Checking Out Baltimore

The Cylburn Arboretum Visitor Center

Today Kirk took me to the Cylburn Arboretum. It was a great day for a nature walk - the air was cool, not rainy as the weatherman predicted, and delightfully breezy. I figured it was a good opportunity to learn some eastern trees. My camera is dead, dead, dead, but happily, Kirk was sweet enough to loan me his new camera, so let the photo taking commence!

I never saw a Paw Paw Tree before & this one had fruit!

I trotted off chasing some red and fawn tinted girly Cardinal birds, and found this amazing female Ginko Biloba tree - it's female and has fruit. Had NO clue Ginkos can be male or female. I tried the fruit which was vile. Of course I made Kirk try it, & he said it wasn't too bad. It has the scent of rotted fruit and... I kid you not... vomit! Strange stuff.


Female Ginko Tree with stinky, nasty & edible fruit

Kirk wandered down to a bog which was heavily tree covered and there were beautiful purple wildflowers I haven't ID'd yet. A tree trunk looked as if it was carved with different figures - it reminded Kirk of the Tree of Life in Disneyworld.


Click for better view of arty Bog Stump

I did a fair amount of butterfly chasing and managed a few photos of a Buckeye Butterfly, which is also found in California. What caught my eye was a 'mystery' insect with pop-art colors that showed up on the left of the photo.


Buckeye Butterfly and its color-coordinated
buddy, the 'Mystery Insect' on the left


Mystery Insect Close-up

Later I found out the I.D. of the mystery insect is a mystery moth; an Ailanthus Webworm Moth. An Ailanthus is a tree. Famously it's the tree species touted in the book, "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn". The Ailanthus Webworm is a pretty little moth, that rolls its wings, giving it more the look of a fancy beetle -than a moth.


Cylburn Mansion


Stained Glass Wreath over mansion entryway

We briefly toured the Cylburn Mansion. I particularly enjoyed a room with watercolors of Maryland's wildflowers.


Kirk examines the wildflower watercolors

All the mansion floors were highly decorative parquet. There were also several marble fireplaces that made me want to light them up and bask in their glow.


This flooring it so beautiful! I'd love to know the woods used for it.


Marble Fireplace in attrium room

After the mansion, we strolled by the rose garden and the 'demo' gardens that show what those with green thumbs can accompish. Kirk says my nephew in law Avon has a green thumb. Though my mother's was green, mine is uh... wilted.


The Maryland 'demo' Gardens


Kirk strolling past one of several cute little gardens

We had lunch at a beautiful Whole Foods (Whole Paycheck). The building was stone and I bet it was at least 100 years old.


Whole Paycheck... I mean, Whole Foods at lunch time
After lunch we picked up James Allen at his daycare. It's right adjoined to the very church where Kirk & Nicole were married. The building is the second oldest Baptist Church in the country and was recently given Historical Landmark Status.


Union Baptist Church - where Kirk & Nicole Married


New dedication Plaque at Front of Union Baptist Church


James' Day Care next to the Church

Cool side note is across the street from the church is the project that was featured in the HBO series - the Wire.

The 'Hood' featured on HBO's 'The Wire'

Next at my request we visited Baltimore's Washington Monument which predates the monument in nearby Washington D.C.


Baltimore's Monument to George Washington

La Fayette statue

There were all sorts of parks nearby, and great little metal statues. Here's James posing for me at a cool pool with a posing Nyad. Isn't he sweet?


James in the Nyad Fountain

All in all it was a nice day, romping around and seeing the sights of Baltimore with my nephew and nephewlette. Why does Maryland have to be so far from California - yeah - I know - all those darned other states between the two. *sigh*

We Gather Together to Bird and Eat Dinner, He Chastens n' Hastens... uh.... not November yet

Quiet Stream near Gwynns Falls

Today Kirk took me to the Gwynns Falls/Leakin Park Trail. We were in search of birds - a yen I hadn't expected to indulge on this trip. I was ticked that I didn't bring my real binoculars. I only brought the little 7X35 pair of Audubon binocs - adequate - for goofing off.

Soon were off down a trail that I bet used to be a creek bed. Birds were rather scarce to start. But soon Kirk pointed out a Gray Catbird. I played a Catbird call and the bird was interested - staring at us with interest.


Happy in Baltimore Wonderland

We headed on further down the trail to a wide meadow, edged by tulip trees. I spotted a Brown Thrasher winging it across into a stand of trees. I played the Thrasher call and the bird returned for a bit. There were loads of Northern Flickers - yellow-shafted - scattered about the meadow, picking a poo-poo platter of tasty ants and bugs from the ground buffet.

Further down the trail, there was a metal bridge under which ran a beautiful creek. I was hoping of course for something exotic like a Louisiana Water Thrush but we didn't spot any birds on that bit of the creek. A bit further along I found several little Tufted Titmouses fluttering about.


Tufted Titmouses bounced about in trees near the creek

Before we headed back up the hill, Kirk found - and photographed - The Old Waterwheel; a HUMONGOUS metal wheel that used to pump water uphill to the Crimea Mansion.


The 'Old Water Wheel' needs a more ambitious name

When we headed back uphill, Kirk was surprised - he hadn't noticed we had gone down hill. I noticed and made the trek back uphill with a bright and sweaty red face.

Back up the will stopped in at the Crimea Mansion. It was once occupied by the Wynans. They were once the Bill Gates of their time, money wise, having in excess of 145 million. I was interested in a cabinet with small individual pictures of Tsar Nicholas and Alexandra, a batiked egg and a pair of ancient Russian dolls.


Porcelain Russian Dolls

The Wynans suggested a railway builder to the Czar. I got to go into the basement of the building to use the rest room - it was cool down there! No photos of the mansion though - my 3 year old mini-canon camera kicked off - just in time for the trip - Bugger!


This photo of the Crimea Mansion - from on-line

Back up, & out, I spotted American Robins and a small flock of white-throated Sparrows. And no birdie photos. Stupid canon camera. Only three years of heavy use, neglect and the occasional drop to the floor and the thing up and dies! Man, they just don't make cameras like they used to...

Next Kirk took me to his old Baltimore neighborhood to visit his friend Keith, who runs a little grocery there. Keith's father was sort of an adoptive Dad when Kirk first moved to Baltimore.

Soon we picked up little James Allanm post naptime at his day care. The Head Start is right next to the church where Kirk & Nicole were married - it's the 2nd oldest Baptist Church in the country, dating back to the 1850s. The building is composed of old black blocks of brick - it looks like it could be in Ireland for the age of it. Cool!

Tonight the lot of us as well as Nicole's mother, all met for an elaborate feast at Jesse Wong's Kitchen for dinner.


Avon and Bea size up the menu at 'Jesse Wong's Kitchen'

Four year old James artfully managed to skip his nap in the afternoon, so after the 15 minute car trip the kid was out cold and soon sprawled across two restaurant chairs while the rest of us chatted and shared exotic dishes of seaweed salads, steamed dumplings and other appetizers. I slipped my iPhone to Sydney for a game of Alice in Wonderland.

Someone was OUT by the time we got to the restaurant:
clue - yeah, his eyes were shut but it wasn't Kirk


Bea wonders if the thought of finishing her Rock Fish
in one meal may have been a bit optimistic...


Nicole and her Mom - called 'Mema' (really!) and my sister Dolores

There isn't anything like a dinner out with your family - specially if you haven't seen them in a b'jillion years!

On to Baltimore and on Backwards Through Time

Maryland!

The reward after a long flight from Sac o' tomatoes to Baltimore, Maryland was being greeted at the Baltimore airport with hugs from my sister Dolores, niece Bea and her husband Avon. It was already dark when they drove over to where Dolores and I are staying, at my nephew Kirk's house with he and his wife Nicole and their babies, 7-year-old Sydney and 4-year-old James . The last time I saw Kirk and Nicole was in Las Vegas. Back then, little Sydney was in vitro.


Watching "The Princess and the Frog" on iPhone
with James Allan and sister Sydney

The kids are a kick! In the morning I sprawled myself over an easy chair, watching them at play. Soon they were showing me their favorite toys. There were My Little Ponies, bright plastic hammers and saws that bounced to hip hop in a tool belt and Bratz dolls. Next thing we were piled on a lazeeboy couch, watching The Princess and the Frog on my iPhone. I remember when Bea, Kirk and their baby sister Doris and I were so little. We would have overnighters at each other's houses - Bronx and Brooklyn. Beatrice and I would march around singing 'For Pete's Sake Get me to the Church On Time!'


Kirk and Nicole's Baltimore House

Tonight the lot of us as well as Nicole's mother, all met for an elaborite feast at a local Chinese restaurant. Four year old James artfully managed to skip his nap in the afternoon, so after the 15 minute car trip the kid was out cold and soon sprawled across two restaurant chairs while the rest of us chatted and shared exotic dishes of seaweed salads, steamed dumplings and other appetizers. I slipped my iPhone to Sydney for a game of Alice in Wonderland.

When we arrived back at Kirk & Nicole's house, Kirk and I were out front of the house, me having a go at calling a Barred Owl that hangs around the neighborhood. I felt a glompy hug from behind and thought it was my sister, but was my niece Ain - pronounced 'Ah-een').


"Aunt Claire! I haven't seen you since I was five!"

Ain is so tall I had thought she was Dolores, my sister! Ain is beautiful, a talented jewelry maker and geez is she patient. I played with a colorful piece of string on the way out from California, but couldn't teach Sydney or James what to do with it. Ain, sat patiently, explaining and demonstrating to Sydney how to do cat's cradle - which I never mastered. Soon we were all fiddling and fumbling and running through the string pinching maneuvers and managed a few of the moves - with the help of Youtube.


Sydney unwraveling 'Stringy the String'

It dawned on me, Sydney, James and I had traversed 50,000 years or more in the day, starting with the latest technologies iPhone games, then transversed way back to the stone age for a game with a piece of string. It was a fun day's journey and we still have the remainder of the week to go. I must have a b'jillion bits of string at home, why did I bring only one?


James and Ain Chillin'