Just a travelin' lady - US style

With the new job I've found a whole new world that doesn't begin at 4:15 a.m. It's exciting times, though I've been perhaps spending too much money going out to eat and drink in the evenings. What can you do? There are so many delicious places here... but this is not another San Francisco food blog. Not yet anyway.

The end of October had me and Mike heading to Baltimore to visit his parents; they moved in May to Ellicot City and now live in what used to be a huge textile mill (since converted into apartments). It was gorgeous, right on the river with a train track near by and woods. We walked one morning into the little town, just a mile or so along the river on a slightly muddy path. Lots of antiques, little shops that you wonder how they stay open (answer: tourists).

Crab is the food of, well, always in the Baltimore area. First restaurant we went to was a great place right on the water. A crab stuffed pretzel covered with cheese made for delicious - the fact that you could get anything stuffed with crab on the menu was eye-opening. As were the crab cakes. One afternoon met my friend Robin from Earlham down at Fell's Point and explored a gentrifying neighborhood. There was a chess store - with tables for playing - as well as incredible gelato. Sunday we explored the Baltimore Art Museum and saw excellent Matisse print exhibition. The museum was also part of the Antioch mosaic excavation so saw floors from where we'd been in Turkey in '08. It was like seeing old friends unexpectedly. A copy of Rodin's The Thinker completed the glass-walled courtyard.

And then Maggie was there in a flurry of excitement having driven up from D.C. We got snacks and chatted, then drove to have dinner with Mike's folks and chat the evening away. A lovely time overall even if transnational flights seem to never end.

This past Sunday, traveling on the brain, I took off for Tahoe to see Alojzya for the first time. Driving up mountains in the dark late at night perhaps wasn't the most convenient way of doing things, but it was what needed to be done. Tahoe was incredible with its lake, the mountains, the pine forests, the coyotes singing at night... even if high altitudes make me sleepy and everything just a little bit more exhausting. Will post pictures soon!