Maryland is a small state on the eastern coast that borders Washington DC. It was settled in the early 1600s by the British and was named after the King of England's wife, Queen Henrietta Maria who was actually from France. Even though Maryland is a very small state it is still diverse with beaches, small mountains and the city life of Baltimore and the Washington DC metropolitan area.
Maryland Links
	The capital of Maryland is Annapolis located in the eastern part of the state. Annapolis is a small city but is rich in history. On the upper left is the Maryland State Capitol building. To the right is St. Johns College, which said to be the third oldest college in the United States.
	On the left is an older house seen in Annapolis, to the right is the shopping area just outside the waterfront. You can see that Annapolis has the quiet small town feel to it.
Annapolis is also said to be America's sailing capital. Sailing was popular in this small city as early as the 1600s, so most of the infrastructure was built to help small sailing boats. On the left is a sail boat in the harbor, on the right is an expensive boat docked right at a restaurant.
Annapolis was also a very important port in the New World for both imports, exports and as well as slavery. Many slave ships coming in from Africa stopped here to auction off slaves to their new masters. Above is a memorial for Kunta Kinte, a slave who was also sold at Annapolis and was made famous after one of his descendants made the story 'Roots'..
Maryland is also home to the United States Naval Academy, definitely the nicest Navy base I have ever seen. The building on the upper left is what most structures look like on base. On the right is a historic cannon on display that was captured during America's war with Mexico..
The chapel above is also in the Navy base and was founded in the 1904. The chapel's crypt is the final resting place of John Paul Jones who became famous because of his naval battles against the British in the Revolutionary War. John Paul Jones was the United State's most famous sailor and a hero during the revolutionary war, today he is known as the father of the United States Navy.
Almost 100 years after the Revolutionary War was fought, a rural part of western Maryland experienced one of the biggest battles of the Civil War. On Sept 17th 1862, Confederate General Robert E Lee's army of 55,000 troops encountered General George McClellan army of 90,000. To the Confederates, winning this battle could be a turning point in the war. A confederate victory in northern soil would demoralize the Union military, rally more support for the confederates and potentially gain recognition and financial support from Europe. Because the Union army nearly doubled Robert E Lee's, they expected to crush the confederates. Robert E Lee was considered the best general of the Civil War, and though he did not win the Battle of Antietam, he was able to counter McClellan's attack and withdraw his army to Virginia. Overall the battle was seen as a draw, but it came at the cost of 23,000 deaths in a single day, the biggest single day loss of American troops in the nation's history. To put things into perspective, we can make a quick comparison to the modern US wars of Afghanistan and Iraq; From September 2002 until 2010, American fatalities in Afghanistan and Iraq numbered around 5,200. This shows how brutal the battle of Antietam was when you consider 5,000 deaths in two wars over 8 years, compared to 23,000 lost in a single day. The two left photos are from the Antietam cemetery where veterans of the battle are buried. Above is the remains of a civil war cannon and a visitor center and museum on the upper left.
Leaving the small humble capital of Annapolis we can head to Maryland's largest city of Baltimore. The city has a population of over half a million almost reaching 650,000 with over 2.5 million people in the surrounding area. On the upper left is a photo of Baltimore's city hall shown during the sunset. On the right side is a picture I took of a bench, claiming Baltimore to be the greatest city in America.
Baltimore is was founded in the 17th century and its name comes after a place in Ireland. As an older city it has lots of historic places, but the house on the upper left is one of the most important in the United States. In the war of 1812, the British launched an invasion into the city which was known as the Battle of Baltimore. In the house above, Mary Pickersgill had created the start spangled banner which was flown above Ft. McHenry during the fighting. Later in the morning when the flag was still flying, Francis Scott Key was inspired to write the poem the star spangled banner, which later became the American National Anthem.
There are many things to do in Baltimore, but the inner harbor is by far the main attraction. Above is a panoramic photo of the inner harbor during the early spring, one of the first days of nice warm weather.
The inner harbor is packed with restaurants, shops, 5 star hotels and many museums and historical places of interest. There is actually a trail that goes around Baltimore known as the heritage walk that passes by most of the major attractions. To me this was pretty similar to the Boston Trail in Massachusetts. On the left is a photo of one of the shopping areas and some of the restaurants such as Hard Rock Cafe in the inner harbor. On the right is a T-Rex from a museum that is called the Maryland Science Center.
Above are some more photos of the inner harbor. On the left you can see people passing by on one of the walkways in between the museums and large buildings. On the right is a large cruise ship docked at the harbor for tourists.
Also in the inner harbor you're almost always find people performing various stunts. Above a crowd gathers to see a man juggle knives and a torch while riding a unicycle. The ship in the background is the historic USS Constellation.
Another district of Baltimore is known as Little Italy where many Italian immigrants moved here in the late 1800s and early 1900s. On the left is a huge condo complex, not sure if it's officially party of Little Italy but I added the photo since the Italian flag flys at the top of the building. On the right is a picture of an Italian Cafe with a mural painted on the outside walls. Little Italy has the busiest restaurants in all of Baltimore.
	Many people in the Little Italy district where sitting outside enjoying the spring weather. The surrounding photos just show the residential neighborhoods and people outside enjoying the spring weather.
Last but not least, no trip in Baltimore is complete without a visit to Edgar Allen Poe's grave. Edgar Allen Poe is famous for his poems and short stories that usually carried darker themes. He was one of the first famous American writers and considered part of the American romantic movement, and no doubt about it one of the most respected American poets. Above is his grave as well as his wife Virginia, who died at only 24 years of age.
Built towards the end of the 2000's, is Maryland's National Harbor. It's a small resort city located just a few miles east of the capital, and has dozens of upscale hotels and restaurants and several small shops along the waterfront to explore.
Above are one of the unique activities they have available at National Harbor, it seems like you can put a harness on and climb the ropes of this ship between different masts at different heights. Of course, there is also sailing at the national harbor which I didn't photograph, but you can rent some small sailboats here and enjoy the Potomac or take a ferry to Old Town Alexandria..
Above on the upper left is the Gaylord hotel, easily the most popular hotel at National Harbor which hosts dozens of major events throughout the year. The hand on the right was found along the beach and part of a larger piece of art, but wasn't as cool as the hand I saw at the beach of Uruguay.
So far my only winter picture of Maryland; a photo of the aftermath of the Blizzard of 2010. In the past 10 years or so, I only recall getting a few inches of snow here and there, with most of it melting within a day. On Friday morning February 5th 2010, heavy snow started coming down which lasted until Saturday evening. In total, an average of two feet of snow was dumped into the DC area, with some parts receiving nearly three feet of snow! This was the biggest snow storm since 1922, and since I figure I might not be around the next time we have a snow storm like this I went out with my camera and did my best to explore the area. The street on the right shows some utility vehicles coming in to repair power lines. Thousands of people were left without power for several days, and to make matters worse it was Super Bowl weekend!
The two photos here are from Great Falls, which is where the Potomac River runs through some rapids and is the border between Maryland and Virginia. The Maryland side has some historic parts along Great Falls, since it is only located a few miles outside of Washington DC. On the left are some rapids seen along a smaller branch of the river, with the main rapids being only a few minute walk away. Above is a boat that in a canal running parallel to the Potomac. In the 19th century this canal took people in boats 50 miles away from DC to West Virginia.
The forest immediately around great falls is known as bedrock forest. It is considered a unique but fragile environment in the state. You can see how the terrain is very rocky, and even has some trees growing directly out of the stones on the left. The photo on the right is a caterpillar nest that was built up in the tree in the late summer. I don't remember the species but they are for over taking entire trees.
These two animals are popular all over the east coast. The blue tailed skink, also known as a five lined skink that was running arcoss a wooden bench is found all over the world. I thought this was only an American species but I even saw one in Sudan! The Canadian Goose is normally seen around bodies of water like small ponds or flying together in formations.
These top two photos came out a bit blurry because my camera was at full zoom and without a tripod. I was lucky to see a small humming bird enter the flower above that was high up on a tree. I'm not yet sure of the species.
One of the best places to go hiking in Maryland in the DC area is Sugarloaf mountain. The mountain is about an hour west and is only 1,282 feet in height but is an actual mountaintop and not connected in a range so you can enjoy the summit. The climb is short and easy but its located to the city makes it very convenient. On the left is an abandoned house on the mountain, with only the foundation, chimney and a stone shack remaining. On the right is the view of the countryside taking from about half way up to the top of Sugarloaf mountain.
Another interesting place in Maryland for those who like the outdoors is Green Ridge State Forest. Located in the western part of the state along the Appalachian mountains, Green Ridge Forest is the state's second largest. It is full of wildlife and is one of the best places to go hiking and camping in Maryland. On the upper left is a viewpoint as you first enter the forest by the park headquarters. The bright yellow box turtle was found while hiking through the forest along a creek. I also came across many birds and a water snake but they escaped before I could photograph them. My friend who enjoys photography was hiking with me and took the photo on the right after I had just crossed a creek. The beard on my face was for my Afghanistan trip and the huge pack was to train for Denali.
To really get a great photo of these flowers I'd need a macro lens, which I have now but not at the time. The two photos above are of different sunflowers in Green Ridge forest, both of them being pollinated by bumble bees.
	Another reason why Green Ridge is unique is because of its relatively low precipitation. It is the driest part of the state and is home to prickly pear cactus and other plants not normally found in the state. As far as wildlife I mostly came across insects other than the turtle and a pack of deer I saw. Green Ridge is home to bears, wild turkey and other game animals. Above is a bubble bee pollinating a flower, on the right is a daddy long leg getting some sun.
	Ocean city was always been my local beach when I was growing up. The beach has a great boardwalk and is said to be the kite capital of the world. Ocean city is more of a family beach but it still does have good nightlife.

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Maryland Travel

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