slightly overcast and windy day to head to the beach, but that made the trip all the nicer, avoiding the feeling of being fried by the sun.

Griffiths Observatory in Los Angeles

The City of Angels.
It's a place I've visited a few times in the past due to growing up for a time in Central California, but in all those visits, walking was not an activity I really engaged in. Friends and family with cars always shuttled me around when coming to visit. For good reason, as Los Angeles might be the most car-centric city in the world. Cars are the dominant force on the road, and everyone knows this, so you really must be aware at all times of traffic signals and the potential for cars to make a right turn into your walking path.
It's a bit unnerving.
All that being said, West Hollywood is actually a nice place to walk around. My friend happens to have an apartment near a lot of neat tourist destinations, all of which I shunned in favor of hiking up to the Griffith Observatory about an hour and a half away from her.

Wandering Copenhagen

For only being in the city two days, I feel I got a good taste of the people and culture. Copenhagen is a capitol city, but it feels much calmer and quieter than Berlin. The biking culture blew me away and it was hard returning the bike I rented for a day since it was so nice to be able to ride around without the fear I'm used to in the States.
I'd love to return one day and get to explore some of the neighborhoods I rushed through with my limited time.

Book Stores

I didn't intend my trip to Berlin to be so permeated with literary adventures, but being a lover of words, it's not all that surprising that I would find myself surrounded by the many, many opportunities to engage with the written word.

Zentral- und Landesbibliothek Berlin

Libraries, my one true love.

I've been in the city for almost a week and I was so busy playing tourist with other friends who are visiting that I hadn't gotten a chance to seek out this city's book repositories.

Berlin is a very literary city. Homages to Goethe pop up all over the place, bookstores (which will be another post) are thick on the ground, and I'm even fortunate enough to be here during the annual Literature Festival! But I feel the heart of a city lies in the library, the availability and different kinds of resources that are offered can tell you a lot about what the people consider important.

Capitol Hill Library

I am proud to boast about the Seattle Public Library system.
Seattle has been in the top 3 most literate cities since the rankings started in 2003, a few times reaching the top spot. We love books, bookstores, librarians, so of course we invest in our libraries.
The downtown branch is famous for it's Rem Koolhaus architecture. Since the day it's opened I have referred to it as our secular temple. But the neighborhood branches are what really connect the city to the system.
We're able to order books from anywhere in the system and get them delivered to our local branch, free of charge. That includes movies and music- one of the last repositories of physical media in our city.
Well, I was dropping off some material at the Capitol Hill branch, my fabulous local, when I noticed a shelf of materials that didn't need a library card to check out. A library honor system, which just set my heart aflutter.

Doing a tour of the neighborhood branches (map) is a great way to get a feel for our city. Each branch really reflects the community that surrounds it. And each branch has amazing architecture- from the classic Carnegies of the early 1900's to modern beauties.
Depending on the season, you may even be able to participate in a mini-game, like the Passport program, which encouraged residents to visit each other's neighborhoods.