"Happy Birthday America!"

The Country is 230 years old. This is my third Independence Day celebration since moving here. Each year on July 4th, people in the United States find the perfect excuse to drag out their Webers, over-indulge in BBQs, sodas, beers and hear various versions of "God Bless America" being played endlessly over the TV & radio. Whatever the highlight of the day may be, the best sight on a July 4th weekend is the awesome "pyrotechnics" display. Almost every town and borough in New Jersey boasts its own parade and outdoor concert or carnival; usually ending with an amazing display of fireworks by night fall.

We've been trying to capture some reasonably good photos of the July 4th fireworks and this particular photo (see above) was taken along the Hudson River Walkway at Edgewater, New Jersey; with a lighted outline of the George Washington Bridge next to it.

Of course, this is nothing compared to the grandeur of the Annual Macy's Fireworks Spectacular at the East River in New York. Since they have been doing it for the past 30 years, you'd expect nothing but over-the-top pyro and they never disappoint. Unfortunately, I don't own a high-end camera that produces high quality night shots. But, check out these pictures courtesy of Getty Images and the web. You gotta love the smiley pyro ;-) How neat!