Fat Tire anyone?

New Belgium brewery tour, Fort Collins, CO

A New York Minute (April 6)

A few hours of driving north on I-95 took me past Philadelphia to Princeton, NJ. Another Peace Corps friend, Dan Wright, has been at Princeton for the last few years in school. He had a class in New York City that day and had already left when I got there. I dropped my car at his place, assembled my bike, and rode to the Princeton Train Station. I quickly bought a ticket and made it just as the connection train was pulling out of the station, and then just made the transfer onto the next train to New York as it passed through the next station. I felt kind of important for things to work out like that for me, like the world revolved around me for those brief moments. The plan for the evening was for a bunch of Peace Corps folks to rendezvous and get some dinner. I met Dan at the apartment of our friends Katie and Noah, who live in the city. Katie, Noah, Dan and I all arrived in Bolivia together almost 6 years ago, which seems like a long time but we caught up as if no time had passed. Again, the kindred spirit of the Peace Corps volunteers. Here's a shot from the good 'ol days with the four of us on a hike in Bolivia (plus a couple of others)

Our other friend Lauren came briefly into town to say hello and introduce us to her new baby, Monica, who I found out was actually born on my birthday this year! Lauren and her partner Sean had come to Cincinnati back in 2009 to run the Flying Pig Marathon, and it was great to see them again briefly and catch up. We then headed out to dinner for Serbian food at a place called Kafana...I wasn't sure what to expect as far as Serbian food goes, and I can't tell you exactly what it was I ate but I do know that it was delicious. Another one of our friends, Ross, met us at the restaurant. Liz, a friend of mine from Honduras, who is also in NYC joined us as well. It was like my worlds colliding for a moment, which I actually always really enjoy. It had been almost a year since seeing Liz, who was one of my housemates in Santa Lucía and fellow coffee junkie. The meal and compartiendo were both excellent, for a moment it felt like being back in Bolivia again...like all of us were just in from our sites and enjoying a delicious dinner...the few differences being we didn't smell as much and the food was not nearly as cheap as Bolivian cusine! We headed out to a bar afterwards for drinks and met up with Brandon and Lex, two more volunteers currently living in the city. Turns out NYC is a haven for Bolivia RPCVs. Here's a shot of Dan and me at the bar, and I am of course wearing the sweet denim shirt Dan gave me as a gift last year.

Anyone bored and in the area should hit up Dan's Cinco de Mayo 30th birthday party in Princeton. There is talk of roasting an entire pig! (Although unlike Bolivia, they won't have to kill this one themselves). I was pretty worn out at this point from hopping from spot to spot, so Dan and I returned back to Katie and Noah's place to crash for the evening. After a light breakfast we were back on the train to Princeton the next morning. It was a quick trip but I knew I would be back to the city soon... Dan made me a delicious sandwich before sending me on my way to State College, PA.

Baltimore: Expect the unexpected (April 5-6)

I got off the train and Baltimore Penn Station and took a bus that dropped me a few blocks from my friend Jacky's house. Jacky is a friend from the Bolivia days and in general one of the funniest people I know. My time in Baltimore was short but thanks to Jacky it was far from uneventful! Jacky managed to find two super cool roommates in Baltimore, also RPCVs. Jenny was in Mozambique and Nora was in Lesotho. I have found that Peace Corps definitely attracts a certain breed and that I enjoy that breed and folks of that breed often get along with one another...Nora and Jenny were no exception. They showed me around the area they live (Fell's Point, very nice) and I learned something about Baltimore I didn't know:

Who knew? Here's a shot of Jacky and me by the water

After the tour of the neighborhood and the docks, we ended up at a pizza joint called Johnny Rad's...which was delicious and had good beer selection. We laughed through the entire meal and fun was had by all, except when Nora whipped my tail in Skee Ball. In all fairness, I had not played in a very long time, and she was somewhat of a ringer. We picked up some local beer on the walk home and the merrymaking continued on Washington St. Fleetwood Mac's Rumors was playing on the turntable and we thought it would be a good idea to light some dandelions on fire. I am not quite sure at what point in my life I figured out that dandelions (or whatever you call the white poofy seed version that is pre-dandelion) put on quite a spectacle when you light them on fire, but the fact is, they do. Jacky had a lovely bouquet of these in the kitchen which we promptly took up to the patio and commenced burning. It got a little dicey when they decided to put them in their mouths before lighting, but I assure you no RPCVs were harmed during the taking of this photo:

The evening wound down and I settled in for a good night's sleep on the downstairs futon. I fell asleep thinking that really the only previous impression I had of Baltimore came from watching the HBO series The Wire, which deals with cops and drug dealers...not the prettiest picture. But I found myself really liking it, which of course had mostly to do with my great hostesses, but it seemed to be a nice city nonetheless. The next morning we headed back down to the water for breakfast at Jimmy's Diner...it was delicious and filling and full of baseball fans due to the opening day festivities. Our next task was to drop Jenny at the airport, on the way to which Jacky DJ'd some excellent tunes and we danced and sang like a Brownie troop on a bus to camp. We had to stop for gas, but that didn't stop Jenny from busting out Mmmmbop while she pumped!

We said a tearful goodbye to Jenny and scolded her for breaking up the band. Our next task was to drop Nora at the car rental place, she was heading home too. Jacky and I returned home and I packed up to set off on the next leg of my journey. I hadn't driven in almost two whole days and I was glad to have a short 3 hour drive to my next destination. It was an awesome 18 hours or so in Baltimore, and I looked forward to many more random nights of excellent people, food and drink. Who was to know what was in store over the next weeks of traveling...

The fantastic four: Ben, Nora, Jacky, Jenny

...so I went to our nation's capital AGAIN and met up with Joe Shultz AGAIN... (April 4))

From Charlottesville I drove across Virginia to Maryland, the strangest shaped state in the union, in my opinion. I dropped my car at a friend's place in Baltimore and hopped on a train to Washington, DC. Parking in DC was not something I was excited about, hence leaving the car. Not to mention trains and public transportation on the east coast are prevalent and easy to use. More on that later. I was greeted at Union Station in DC by my jolly old friend, Joe Shultz. I have visited Joe in DC a handful of times over the past few years and it is of course always an enjoyable stay. We headed out to H Street for mussels and beer at Granville Moore's, a spot we have hit up several times in the past that never disappoints. We were joined by another OSU friend, Anne Knapke. It was fun to catch up and reminisce about the college days as well as hear about what we are all up to now and looking to in the future. Having been on the road for over two weeks now as I write this, I have had this conversation many times with many different people, and it has yet to get old. Most people say they are envious of the time I have to spend out traveling and visiting, and I certainly don't blame them. I also really enjoy hearing about what friends are up to or looking to do next. Taking a moment to think about all the people I have met along the way and where they all are in their lives really blows my mind sometimes. I'm just one person, and I know a lot of people who all have amazing and interesting lives...it's just incredible to me how that extrapolates out across the entire planet...so many people with so many different lives... Anyway, it was a nice night out. The next morning Joe and I grabbed a quick breakfast before he hopped in a cab and said, "Take me to the Senate!" I didn't take any pictures of Joe so I thought I'd put up a throwback shot from a few years ago of Joe enjoying a stogie on the California coast:

I then took a walk up to another friend's apartment, one Miss Tahira Rehmatullah. Tahira has had many nicknames over the years but for ease and appropriateness I will refer to her simply as "T." It had been about a year and a half since our paths crossed last, during which she had moved to DC from Brooklyn for a yearlong fellowship. We grabbed a cup of coffee and caught up for a bit at a place that shares a name with another friend of ours, David Tynan:

T was on her way out of town so I left her to finish up some work and pack up. I headed down to the DC Mall (not a place to shop for those of you who don't know) and decided to hit up the Air and Space Museum. It was very enjoyable despite also being attended by approximately 67 million junior high school students on spring break bus trips. I exercised patience since I was also once one of those students way back in 1995 or something. I really enjoyed the museum, especially learning more about the Wright Brothers. I have a huge sense of pride being from the same state as the Wright Brothers and also find it entertaining that they ran a bicycle shop before tackling flying. As I journey across the country trying to figure out what's next for me, I found this quote fairly appropriate. Perhaps it's a sign?

I went to meet Joe for a quick lunch at Union Station before heading out of town. He left me with a tough question to think about as I journeyed on..."So, how do you make this trip about what's next in your life and not just about visiting friends?" I didn't have a good answer for him then but hopefully those answers may present themselves out here on the road. Because for the most part, so far, it has been simply to visit friends. Before heading to the train station, I made a quick trip to visit the national Marine Corps Memorial, also known as the Iwo Jima statue. It's one of my favorite things to see in DC. On my walk from the Metro station to capital, I actually walked over US Route 50, which had I turned west at that moment, I could have trekked directly back to Cincinnati if the spirt so moved me. I headed onto the statue instead:

It was a nice place to sit for a few minutes, but then I had train places to be. As I rode on the train back to Baltimore, I kept thinking about what Joe had said...

Setting Forth (April 2-4)

The first stop on my new journey was Charlottesville, Virginia. It was about a 7 hour drive from Cincy through eastern Ohio, West Virginia, and finally western Virginia. It was a fairly uneventful ride and included listening to many road trip themed songs. I kicked it off with "Born To Run" by Bruce Springsteen and a new favorite, "Windows Are Rolled Down" by Amos Lee. Thanks to George Wang for the song rec, it has become one of my daily go-tos while on the road. It was a beautiful day for a beautiful drive, warm and sunny through the Appalachian Mountains. Here's a shot from an overlook in the Blue Ridge Mountains, about 40 miles West of my final destination in Charlottesville.

I was headed to the home of my good friends from the Peace Corps days, Tom and Anna Sullivan. Our time was spent laughing and catching up, as well as being entertained by their beautiful daughter, May Bird. May Bird is about to turn 2 and is already an expert iPad operator, as well as a pretty good cook!

Upon my arrival Anna, May and I walked into town for a delicious Mexican food dinner at a restaurant called Guadalajara and then spent sometime walking the historic downtown mall, a very nice cobblestone retail district. One of the not so historic places we saw was Miller's bar, where Dave Matthews used to tend bar:

The next day Tom took me up to Monticello, the historic plantation home of Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson was a Charlottesville native and considers designing the University of Virginia in Charlottesville one of his greatest achievements. Not only was the building beautiful and incredibly designed, the grounds and museums telling all about everything Jefferson were fascinating as well. It is definitely worth a visit if you are ever in the area. Here are a few shots of Monticello:

Ol' TJ and myself, with historically accurate shuttle busses in the background

Gravesite

Papa Tom and baby May Bird hanging out by the pond

The house and the lawn

I really enjoyed spending time at Monticello, Jefferson truly was an amazing human being. He was a lawyer by training but taught himself architecture and 4 or 5 languages. His experiences in France influenced the styles he used as well as the food that was prepared for his guests. The tour guide did not make this claim outright, but alluded to Macaroni and Cheese being invented at Monticello. I haven't even mentioned his other life accomplishments like writing the Declaration of Independence, becoming President, or buying the Louisiana Purchase...quite a resumé! That evening we enjoyed some delicious fish tacos fried up by Tom using Alaskan Halibut sent from our good friend George McGuan in Alaska...so very delicious!

The next morning I said goodbye to Tom as he went off to work and Anna and I drove out to the Blue Ridge Parkway for a hike and bike ride. She and May Bird hiked, I biked. Really nice views despite some clouds. It was great to get out and get some exercise in.

Shenendoah River valley Anna and I stopped for delicious sandwiches on the ride home before I packed up and headed further east. The Sullivans' home in Bolivia was a refuge for me when I needed a break, and their doors were always open. We shared many laughs and big hugs back in those days and nothing has changed. It was the perfect kickoff to the trip and I am forever grateful for their generosity, hospitality and friendship. Onto the next stop!

End of Radio Silence

Greetings Readers! Well, this has without a doubt been the longest drought of updates in the history of the Story of Ben, it has been about a year and a half since I last shared anything here. I may put up some stories and photos from the last 18 months at some point, but for now I am just going to start fresh after briefly bringing you up to speed: I finished up my time with Shoulder to Shoulder in Honduras at the end of July 2011. I returned to Cincinnati where I moved in with my sister and her family in Norwood. I worked and saved some money, took a few trips and got involved in a few interesting projects along the way. Then I cut my hair (first real haircut in almost six years) and on April 2nd, 2012 I packed up my car (yes, White Rice still rides on...thanks to some engine work I will surely describe in a later post) and set out on the road. I first headed east through Virginia and DC, up to New York City, Philadelphia and State College, PA. From there it was onto Cleveland and Chicago, and I currently find myself in Minneapolis, MN with plans to drive to Colorado tomorrow. I will do my best to bring you up to speed on all of that in subsequent posts, as well as continue with more "live" updates as the journey continues...final destination TBD. I hope to entertain and update all those who wish to be entertained and updated.