Strolling Historic Charles Street
I had another softball tournament this weekend, so I had not planned to take a photo trip at all, but plans changed, as usual. The thing is we actually did fairly well yesterday, which put us on track to have an easy start to today’s play. We finished at the top of our pool, pitting us again the last seeded team in the second pool this morning. Theoretically, that means we should have had a relatively easy win to propel us forward in bracket play, ultimately leading us to the championship game against the other first seed. Yeah, well it turned out to be just the opposite (which is of course why games are played). We were one-and-done…again. We lost our very first game, leaving the day totally open. Frustrating.
However, on the upside, it did leave enough space for a short walk. Our tournament was near Baltimore, also conveniently between the park and my house, so that’s where I went. Fortunately, I was prepared with a pre-planned route and my camera. It’s not that I didn’t have faith in my team and expected us to lose so early, I was just prepared in case it did happen. There’s a difference… I think. I’ve wanted to walk up Historic Charles Street for a while, so I decided today was as good of a time as any.
Inner Harbor
View from the Inner Harbor
Baltimore Holocaust Memorial
I parked in a fixed-fee lot near the Inner Harbor, but I didn’t spend much time in the area. It’s much too crowded for me in the middle of a weekend day. Between the water, shops and museums, the area attracts too many people for my comfort level. I walk to get away from stress and fighting through large crowds is stressful for me.
On my way out of the Inner Harbor, I passed the Baltimore Holocaust Memorial. I think it’s easy to miss and at first glance it’s rather unremarkable, but with further examination, it’s quite symbolic. The majority of structures within the memorial plaza are reminiscent of the railway system used to carry victims to the concentration camps. The railroad lining the plaza, the lamp posts scattered through it, and the large rail boxcar-shaped monoliths to the rear. Front and center in the memorial is The Flame sculpture. What a disturbing, yet magnificent piece.
Mount Vernon
Washington Monument
Going down?
View of Baltimore from the top of the Washington Monument
In the middle of the Mount Vernon neighborhood is a cross-shaped plaza made by two intersecting ‘squares,’ which are actually rectangles The center piece is the local Washington Monument, designed by Robert Mills, who later designed the GW monument in DC. The base holds a very small museum dedicated to the first US President and has a statue of Washington on top of the large column.
I walked up the 228 steep, narrow stairs to the top of the 178-ft column. It was tight. I’m glad I was the only one with that idea in that moment. More than one person on the stairs or in the small space at the top would have been too many. I mean quite frankly, one person being in there seems like too many. The hike up was somewhat intense, but very doable. My legs were definitely shaking after I made it back down. The view was well worth it, though.
City Center
Baltimore City Hall
Shot Tower.
The final leg of the walk took me by City Hall, the War Memorial (honoring local WWI and WWII casualties), the Shot Tower and the Fraternal Order of Police Memorial.
The Phoenix Shot Tower, in my opinion, has to be one of more recognizable historic landmarks in the city. It was used to produce shots for both small arms and larger weapons, by dropping molten lead from the top into a cold water bath at the base. It’s now a museum run by Carroll Museums.
So, after the poor start, the day turned out fairly well. It was a beautiful, clear day. Not too hot. Really, it probably worked out in my favor. After three hours of walking, I certainly saw a decent portion of the city.
Today’s Flickr set: city pics
leave a comment