Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens Cam.

I’ve never been to Vegas, and I’m not sure if this photo of the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens done up for Christmas makes me want to go or want to stay very far away. But I love that I can look in on it, live, and feel wildly ambivalent half a world away.

It’s been a while since my webcam was in regular operation, but I still peek in on webcams around the world, especially when I am feeling homesick. Here are some of my haunts.

[caption id=“attachment_10635” align=“aligncenter” width=“460”]Chicago skyline at dawn. Chicago skyline at dawn.[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_10637” align=“aligncenter” width=“460”]Live cam on my old undergrad campus. Live cam on my old undergrad campus.[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_10639” align=“aligncenter” width=“460”]Fog and the Golden Gate Bridge. Fog and the Golden Gate Bridge.[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_10641” align=“aligncenter” width=“460”]Portmeirion Village. Because, well, it's The Village. Portmeirion Village. Because, well, it’s The Village.[/caption]

Did you know you can watch Andy Warhol’s gravesite live 24/7? Or dolphins frolicking in a Japanese aquarium? How about Icelandic glaciers or Transylvanian festivals? I found these and a lot more on EarthCam’s list of the 25 most interesting webcams of 2013.

This didn’t make the list, but I’ve been amusing myself by controlling Alek’s Christmas lights for Celiac Disease. (Really. I couldn’t make that up.)

Writing from: bed. Listening to: Macklemore, on Sharks' recommendation, and really liking it.