I noticed something on the drive down. Everyone, with reason, talks about the foliage of fall. All those brilliant and vivid golds, oranges, and reds on the trees, mixed in with the remaining greens. But in the spring, and lasting for about the same amount of time, one can notice a similar display on the trees as new growth bursts out of its protective coverings. Golds and reds among the many shades of yellow-green, with the occasional splash of pink, white, or purple from an ornamental tree that managed to escape into the wild. The colors are rather less “saturated”, of course, but they are there if you are willing to look.
Tag Archives: Baltimore
Charm City – 5
As I’ve said often enough, a walking tour is a good way to get a real feel for a place, as well as learn some cool things. In Baltimore, I was in the mood for something a bit different. Looking over the choices, I came across a “Haunted Pub Crawl Tour” of the Fell’s Point area – just what I needed!
Charm City – 4
For those not wanting to leave the Inner Harbor area, there are a pair of Places To Visit right on the Harbor.
The Maryland Science Museum is located at the southwest corner of the harbor. Like almost every science museum these days, it’s got the dinosaur exhibit that shows the geological history of the area, interactive displays illustrating various principles of physics (which kids play with and on without stopping to wonder about the various principles involved), a demonstration theater / lecture hall for showing off visually exciting things in chemistry and physics, and a fairly large exhibit sponsored by one of the area’s major corporations / research centers.
Charm City – 3
Of course, the real reason I went to Baltimore was to take in a few baseball games. I deliberately picked a week where the Orioles would be in town, and bought tickets to two games – conveniently with different visiting teams.
Now I have to admit that Oriole Park at Camden Yards (to use the full, official name) is a lovely place to watch a ball game. Clean sight lines, a nice backdrop, and easy to get to. Worth noting is that it doesn’t have any deliberate quirks that one finds in many of the newer stadia. No giant wall with a home run train on it, no corner of a building serving as a foul pole, no weird walls or angles “just because”…. OK, the left field wall drops back really quickly from 333 feet at the pole to 371 feet, and there is that building behind Eutaw Street in right field. But those things aren’t forced; they feel perfectly natural.
But there is one thing that really irks me; and it’s an absence rather than a presence.
Charm City – 2
I couldn’t really not go to the Walters Museum of Art; it’s Baltimore’s premiere art museum. Not as big as the ones in Chicago or New York City (duh), but it’s got a fine collection of art and artifacts, and their curators know what they are doing.
It also has free admission…..
Charm City – 1
Time for another “Spring Break”! Have to use up those vacation days…..
I didn’t feel like traveling a great distance (air travel doesn’t seem particularly safe or reliable these days) – where could I easily drive in one day, and with a baseball team that’s at home so I could take in a few games?
Baltimore fit the bill. Even though I’ve been there already – but it’s been about a decade since my last (and only other) trip there. Time to make plans!
A Trip to Baltimore
I recently spent a few days on vacation in Baltimore. When you’re an older, single guy like me, it’s not easy coming up with vacation ideas when all the big resorts, destinations, et al. are geared towards either families or couples.
As it happens, I am a baseball fan, and I am not averse to driving for several hours. Here in the northeast, that combination means there are six Major League teams within my driving range. I’ve been to Citi Field in New York City to watch the Mets, and I have no desire to pay far more than necessary to see the Yankees.
So I checked maps and team schedules to see just how many different teams I could see in one week. It turned out that if I went to Baltimore, and took a day trip to DC, I could see five teams in three days.
But before I get into my experiences at the ballparks, I thought I’d talk about “Charm City” from a first-time visitor’s perspective.
Pure Blather 