Day 57: Good Morning, Baltimore!

Ready for the next four days at OLPH, Sarah and Nels made an announcement during breakfast. I knew that we would begin to have retreats off soon, but I didnt know how soon. Well, at the last second, the two announced that Aimee and I had the retreat off. Well, shoot, what should we do!? The rules are that if we were to drive the van, we can drive up to 30 miles before having to pay for gas money, and to be back at the school by 3:30 for team prayer. Since Aimee was a driver, it was a done deal: we’re exploring downtown Baltimore! When we were let go, we decided we wanted to check the Basilica and figure it out from there. We didnt have any specific places, we just wanted to do something downtown. One thing we learned quickly: Baltimore drivers dont let you in. Aimee had her blinker on for 4 blocks to try to turn into the Basilica, and that driver did not let us in! So Aimee gave up and moved on to a different spot. It looked cool at least. We eventually decided to go to a Whole Foods (because West Coasters do that I guess… okay we only do that), which ended up being at Fells Point, a Baltimore harbor. When we found a parking spot, we began to just walk. The harbor was oddly quiet. Too quiet. There was no one there on a beautiful Thursday morning, but we enjoyed it alot. We found a spot for lunch called Handlebar Café, a bike shop/restaurant who served us some bomb nachos. And eventually we did go to Whole Foods, as well as a monument commemorating the Polish martyrs during the USSR reign in the middle of Fells Point. Seems random, but it was fascinating. We returned to the church at around 1:40, when Aimee wanted to run an errand. So we drove to a nearby salon to get her eyebrows done, when we drove through old Ellicott city, which was gorgeous!! Never been so in awe like that before, and I wished we had more time to explore. After the appointment, we chilled out until the retreat ended. That night, we returned to a taco dinner, bonfire, and outdoor games! It was a fun night with the team, and such an incredible day of exploration with Aimee that I only couldve gotten with a retreat off like today. Although I’ll be honest, I’m refreshed and rejuvenated for retreat tomorrow after today, so let’s get into it!. . .