No Prohibition Building Advertisement in Fells Point, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

No Prohibition Ad, Fells Point, Baltimore Harbor 265
Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

Fells Point is one of Baltimore’s most historic areas.

This faded “Vote Against Prohibition” advertisement has lasted long past the demise of Prohibition. Perhaps not coincidentally the Fells Point area is known for bars and nightly rowdiness even as it remains a "must see" during the day for visiting tourists and nearby conventioners.

Baltimore’s Inner Harbor is the perfect example of how history and travel intersect in wonderful ways. Formerly the Inner Harbor was mainly for shipping, but over the past several decades Baltimore has turned this into a convention and tourism hot spot for the entire coast.

One of the most appealing features in Baltimore are the Water Taxis which take you from place to place all day for $9, offering a cheap tour. Be sure to ask the pilots about the buildings and harbor history - most are very well informed.

Half Dome top overhang, Yosemite NP

Half Dome top overhang, Yosemite NP

Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

I couldn't resist blogging another picture of Yosemite.

This shot was taken at the top of Half Dome, which is not a technical climb if you go around the back. Still, it's a long day of about 16 miles round trip with a pretty intense final push up the rounded granite of Half Dome's eastern flank.

Cables allow this final climb of about 1/4 mile to be safe, but it's so steep that you feel at times like you are dangling off the edge.

The tip shown here is visible in most views of Half Dome.

Harpers Ferry WV. Lewis and Clark?

VirginiaBaltimore08 114
Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

Lewis and Clark are more familar as key explorers of the American West, but here in Harpers Ferry West Virginia the Lewis and Clark expedition camped for some time while wagons and boats were made and provisions put up for their upcoming adventures. Fresh with orders from Thomas Jefferson to document and claim lands to the west of a fledgling USA, Lewis and Clark made their way to Astoria Oregon and home again in one of the most significant of all American expeditions.

Map:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=harpers+ferry+VA&mrt=all&sll=43.201703,-91.146784&sspn=0.023525,0.05579&g=harpers+ferry&layer=c&ie=UTF8&ll=39.323749,-77.735084&spn=0.006042,0.013947&t=h&z=17

Half Dome, Yosemite National Park

Half Dome, Yosemite
Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

Yosemite National Park in California offers some of the most sublime and spectacular mountain scenery on earth. Yosemite was popularized by naturalist John Muir and later by photographer Ansel Adams, but the park needed no special advocates for its awesome splendor.

The hike up half dome (on the opposite side of the dome not seen in this picture) is one of the best in all the National Parks but is not for the faint of heart. The end of that hike is so steep you must pull yourself up the side of half dome via cables that are secured into the rock, though the hike does not require any technical climbing ability thanks to the cables.

French Quarter, New Orleans

French Quarter, New Orleans
Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

New Orleans' French Quarter is most noted for the loud and not-suitable-for-children Bourbon Street. However most of the French Quarter is quiet with fantastic restaurants, charming small hotels, and beautiful residences that carry Spanish and French architectural traditions from pre-colonial America. Be sure to take some time off Bourbon Street to walk several blocks through one of the USA's most historic neighborhoods. Enjoy some Fried Oysters at Napoleon House, and some Biegnets and Coffee at Cafe du Monde, serving world famous pastry along the river for over a hundred years.

America's Best Fried Chicken...

A short drive outside of New Orleans' French Quarter, home to some of the best food in America, is what many think is the *best* fried chicken restaurant in the USA. Profiled in national magazines and endorsed by locals from one of the countries top food destinations, Willie Mae's serves up beans and Fried Chicken you won't find anywhere else. Although the recipe of her wet batter is a secret, part of Willie's approach is slow cooking the chicken for about 20 minutes in 350 degree oil.

Hurricane Katrina destroyed this New Orleans landmark but thanks to the enthusiasm of a local restoration group the restaurant has been restored and rebuilt and now is under the management of Willie's granddaughter, one of the few people who know the secret of Willie Mae's Fried Chicken.

Here's a good profile of Willie Mae's Fried Chicken

International Market Area, Wanfujing, Beijing, China

International Market Area, Wanfujing, Beijing, China
Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

For the Beijing Olympics this area will be .... busy. Even in April the crowds were overwhelming as this is a key area for food and cheap souvenirs along Wanfujing Street in Downtown Beijing, several blocks from Tianenmen Square which is considered the center of Beijing.

Here you can sample squid, scorpion, and some very nasty looking bugs on a stick. More traditional treats are Chow Fan and Chow Mein (fried rice, fried noodles).