The trip from Washington DC to Baltimore was a quick hour. I ended up taking the MARC train which is similar to Caltrain back home – the classic commuter that went from DC to Baltimore. Arrived at beautiful Penn Station and was quickly greeted by Sarah.
Headed back to her apartment and I quickly started making the rounds meeting all of her friends and teammates that have heard about me for years. We made our way to “senior dinner” where I snuck right in and immediately began my “college experience”. Senior Dinner was to honor all of the Hopkins seniors with a classic Baltimore meal full of Old Bay and Natty Boh. Met a bunch more people and then took off to the on campus bar to catch the second half of the Warriors/Spurs game. We were the only ones in PJs and definitely got many questions on if we were “actually Warriors fans” – the answer: yes sir. I am and 72 wins is a pretty freaking big deal. After the game, we went back to her place to get dressed and off we were to formal! Some of Sarah’s good guy friends at school are in a frat and they were having their formal and she and I were invited. All dressed up we got and off we were – continuing my “college” experience. It was a solid night and an opportunity to meet even more of Sarah’s friends.
Woke up decently early to start our exploring of Baltimore. I didn’t know much coming into Baltimore – except that some parts are sketchy and that the Ravens and Orioles play there so I was totally open to whatever we decided! Had to run a few chores in the morning and then went to a little tulip garden. The city every season plants different flowers in this cute little garden in the middle of a suburb. You wouldn’t know it was there unless someone had told you or you happened upon it. Tulips are currently in bloom so there were a bunch of different sections of brightly colored, vibrant, peaceful flowers. It was beautiful. We then headed down to the Inner Harbor/Downtown and walked around for a while with Sarah pointing out all the different spots. Baltimore is surprisingly charming – much more charming than I imagined. After exploring for a while, Sarah had to head to an interview and group project so I went back to her place to do some work and decompress for a while. We had an early and low key night watching Netflix and doing chores.
Sarah was off to class bright and early and I slept in (which was SO lovely). Off to lunch at a local spot called Pete’s Grille (supposedly Michael Phelps eats here a lot when in town) and then we walked around Hampden which is a super cute little area – reminds me a bit of Haight. There was also a super cute coffee shop close by, so I parked myself there for a few hours while Sarah went back to class. Got a lot more work done and Sarah picked me back up after her class. As some of you may know, I collect State Quarters and remembered that Maryland’s National Park is Fort McHenry. I informed Sarah of this and we were on our to the Park! It was absolutely spectacular and well worth our time. We got there about an hour before it closed which meant we had just enough time to go through the exhibits and to see the changing of the flag. The changing of the flag was super cool. It’s always amazing when you meet people who just LOVE their jobs – they make you excited to learn too. We got to help with the folding of an fifteen stripe, fifteen star flag and also helped to put up a modern smaller one due to the gusty winds expected overnight. Very cool experience. Sarah has been living in Baltimore for four years now and has never eaten steamed crabs so we of course had to fulfill this dream of hers and headed to Locust Point Steamers to enjoy ourselves some messy and yummy crab. Went to Federal Hill Park to check out some spectacular views of the skyline and the beginning of the sunset. It got too chilly so we went into Fells Point to walk around for a bit and check it out. Called it a night after walking around for a while.
I’m about two and a half weeks into my trip now! It’s been great so far – awesome to be reunited with friends as well as learn about myself and my country. There have definitely been some tough moments as well as some phenomenal ones. I’ve been pushed out of my comfort zone on an hourly and constant basis which can get exhausting. I’m excited for what all is ahead and grateful for the community I have surrounding me!
Up next:
- Torie!
- Tagging along to some classes
- Beautiful scenery!
With Hope,
Monica
Train Trippin 