We saw a dolphin show, as you do, playful creatures. They didn't look as tasty. But you never know. Sharks move constantly, this means that unlike lions in the zoo, they never look defeated. They look like predators, constantly searching for their next kill, even if they are restricted to a few square metres of water.
After that, we wandered around the harbour and went to a book store. We didn't buy any books, it seems that people tend to go to book stores for coffee rather than books. So we had a Starbucks. Ed ordered a hot chocolate. On a boiling summer day, in a humid city.
Later we had another exquisite meal cooked by our host, to balance out the fast food crap that made at least half our diet by the end of the trip. Then we went with our hosts neighbour (who provided essential beer) to a park where a Johnny Cash cover band was playing. After they finished we watched Walk the Line on a large screen. Little flickers of light started appearing around the park. At first I assumed people were just lighting cigarettes, but I don't think you can smoke in USA's parks anymore. Eventually I realised they were fireflies. So Baltimore, a city depicted by TV show The Wire as crime ridden and run-down essentially provided us with a vivid experience of wildlife.
After that we went to what our neighbour described as "a white trash bar". Ed was giddy in anticipation. We decided to try the local delicacy, a beer called National Bohemian. Or Natty Boh for short. Or Boh for even shorter. I have never been served a can in a bar before after asking for a beer, a can on a napkin seemed even more absurd. I wasn't a huge fan of the beer, but it wasn't terrible and it didn't have too strong of a taste.
Out of nowhere, our neighbour, who we had just met, starting telling us about his relationship problems. In detail. I wasn't too surprised by this, having once sat on a bus from Chatham to Boston, MA listening as a man behind me described his entire love life over the phone to his friend on the other end. It's probably healthier I guess just to get all your problems out there. It's cheaper than psychiatry. But I could never be that open with a person I had just met, or even knew for a while. Unless I was drunk.
