madness goes to baltimore

So I went to the emergency nurses association convention last week. It was my third time going. This year it was in Baltimore. The coolest thing about the convention is the camaraderie. Being with ER nurses from around the country. Realizing that we are all going through the same thing. That we deal with the same kind of patients.

When I heard it was in Baltimore I thought hmmmmmm...baltimore...not my first choice of cities to go to. Crime. But you know what? It was a really nice city. Clean, it felt safe, at least downtown.Friendly people. The harbor is beautiful and a lot of fun. My view of it changed.

After the convention I spent a couple days in Washington DC. Took an Amtrak down there. I love trains! They are so comfortable and relaxing. I feel like taking a nap when I am on them. I had been to Washington a couple of other times. It just so happened that I came there on the day of a big gay rights parade. In fact they marched right in front of my hotel.

So I ran around for a couple of days seeing things. I think the most impressive thing in Washington is the White house. Its beautiful. The president lives there. During my stay the president was apparently going somewhere in Washington because they had streets blocked off near the white house. There were probably 10 police cars, secret service. There were 2 fire trucks, an ambulance, a hazmat truck, a special operations truck. Somebody went around with a dog. Amazing. Every time the president goes anywhere this is what happens.

I went to Arlington cemetery. Hadn't been there before. Did you know that there is a women veterans memorial building there? It gives a history of women in military service. Check it out if you go. That's a picture of it above.

Washington is a cool city. Beautiful buildings, so much history. Great subway system. You would need a month to see it all.