[Composed 9/20/2024]
With a travel time of about an hour, Baltimore's Inner Harbor isn't especially far away. And Shira and I have been a handful of times, if not more. And yet, winding through the streets of downtown Baltimore always gives me the excitement of exploring a new city filled with hidden gems.
I think it's the variety of eye catching historic architecture that fuels most of this feeling. The curious looking structures, like the Bromo Seltzer Building; or those with old timey names etched in granite, like the Mercantile Trust & Despoit Co; or those with anachronistic functions, like the Phoenix Shot Tower; or those that are just generally overly-ornate like the Baltimore Trust Co. Passing any of these structures elicits a man, they don't build them like they use to.*
This visit was even more electric thanks to our traveling companion: our nephew G. We were hoping that the next two days would be an epic adventure. The bar for such adventures is high, given how well our train experience went last year. But, I was confident Baltimore was up to the challenge.
Shira booked us a room at the uninspiring named Hampton Inn and Suites Baltimore Inner Harbor. Logistically, this was a smart move because of the its close proximity to the harbor we planned to explore tomorrow. To my delight, the hotel is situated in the historic US Fidelity and Guaranty Co. building. We weren't just driving by a building with roots in the 1800's, we were spending the night inside one.
The lobby of the building had a seemingly historic second floor balcony that G and I immediately ascended. Even more impressive was the massive vault situated in the basement. The vault is so large that it's now used as a conference room. If you find yourself walking past the hotel you should totally duck into the lobby and take the marble staircase to the basement. The vault is more than worth your time to explore.
After unpacking our stuff, we walked down the to Inner Harbor to stretch our legs and get a preview for tomorrow. Leaving the hotel, I explained to G that I had his water bottle and some snacks in my backpack. If you get hungry or thirsty, just ask your Uncle Ben. His response was: "OK, if I get hungry or thirsty, I'll ask my Uncle Josh." No, I explained, your Uncle Ben. Got it. My Uncle Josh. Our little Laurel and Hardy routine went on for a bit and I was quite impressed that G's 4 year old brain could pull off this little comedy routine without any prompting. He's a genius. Perhaps a comic genius, but a genius none the less.
While strolling along the water we came across a kiosk renting paddle boats. I have mixed feelings when it comes to pedal boats. On one hand, any vessel that gets you out into the water is a winner. On the other hand, the pedals on a pedal boat tend to fall in the one-size-fits-none category. I'm frequently too tall and my kid co-captain too short. The result is usually a contorted and exhausting boating experience. Fortunately, this stand offered a novel upgrade: you could rent a 'pirate ship' that had a small electric motor. We could explore the harbor without the workout. I was in!
Once out on the water, we realized that our boat's range was severely limited. We quickly hit the roped off edge of the boat's boundary. To adults or even older kids, this may have been frustrating. But for G, this didn't matter one bit. He was getting to pilot (with Aunt Shira close at hand) his own pirate ship. The experience was perfectly scaled for a 4 year old.
After our sailing adventure we headed out in search of dinner. Alas, after two or three attempts at restaurants we ended up back at our hotel room eating delivered Thai food. G, to his credit, endured our long and seemingly pointless march to restaurants with good humor. If nothing else, it certainly tired him out for the evening.
Tomorrow, if all went to plan, we'd be exploring historic ships and trains. I can't wait!
*I can't help but share a fun fact about each of these buildings:
- The functional clock atop the Bromo Seltzer Tower was the largest four-dial gravity-driven non-chiming clock in the world when it was designed in 1911.
- Mercantile Trust & Despoit Co's ads claimed that this building was strong enough to resist the invasion of an armed force. In fact, the building survived the 1904 Baltimore Fire, allowing the company to run further ads saying essentialy, told you so.
- From 1828 until 1846 the Phoenix Shot Tower was the tallest structure in the United States. In 1846, the nearby Washington Monument was completed and claimed this honor.
- The Baltimore Trust Co contains an artfully designed and executed marble mosaic floor with which was slated to be covered by astro turf.
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