DC Trip - Day 4

Erin took us on a tour of her new home in Baltimore today!  I slept well again and was awake by 0600.  Since Erin reported that she was planning to leave Alexandria at 1100, I caught up on emails, reading and blogging while I rested in my room.  Outside temperatures were extremely cold (11 F!).  After coordinating a pick up with Erin (1015), I got on the Metro and rode the Blue Line all the way to Braddock Road.  At that point, the train I was on broke down and I thought for sure I was going to be stranded there.  However, the newly improved WMATA track system (updated since 2019) allowed a following train to cross over to the other track and pick us up, allowing us to continue towards Franconia-Springfield!  I was blown away by this rather unexpected "audible" and happily reported to Erin that I was back on my way to Van Dorn.  I got off the train at around 1110 and met Erin in the parking lot.  We then drove to pick up Mollie and Brenna.  It was great to have another day with my daughters and we had a solid hour of visiting while driving in the car.  Erin's new car had a few hiccups but I think most of them were related to the extreme cold.  We arrived in Baltimore at around 1230 and passed by the stadium where Baltimore and Atlanta were about to start their Christmas Eve game.  Erin took us to her apartment complex and we parked in the garage there.  After reaching Erin and Austin's place, we spent some time relaxing, eating Twizzler's and talking.  From her apartment in the Inner Harbor neighborhood, we got to watch (at close to eye-level!) a Blackhawk/Chinook fly-over formation at the beginning of the Ravens-Falcons game!  We stayed about an hour in the room and then took a tour of the building's amenities.  Erin even took me a short distance down the block to find a Notre Dame Sports Bar (for next time!).  After that, we got in the car and drove to Attman's Deli, our favorite establishment on Corned Beef Row.  We've been there a few times over the years (see APR 2007 and MAY 2010) and it is extremely worrisome to park there.  We managed to find a spot to park this time (wow!) and then got in the long line to order our food.  The girls had a lot of ideas about what we should eat and I was surprised at the large amount of food we took back to the apartment at 1415.  We then enjoyed our meal (Reuben Specialty, latkes, matzah-ball soup, hot & tasty corned beef sandwiches, apple cake, etc.) in Erin’s cozy living room.  Unfortunately, it was a bit too cold to truly explore Camden Yards but I decided I will definitely return to explore more of the area!  We left Baltimore at around 1545 (trying to avoid the departing fans from the Ravens-Falcons game).  We had more time to talk (very nice) and Erin offered to drop me off at L'Enfant Plaza so I wouldn't have to take the Metro again.  Along the way, we topped for gas at Royal Farms in Elkridge, MD (1605).  After Google Maps caused some confusion for navigation, we managed to reach the Holiday Inn (1730).  I said goodbye to the girls and thanked them for such a nice three days of visiting.  It felt strange to be alone in my hotel room again but I filled up the evening by watching some of the NFL games on television, getting some maintenance done on my room (I'd procrastinated for several days) and reading my books.  Since I was full from all the eating earlier in the day, I skipped dinner.  Hoping to get my 10,000 daily step count, I took a long walk around the hotel (several laps of several floors).  I also checked all my bags and set my alarm for an early morning wakeup.  Not really feeling tired yet, I still went to bed at 2200.  The kids checked in just as I was settling down for the night - I think everyone enjoyed our Baltimore adventure!