Home of the Orioles

We spent the day in Baltimore, visiting my good friend, Angela, her husband, Steve, and their 3 year old son, Kyle. We had so much catching up to do, but Angela made sure that we saw some of the city. So we gathered up Kyle and headed to Inner Harbor, a waterfront area similar to Chicago's Navy Pier. It was a spendid day to spend on the water. In the foreground of the photo is the 1930 Lightship 116, the Chesapeake, from the U. S. Lighthouse Service and part of the Baltimore Maritime Museusm. The glass building is the Maryland Science Center and the triangular-faced building is the National Aquarium. We walked along the harbor to Harborplace, where we had a wonderful seafood dinner at the renowned Philips Seafood Restaurant. This is a photo of the USCG Taney, the last ship afloat able to fight during the attack at Pearl Harbor and continued to serve during the Korean and Vietnam War. The Taney is now a part of the Baltimore Maritime Museum.
Fort McHenry, named after George Washington's Secretary of War, James McHenry, was the site of the battle for Baltimore in the War of 1812. It was on September 14, 1814 that the British were bombarding the star-shaped fort. From an American ship out in Chesapeake Bay, Francis Scott Key could see the 40' by 30' American flag, which was commissioned by General George Armistead and sewn by Mary Young Pickersgill, flying over the fort, thus inspiring the song, "The Stars Spangled Banner." This photo of the fort was taken from Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

The state bird of Maryland is the Baltimore Oriole. The Baltimore Oriole baseball team, named after the state bird, plays in Oriole Park at the Camden Yards. The Camden Yards were originally railroad yards and the stadium is pictured above. Do the names Babe Ruth or Cal Ripken sound familiar? Both played for the Orioles.