Good Morning Baltimore!!!

A few days ago we went to the rooftop of the Maryland Science Center on the Inner Harbor. In case you didn't know, Megan works there. It was a beautiful view of the city and the water. Baltimore is a pretty interesting city with lots to offer.

The downtown area is really nice, with lots of great restaurants and attractions. However, just a few blocks away several neighborhoods with some of the highest poverty rates in the country. The Johns Hopkins Hospital sits in the heart of East Baltimore, one of the poorest areas in the city. I'm actually starting to like it there a lot. I'm studying international health, and most of my time is spent studying malnutrition, infectious diseases, and maternal/child health. Its pretty interesting that while we typically associate these issues with low-income countries, I can walk a few blocks in any direction and come face-to-face with all of them.

The Appalachian Trail

Megan had to work today, so I decided to put on my boots and hit the A.T. For those of you who don't know, the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) runs 2,178 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mt. Katahdin in Maine. For more info, visit The Appalachian Trail Conservancy.

It has always been a goal of mine to hike the trail in its entirety. Originally, I planned to hike it all in one summer after graduating college, but falling in love and getting married changed my perspective. However, I still hope to tackle the trail piece by piece as a weekend warrior.

I have hiked the entire portion in Georgia, as well as parts in North Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire. Now I can add Maryland to that list.

This morning, I hiked a short portion of the trail in western Maryland. Starting from I-70, I headed North to a lookout called Annapolis Rocks. Along the way, the scenery was beautiful. The forest was unbelievably green.

The view from the top was pretty nice as well. As you can see, the weather was pretty active.

Our New Apartment

Here are a few pictures of our new apartment. We really lucked out and got a very nice place and some very nice furniture. The furniture was actually free!!! A family in Pennsylvania is moving to China to work for the U.S. Foreign Service. They gave us a ton of really nice furniture (did I mention it was free?).  The list includes a big screen T.V., leather sofa set, queen size bed, box spring and frame, and a large decorative mirror.  Megan's cousin Ashley gave us a glass coffee table with matching side tables, and we were able to buy a used table and chairs for $45. Check out the pictures.

 

 

 

 

This is a mirror image of our floorplan

This is what the complex looks like outside