Baltimore Day Trip

We recently came back from a whirlwind roadtrip to California - just several thousand miles! Our friend needed to go to Baltimore for some personal business today so we decided to go together and make a day trip out of it. Before we left we contacted our daughter in law about a spot to have lunch. She is from there and knows all the ins and outs. So we got a few ideas and picked a Greek place downtown on the water called Ouzo Bay. We came in town on the scenic interstate, passed by Camden Yards, the tall ships, and the area on the water that reminds us a lot of Milwaukee. In fact, we stayed at Fells Point back in the 1980's when our son was attending Johns Hopkins and met his future bride. It was just beginnning it's renaissance as all the downtowns have lately. So we had lunch at Ouzu Bay, complete with crab cakes, and finished up with the real reason for going in the first place. The drive back was reminiscent of freeway driving in any large city at rush hour. I was happy when it was over! But the day itself was a good one. And we hope to go somewhere else in the very near future.

Sailabration in Baltimore

The War of 1812 is being celebrated in Baltimore this week. Since it was such a nice day, and we have not been on a day trip of sorts for awhile, we decided to take a ride to Baltimore, which is not even 50 miles away. A lot of tall ships and sailing vessels were invited to the fest from all over the world. We stayed in the Fells Point Neighborhood in the 80's, when it was first being reinvigorated. At that time, the Baltimore Inner Harbor looked a lot like Milwaukee - there is even a building there that looks just like Grand Avenue. Our daughter in law is from Baltimore, my brother was drafted by the Orioles out of high school as a left handed pitcher, and our son went to Johns Hopkins. My dad was in the Coast Guard, so seeing ships and sailing vessels brings back a lot of memories. A million visitors were expected to this event, and I think that was the case. As we passed by Camden Yards and the golden glove statue of Brooks Robinson, the traffic became very heavy. And as was predicted, there were a lot of sailors on the streets. We didn't find any parking, so just moved along slowly and observed the scenes. We even saw, but mostly heard, the Blue Angels flying overhead. It was a vibrant and bustling scene, and a very interesting place to visit. We did not make it to Fort McHenry. We were there before, and it is nice to know that it is remarkably close in case we ever want to go again.

Baltimore does look like Milwaukee



Camden Yards



Brooks Robinson

The sailors were everywhere

A Canadian ship

Wonder what she is thinking?

Always a pirate ship

 

If you look hard enough there is a Blue Angels aircraft

Strolling along

A lot of activity along the Inner Harbor

Could be from Indonesia- one of the invited guest countries

Reminds me of visiting my dad's Coast Guard ships

At Fells Point

Making the rounds

Union Station, Monuments and Snow

Our friend is traveling to California today by way of Baltimore/Washington Airport and needed a ride to Union Station to catch the train to the airport. The main hall of Union Station was closed because the ceiling plaster fell down yesterday from old earthquake damage.  After we dropped her off, we had a few errands to run. Along the way, it continued to rain. The monuments take on a different feel during this kind of weather. Our grandson was hosting a hot dog/barbecue this afternoon for his baseball team, and there was a dog show in Middleburg, Virginia- on a plantation- that we would have gone to. But the rain slowly turned to snow, and we are now back home watching the flakes fall. This is one time that I miss my fireplace is Milwaukee. I'll just have to crank up the heat and pretend we have one- or get an IPad app with a fireplace burning. I am still amazed at all the people who walk around like it's summer time outside- with no jackets and no umbrellas. Those pictures probably would have been more interesting than any of these.

The pigeons are sitting along the window ledges to avoid the rain

Construction around Union Station

Big raindrops on the Capitol

Not a lot of company for Tom today

On the GW Parkway along the Potomac

Memorial Bridge to the Lincoln Memorial

Almost home

What the heck is that white stuff in October?

Baltimore

Today was a day trip to Baltimore- not very far away, with our best friends. We've gone on many trips together and they are luckily always non-eventful and very memorable.  The funny thing is that we ended up at the same place for brunch that my husband and I stayed in the 80's- at Fell's Point- when it was just renovated. Baltimore reminds us a lot of Milwaukee. In fact, a marketing guy I used to work with there now works at the Baltimore Aquarium. It was a beautiful day ...  after exploring the water front, we drove to North Point Park. The leaves are beginning to change, and Fall is in the air. All in all a great day. But we've always known it's not the place, but the people we are with.

Fell's Point

Halloween ready

Wall art

North Point Park

A gentle reminder of where we are

Crabulance?

A view of the city from Key Bridge