169-170 Baltimore, MD

Although my time here in Baltimore has mainly been spent working. I was able to walk around and explore a bit of the downtown core.

Baltimore is a town of contrasts geographically, racially and economically. It has a northern spirit with a southern edge for sure which makes it an interesting place as I transition to the south. It was a little sad to see all the shuttered buildings not only as I rode into town but also in the affluent downtown areas.

Regardless of the poor economics everybody has been most gracious and friendly. Particularly the wonderful ladies at the Women Civic League who are the caretakers of the Thorowgood Smith house.

The Hostel that I have been staying at has proven to be very interesting. Upon arrival there was one guy in the room who did not talk to anybody the whole time he was here. But from his phone conversations I garnered he was trying to get onto some sort of medical trial. I initially chalked that up as random until today when a group of about ten people were having a conversation about the various studies they’ve been on and the ones tah pay well versus the ones that have the best food. It was very interesting to be a fly on the wall for that, as one who would never even consider doing such a thing as I have an aversion for all pharmaceuticals.

I had some good conversations with some interesting people form Poland, Spain, Mexico and South Carolina. So the hostel atmosphere won the day again and created an environment where communication is king (even though they had a TV on all day long).

Tomorrow has me moving a short distance down the line to Washington DC where I’ll spend a few days exploring are nations capitol as well as being productive.

But until then here are a few images from my time around Baltimore.

The Hostel has some very nice murals

Check out those glasses on Thorowgood Smith, Baltimore’s second Mayor

Ganesha again in as many days. Now I’ll have to take that as a sign of obstacles to come and keep this humble deity in my thoughts to help me overcome them.