Day 36 – (06/07) Millersville, MD (Day 2)

Weather – Mostly sunny, high 80s, increasing humidity

This was a day to see some of Baltimore.  We drove to Alisha’s, walked to the bus line, rode to the Visitor Center at the Inner Harbor, took a water taxi to Fells Point, had lunch, took a water taxi to Ft. McHenry and back to the Inner Harbor.  Alisha picked us up at the harbor and had us experience two of her favorite dining places.

Alisha’s home is located in the Federal Hill district.   There are many row houses here and parking is very limited.  The buildings are well maintained.  Alisha has nearly finished a complete renovation of the interior. 

There are lots of nice surprises inside.

The new kitchen

The new living room (from dining room)

New dining room

New home office

Vanya (Alisha's cat) really rules the roost

Federal Hill - here are a few sights from our walk to the bus stop.

 

Inner Harbor

Baltimore has a beautiful and lively waterfront.  Here are some of the sights.

This was our ride to Fells Point and to Ft. McHenry
($10 gets you a ride for the whole day)

The Lightship Chesapeake

Aquarium with USS Torsk in the foreground

There are some dandy places to live in the harbor

A sweet place to visit
(this 1950s-vintage neon sign costs $100,000 a year to power and maintain )
(it's the size of a basketball court)

USS Constellation

Fells Point is the oldest deep-water seaport on the harbor.  It has become a tourist target ... the main streets are lined with bars, restaurants and shops.  The water taxi transfer to/from Ft. McHenry occurs here.

Arriving at Fells Point's Broadway Pier

We had a great lunch here.

Businesses line Thames St.

Ft. McHenry is where the Americans turned back the attack of the British during the War of 1812.  It’s the home of The Star-Spangled Banner by Francis Scott Key.

The flag is still there

These cannons represent the largest guns that defended the fort  during the War of 1812
(they fired 18 and 36 pound iron balls almost 1½ miles)

Dinner

Alisha took us to Baba’s Mediterranean Restaurant for a delightful dinner of chicken kabobs on a bed of rice with hummus and a side salad.  This little restaurant is new (2 years old) and very popular in the area.  We were greeted by the chef when we ordered at the counter.  The meal was excellent and the staff was very friendly … we met the owner.

Dinner at Baba's

We ended the evening with gourmet desserts on the patio at The Wine Market.

Day 35 – (06/06) Millersville, MD (Day 1)

Weather – Mostly sunny, low 80s

Piscataway

Kris left on a business trip to Salt Lake City early this morning and Jason left for school before 7am.  We did get to say goodbye to Leonore and KC before they headed off to work.

KC left at 8am to open a Rutgers University library

These hugs will have to last us for a while

Trip highlights

We left at 10:20am and travelled 179 miles to Millersville, MD.  The route from NJ to DE to MD was:  NJ Turnpike to I-295, over the Delaware River via the Delaware Memorial Bridge to I-95 south, I-95 by Wilmington, over the Susquehanna River to Baltimore, then I-895 under the Patapsco River via the Harbor Tunnel Thruway and I-97 south to Millersville.

We saw people gathering on highway overpasses as we approached the Delaware Memorial Bridge.  It continued as we travelled through Delaware and into Maryland.  They were waiting for the trucks moving US Air flight 1549 (Sully's plane) down I-95 from Harrison, NJ to North Carolina to pass by.  It’s going to the Carolinas Aviation Museum in Charlotte.  We didn’t see it, but traffic sure slowed in anticipation.

Traffic backed up as we crossed the Delaware Memorial Bridge

The view from the bridge was impressive, but hard to capture

Crossing the Susquehanna River
(between Wilmington and Baltimore)

The trip across three states and two large rivers was capped off by the drive through the Harbor Tunnel.  The only low point was paying tolls on every highway we used.

Campground

We’re at Capitol KOA.  It’s conveniently located between Baltimore and Washington, and is just 18 miles from Carol’s niece, Alisha Horowitz.  It’s very nice.


Carol requested a site with trees.

Capitol KOA - Site #45
(moral: be careful what you ask for)

We drove into downtown Baltimore to visit Alisha.  She gave a tour of her home and served a wonderful pasta dinner.  We made plans to tour Baltimore tomorrow and to meet her for dinner.

Day 34 – (06/05) Piscataway, NJ (Day 3)

Weather – Overcast and cool most of the day.  The clouds cleared late in the day.

This was another laid back day.  Kris and Leonore got up early; we got up late ... again.


We did a 3-way "Skype" with Nichole Witchey-Putnam (in Shelby, OH) and Nick & Masami Witchey (in Laguna Hills, CA).  We got to see and talk with Peyton, Luna and Rei.  The technology really is amazing, but we were disappointed that we couldn't taste Luna's pancakes.

We went to a New Jersey State Youth Orchestra concert at Ocean Grove, NJ in the afternoon.  Ocean Grove is on the ocean and is about 40 miles away. 

Ocean Grove presents an environment similar to what we’ve seen at Chautauqua Institute in NY.  It’s a Methodist camp meeting community dating back to 1869.  There are Victorian-style homes, tents and many restored buildings.  Here are some examples:

The Concert was presented in the Ocean Grove Auditorium.  Four groups performed: Preparatory String Orchestra, Chamber Music Ensemble, Concert Youth Orchestra (junior high) and Senior Youth Orchestra (high school).  Jason played trumpet and Leonore played trombone in the Concert Youth Orchestra. 

Note for the alert reader.  Leonore is petite, but we assure you she’s not in junior high.  She volunteered to assist the conductor and to fill-in the trombone section.

Ocean Grove Auditorium
(seats 6,500)

Inside the auditorium ... seats are padded

Leonore heads into the auditorium

Jason gets ready for his solo

Concert Youth Orchestra performs
(Patty Gonsky conducts)

Leonore (front) and Jason (rear, 2nd from right)

We joined ten others from the concert for dinner at Old Man Rafferty’s in Asbury Park.  It’s just a 10 minute walk from Ocean Grove if you use the bridge over Wesley Lake.  The meal was delightful, the service excellent and conversation lively.

After returning home we made plans for leaving in the morning.  We wished Kris and Jason farewell since they’ll leave early in the morning.  We’ll see Leonore and (hopefully) KC before they leave for work.

Day 33 – (06/04) Piscataway, NJ (Day 2)

Weather – Overcast and cool.  We actually got out jackets and sweatshirts.  Go figure.

This was a laid back day.  Kris and Leonore got up early; we got up late.  Kris made a delicious breakfast and we visited until noon.

Carol and Leonore went to performance by The Symphony, a strings group from Piscataway High School in the afternoon.  The performance was sponsored by Heart of the Arts Project, Inc. (HAPI).  Leonore was instrumental in starting HAPI and is a member of the board of directors.

Dick and Kris stayed at home as plumbers were there to finish installation of a new on-demand hot water heater.  We learned the electrical service panel is maxed out and won’t support township requirements for the installation.  Kris is bummed because now he’s got to bring in an electrician.

We got pizza and a neighbor joined us for dinner.  Kim Stewart was an absolute delight.  She can mimic many languages and accents (much like our friend Bruce Smith in Columbus).  We laughed for hours.  She could certainly be a headliner at a Comedy Club.  Leonore let us know that Kim wasn’t performing at full speed.  We doubt our sides could have handled a full dose.  It was a really fun evening that ended near midnight.  

Day 32 – (06/03) Piscataway, NJ (Day 1)

Weather – Sunny and cooler today.  Temperature reached the high 70s.

In the light of day, the Beachcomber Camping Resort turned out to be nicer than expected.  Woodall’s rates it as a double 5-star.  They have 700 sites, services are very nice and they have lots of recreation opportunities.

Site #107 - Beachcomber Camping Resort

It's harder than it looks to back in here in the dark

Pond, beach and playground

Many sites are permanent or rentals

The campground staff recommended The Flight Deck Restaurant for breakfast.  It’s at the nearby Cape May Airport and a fun place to go.  The meal was great, the staff was friendly and we got to watch small planes take-off and land.  Carol had Corn Flakes Coated French Toast and loved it.

This is the place

Carol found an interesting way to fly somewhere for breakfast

NAS Wildwood Museum is located on the airfield.  Oprah Winfrey comes here in her private jet.  Her boyfriend has family here.

Old planes are stored across from restaurant

We travelled 130 miles to Piscataway .  Most of the trip was on the Garden State Parkway and on US 9 north.  There are some really crazy drivers here.

We're here to visit Kris, Leonore, KC and Jason Lakshmanan.  Leonore is our “niece-daughter”.  Jason is a sophomore in high-school and KC just completed her freshman year at Rutgers.

Jason, Kris & KC

Kris prepared a wonderful dinner.  KC and her friend Kat conspired to get marshmallows, chocolate and graham crackers.  Later in the evening we made smores on an outside fire … and ate way too many.

Day 31 – (06/02) Cape May, NJ

Weather – Sunny and cooler today.  What a nice change.

We were back on the road today.  Boy, were we!  Our journey included 265 driving miles in 5 states (NC, VA, MD, DE and NJ).  We crossed two large bays.  We left The Refuge Campground at 9:45am and arrived at Beachcomber Camping Resort in Cape May, NJ at 9:30pm.

Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay crossing consists of 17 miles of bridges and tunnels.

Tankers at anchor waiting for cargo.

Tunnel Entrance
(the two tunnels go under the shipping channels)

Bridge is two-lane; Tunnel is single-lane
(speed limit is 55 mph above and below the surface)

Other Sights

Some scenes come in different shapes and colors.

We saw this hotrod at a Maryland Visitor Center

Delaware Bay

The Cape May-Lewes Ferry crossed Delaware Bay in 1 ½ hours.  Note:  Lewes, DE is the first city in the first state.

Waiting for the ferry
(we got there at 5pm, the ferry departed at 7:45pm)

Ferry arriving from Cape May

Carol was concerned about motion sickness, but she did great.

Sunset on Delaware Bay

The cool breeze makes for great hugging.

The Campground

We arrived in the dark and had to back into a space bounded by two trees and two fences.  This is supposed to be a very nice place.  Unfortunately, we won’t know until tomorrow when we can see it.

This was a long day.  We look forward to sleeping without the air conditioner for the first time in many days.

Day 30 – (06/01) Wanchese, NC (Day 3)

Weather – Same as yesterday.

This is our 3^rd day on the Outer Banks.  It’s been nice to explore and relax a bit. 

We visited the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills and Jockey’s Ridge State Park in Nags Head, and attended an evening outdoor performance of The Lost Colony in Manteo.

But, first … we went to breakfast at a little place in Nags Head.  It’s called Grits n Grill.  There were no recommendations.  It was just a lucky pick.  Everything was delicious and the server was attentive.  Our only problem was that the servings were very large.  Oh, the problems we have to deal with on the road!

Wright Brothers Memorial

Twelve days ago we stood in awe of travel into space.  Today we saw where it all began 110 years ago.  We saw a movie about the Wright Brothers, listened to a Ranger Talk about their experiments and walked the grounds where it all happened … first the glider flights in 1901 and 1902, then powered flight in 1904.  It’s very humbling to see how these two men changed the world.

Monument on Kill Devil Hill

Museum, work buildings, and flight area from the memorial

Markers show the distance of the first 4 powered flights

They worked here

They ate and slept here

Jockey’s Ridge S.P.

This is the tallest natural sand dune system in the eastern U.S.  They sand board, hang-glide, and fly kites on the dunes.  It was pretty hot, so we didn’t hike into the dunes.

It’s unclear how it got the name “Jockey’s Ridge”.  Some say it’s from the "Bankers" practice of capturing and racing Spanish mustangs on the flats of the big dune.  Others say it’s from a family named Jackey or Jacock who owned the area at one time.

If it looks hot, it probably is hot.

Here's an example of the rental properties that line the seashore from Nags Head to Kitty Hawk.  Most look quite new and are well maintained.  All seem to be built high to get a glimpse of the ocean.

The Lost Colony

The story recounts the exciting events leading to the mysterious disappearance of the English colonists who settled here in 1587.  It’s the first and longest running outdoor drama in the country.  The acting, costumes, sets, and scene changes were phenomenal.  Unfortunately, they didn’t and couldn’t solve the mystery.  We got back to the trailer at 11:15pm.