Day 17: Baltimore to Dayton (with Columbus in between)

At first I thought this day would be boring since I was driving a lot and the exact same way that I done only five days before, but it didn't turn out to be half bad!

Pat woke me up at 6:30am as he was leaving the house. We said bye, and I quickly got ready and was on the road by 7am. While I don't like being rushed in the morning, I do like starting my drive early. I escaped most of the Baltimore-area traffic and was on my way once again through eastern Maryland, northern West Virginia, and southeastern Pennsylvania on my way to Ohio (got all that?). I still managed to stop for gas at the same two exits I had on my way to Baltimore - coincidence? I hope so!

I had more time this trip, so I mosey-ed a little bit more than usual. I stopped by and drove around the West Virginia University campus - looks pretty nice. I also didn't mind too much getting off the beaten path and took a random highway for awhile (tried to remember the number but forgot it).

I made my way to Columbus by around 4pm. I first stopped and visited Heather, a friend from grad school who is working at Denison University int he Academic Support office. She and her fiancee had just bought a house, and since she is off work for the summer she is busy painting and doing work around the place. It was nice to sit and catch up with her, and I spent two hours there (which went by very quickly as we are both talkative people!).

After that, I headed down to Ohio State (a quick trip into Columbus) to see my friend Kenny Lopez. Kenny and I were RAs and SRAs together at UCDavis, and he is now a Hall Director at Ohio State. We have known each other for about 6 years now, and it is fun to see how our paths have gone in similar routes into student Student Affairs but different in the types of schools we are working at. OSU is huge! Kenny I think was born to be a Hall Director, and he is amazing at the job - so much energy and passion for what he does. It was good to see him again after moving out of Ohio! We went and got some Mexican food for dinner at El Vaquero, a local place. Then we went to Jeni's Ice Cream for desert. This place has somewhat crazy flavors and are all delicious. I got three mini scoops of pistachio honey, pear, and salted caramel. Holy crap they were good!

After leaving Columbus, it was a quick trip to Dayton and back to Megan's apt, where I tried to stay awake talking to her but quickly fell asleep on the aero bed in the living room. Long day but good!

Overall, I enjoyed both Baltimore and DC. I am torn as to whether or not I would live in either city, as the things that I enjoy about the cities are mostly based on my slim view as a tourist. I am finding more and more through this trip that I do enjoy and prefer a smaller city, like a Spokane or Dayton. But it was fun to visit the east coast and I'm sure I will again in my life.