Day 179 - Clarksburg, Maryland

(Click any photo to enlarge)

The former Sew and Save

The Clarksburg I knew in the 1960's is almost gone, having been swallowed up by development along the I-270 corridor.  In 1752, it was established via a 40 acre patent to Ashford Dowden, who built an inn along the Great Road, currently Rt. 355, that ran from Georgetown (near Washington, DC) to Frederick.  By 1875, Clarksburg was a major town, but the construction of the railroad harmed its economy.

In the mid and late 1960's, my mother would load me and my sister into the station wagon, and we would head up Rt. 355 past Germantown to the fabric store in Clarksburg, known as the Sew and Save.  It was located in a house, with fabrics on both floors.  We would spend hours in there, looking at patterns and selecting fabric, because back then, we made all of our own clothes.  It was like the kiss of death for my younger brother, if he had to come along, because there was absolutely nothing he was interested in at the store, unless he brought along his comic books and read them out on the porch.

I parked along Rt. 355 at an animal clinic, which was in the center of what a sign claimed to be the historic district.  However, there were no sidewalks and only a few of the original buildings were around.  The old Sew and Save has been restored, and according to a Gazette article dated 2002, it was to be a visitor center, although today there is a "for sale" sign out front, so the center must not be in operation.

Dowden's Ordinary

I walked along busy Rt. 355 on a muddy strip next to the road, to get to an interesting structure at the corner of Stringtown Road and Frederick Road (the local name for Rt. 355).  Its signage said "Dowden's Ordinary."  It was a representation of the inn mentioned in the first paragraph, and signs told of its historical importance.  The area around the structure has been made into a park.

Across from the park one can see acres of modern housing developments.  There are some commercial businesses to support the new development, but as far as the eye can see, it is all new rooftops and bricks and siding.

Novel Places

Bookstore, second floor

I walked back to the area near where I parked and continued north until I stopped in front of an interesting old white building that had signs out front indicating it was a bookstore, Novel Places.  Curious, I stepped onto the front porch and read the note on the door which said that the store was located on the second floor.  I tried the handle on the old wooden door, and it opened, leading me into the interior of what looked like an old general store.  There were wooden shelves on all the walls, and a stamped tin ceiling.  I heard footsteps from above, and a man emerged from a side room where there was a stairway.  I followed him to the second floor, where there were several rooms with books, both new and used, and an entire room devoted to kids, with books and toys by Melissa and Doug.

Clarksburg School

I walked around, examining books, and selected a mug with a picture of the old Clarksburg School.  I asked about the school, and the man  (I never did introduce myself, nor did he, but I am going to make a giant leap of assumption here that his name is Pat, based on the email address on his web site) told me that it was just down the road that was across the street, now used as a daycare center adjacent to the current school.  So, I told him a little of what I was doing, and then headed out to find the school.

After leaving the school, I crossed back over Rt. 355 and walked to the church and graveyard.  As I was returning to my car, Pat came out of the store to find me.  He had not returned the $3 change from my purchase, which I had not even noticed.  Small town courtesies still can be found in Clarksburg, at least at Novel Places.

 ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 178 - North Frederick

(Click any photo to enlarge)

Corner of Market and 12th

I think I'll give blood soon.

Numbered streets are always sort of a mystery to me.  They have plenty of them in places with lots of streets, like Ocean City, MD, and Washington, DC.  Washington also has street names with letters, too, but that's another topic.

Anyway, why is there no First Street in Frederick?  Why does some "other named" street appear between numbered streets?  In Ocean City, it happens all the time.  You're looking for 28th Street on one side of Coastal Highway, but it's Robin Drive on the other side.  So, driving south, you'll pass 32nd Street, but the next time you encounter a numbered street, it is 26th.  It makes you wonder what happened to five of the numbered streets.  In Frederick, going south on North Market, you'll encounter 14th St,  then Frederick Avenue,  and then 13th St.  Was Frederick Avenue there first, and then the numbered streets were added?  Was it formerly an alley between streets?  Was it carved out of extra land after the numbered streets were named?

Same car.  See above.

The lyrics to "Let it Be" were
written in the sidewalk margins

Thoughts like these run through my head while I am doing my daily walks.  I could be thinking about solving world problems, or about what the future holds for me, but instead, I ponder what I am seeing in front of me.  I love speculating about how and why things were done the way they were.

Pine in the Sky

I parked my car near the corner of 14th and Market, then walked west a few blocks along 14th until I came to Motter Avenue.  I walked south along Motter, then east along Frederick.  Then I walked south along Market, and west along 13th.  You get the idea.  I was zigzagging my walk along the numbered streets between Market and Motter.  When I came to 10th and Motter, I walked north along Motter to 14th, then east again to my car.  It was a good walk, with a ton of trip hazards due to trees uprooting the sidewalks, but I kept a sharp eye out, and made out fine.

OK, here's a quiz for you Frederick readers.  There is apparently no First Street, but what is the highest numbered street?  Extra points will be scored if you don't need to refer to a map!

 ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 177 - Back Home in New Market

(Click any photo to enlarge)

A Great New Makeover!

Sign of spring

Although I am glad to be home, today is a cold, wet, fairly yucky day.  It's the kind of day that makes you want to sit curled up with a book by the fireplace and drink something warm, wrapped up in an afghan.  The temperature is 37, just on the cusp of snow, the rain is falling steadily, but not hard, and a steady breeze blows it into your face and down your neck.  However, I know that there are a lot of people who are unable to walk outdoors in any type of weather, so I am not complaining.  Well, yes I was, but I'm being honest.  It is still pretty yucky. However, with all that said, I suited up in rain gear and decided to stick close to home in the little town of New Market.

Liv music on Thursdays

New Market used to be known as the Antiques Capital of Maryland, and the sign along Rt. 70 claims that there are 30 antiques shops.  There has been recent debate about whether to remove the sign, since it is clearly false advertising, but there is change in the wind for New Market, so for now, it is staying put. Town officials and residents are wrestling with matters such as annexation, expansion, the amount of signage a business is allowed to have outside for advertising, and other similar matters.

General Store Window

On a Tuesday afternoon, the busiest places in New Market are the two schools, the middle and elementary, where parents regularly line up their cars in anticipation of school letting out for the day.  Aside from those two places, almost every business or restaurant was closed today.  Some businesses, like the New Market General Store, seem to have closed for good, despite a sign that has been in the window for months, claiming it will reopen soon.  The five or six antiques shops are open mostly Wednesday through Sunday, and the two places to eat, Mealey's and Milo's, are either open later in the day or Thursday through Sunday.  There are also some shops other than antiques, selling primarily jewelry and floral arts.

New kid on the block

There was a new business, called Artway, that has been preparing to open for about a year now.  They relocated to New Market from Damascus.  Finally, they have stocked their building and are open to the public.  They carry art supplies for polymer clay work, jewelry, paper crafting, and more.  I parked my car there, went inside to look around, and then walked from Artway to the end of town and back.

The fire department is undergoing a major renovation, and it is looking spiffy with its shiny red doors.  I am glad it decided to stay right in town and not move out to the edge.  Fire departments so often are the hub of social activity for a small town.

So, other than the Artway shop and the newly renovated fire department, not much is new in New Market. 

 

  ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 176 - Two Walks in One in San Antonio

(Click any photo to enlarge)

Stairway to the Japanese Garden

Waterfall

It is amazing to me how small this world is and how truly connected the Internet and Facebook have made us.  A couple of days ago, a member of my camera club in Frederick contacted me via email to let me know that he and his wife were visiting relatives in San Antonio.  Because we are Facebook friends, he knew what I was doing every day, and he suggested that when the course was over, we could go on a photo walk together.  I definitely took him up on his offer.

Leave me alone, lady!

Little Lovebirds

Manuel and Stella both grew up in San Antonio, so they know the area well.  We decided on a walk today at the Sunken Gardens, which was built on the site of a former limestone quarry.  It was a beautiful location, with stone structures and bridges, a waterfall, a large lake with beautiful koi, and upper and lower levels and walkways.  We admired the Texas mountain laurel in bloom, as well as lantana and pansies and catci.  Of course, in the spring, the area is much more lush with flowers, but it was beautiful today, even in February.  

Alert Eland

Manuel and Stella

On our walk, we encountered members of a camera club who were on a photo shoot, so we talked about cameras and brands and future purchases.

After we left the sunken gardens, we still had some time before I needed to head to the airport, so we went to the zoo, which was nearby.  We walked for an hour at the zoo, and then it was time for me to leave.

Thanks, Manuel and Stella, for a most enjoyable morning.  We'll see each other again on Saturday, when Manuel will join me and some others for my halfway point walk in Mount Vernon.

Quarry turned garden lake.

 ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 175 - The San Antonio Botanical Gardens

(Click any photo to enlarge)

Quinceanera Beauty

Orchids

After my class ended today, I drove to the San Antonio Botanical Gardens to do my walk.   I chose an excellent place, for sure.  Although the season is still winter, a few daffodils were up, and seasonal plants such as pansies and Swiss chard were in lush abundance.

The gardens are a popular place for photographers to bring friends, family, wedding parties, and models to pose for pictures, and today was no exception.  However, as I was seeing those photographers at work, I was thinking, "You need to add a softbox on the right"; proof positive that my course has gotten me thinking in a new way about photographing people.

Wall Flowers

Ready, focus, shoot!

I walked through the sensory garden, which smelled heavenly, and then on to the conservatories where they had orchids and cacti and palms.  Then I found the pine woods section, with the pond.  There was also a Japanese garden, a children's vegetable garden, and an overlook, which was the second highest spot in elevation in San Antonio.

I got in on the photographer's action!

Cactus Beauty

Whenever you are in a new city, try to see if there is a public botanical garden.  It's a great place for both a walk and for photos.

 ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 174 - King William District, San Antonio

(Click any photo to enlarge)

Villa Finale

Villa Finale on wall mural

What a beautiful part of San Antonio I chose for my walk this morning.  The King William District is made up of three separate districts on the National Register of Historic Places, plus one district designated by the city.  It was established by wealthy German merchants in the late 1800's, and has once again become a fashionable neighborhood.

My research told me that this area is comprised of 25 blocks of historic mansions, so I skipped out on the River Walk boat cruise this morning, and chose to come to King William, instead. I found parking near the Guenther House, then walked along King William St, which is also at one of the far ends of the River Walk. 

River Walk

Anchoring one end of the district is the old Pioneer Flour Mill.  The streets of the neighborhood are wide, lined with beautiful trees.  Even though it does not feel like winter here, the trees know that it is, and except for the occasional palms, they are leafless.  Crape Myrtles lined many of the streets, with ground covers like wandering jew and spider plants.  Other plants I saw included lantana, nandina, bougainvilla, and cyclamen. 

This one's for sale -- I want it!

It was very quiet along these streets on this Saturday morning.  I was able to crisscross the streets many times, taking advantage of where the sun was illuminating the houses to their best advantage.  There was quite a mixture of mansion-like homes, many beautifully restored, along with some in need of restoration.  Occasionally there were small bungalow style homes, most with inviting front porches (my style of choice), and even a few mid-century moderns mixed in.

The Liberty House

I could not have chosen a better place for my walk today, and my 45 minute walk only covered a portion of it.  What a treat!  If you are ever in San Antonio, be sure to take a walk in the King William Historic District.

*****************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 173 - Morning near Travis Park, San Antonio

(Click any photo to enlarge)

ATT Bldg; they just don't
make them like this anymore.

Korean War Memorial

After a traffic-filled drive downtown, right in with the rush hour flow headed to San Antonio, I parked at the hotel and put on two jackets.  I know I was making fun of the locals wearing winter coats yesterday in 70 degree weather, but this morning it was in the low 50's with a stiff wind blowing, and I was feeling the effects.

I walked from 7 to 7:30 this morning around the hotel area, knowing that we were boarding a bus at 8:30, and were not likely to get done until around 10:00 this evening. After my walk, I had breakfast at the hotel.

Public Art Project

I'm so glad I did my walk early, because now I am sitting in a Whataburger, typing furiously to get this blog done, while eating fries. They do not have wi-fi connections, so posting this will have to wait until I get back to Lauren's house tonight.

The Sheriff of Enchanted Springs Ranch

This morning we went to the Enchanted Springs Ranch, where we worked on the principles we were taught last night, using the speed flashes with models dressed in Western gear.  The ranch was built for a movie set, and it has become a family attraction with shows like gunfights on the weekends.

I have included one of the shots from this morning.  This afternoon, we're going to Mission San Jose for more shoots, with brides.  So far, I am learning a ton and having great fun!

 ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 172 - Downtown San Antonio

(Click any photo to enlarge)

And over this way...

Pipe burst

The reason I came to Texas is to take a photography course here in San Antonio, and it begins this afternoon.  I arrived downtown around 10:30 this morning, parked at the St. Anthony Hotel, where the course will meet, and walked all over the downtown/Riverwalk area.  The weather is breezy and in the upper 60's.  It is funny to see the natives here wrapped up in winter coats and jackets.  The tourists have on shorts and flip flops.

I ate lunch along the Riverwalk, avoiding the restaurant with the colorful umbrellas, because flocks of pigeons kept landing on the tables.  I did not want to have to constantly shoo pigeons away from my food.

Thinks she's hiding?

More gorgeous glass

Right now, I am in the lobby of the hotel, working on this blog before the course meets at 3:30, using the hotel wi-fi to post it. 

The next few days will be a bit of a challenge, since the course pretty much runs from 8:30 in the morning until 8:30 at night. Time management will be of the utmost importance!

Stairway to La Villita

 ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 171 - Floresville, TX

(Click any photo to enlarge)

Peanut sculpture on
the courthouse lawn.

Downtown Floresville

Floresville, Texas, located southeast of San Antonio, is a historic town famous for its mission ranching history.  Goat and sheep ranches were established nearby to help support Mission Espada, thus becoming a model for Texas ranching.  In recent times, the area is known for peanut farming.

On the road to Floresville, I saw large fields with beautiful spreading live oaks, and occasionally cattle were resting under the trees.  Of course, I was whizzing along at 70 mph (the posted speed limit on most highways), unable to pull over and take photos of those pastoral scenes.

This was still a working cafe.

The theater had three films.

Floresville is the county seat, and it has a large, beautiful white courthouse building in the center of town.  I parked near the courthouse, but there was a chainlink fence surrounding the building, spoiling good photo ops.  It was undergoing some renovation.  The rest of the town consisted of one or two story brick or block buildings, with flat facades and angled parking along the wide streets.  Almost every building had an attached, "modern" addition of an angled shed roof between the first and second stories, to shade pedestrians walking the sidewalks in the blazing hot summers.  Unfortunately, they did nothing for the visual appeal of the architecture.

I walked around the three block area, covering both the front and back streets, and then across to the other side of the main street, covering more of the side streets.  There were surprisingly few businesses.  There was one bank, of modern construction, two churches, both with long histories but newer buildings, no gift shops or bookstores or antiques dealers or hair salons (at least in the sections I walked).  There were several small restaurants, and one in particular had a number of people going in, so I followed them.  It was the Trail Side Steak House, and the interior was completely decorated with the local high school football memorabilia -- jerseys, printed programs, pompons, cheerleader outfits, letter sweaters, etc.  Team photos and stories from the newspapers were under the glass tops of all the tables.  Clearly, high school football is a big deal in Floresville.  Go Tigers!

Coca Cola Sprite Boy

Because this is the county seat, there were a couple of lawyer's offices in the downtown area, but not much commerce.  I saw why, when I left by a different route.  Just a couple of miles out of town were the Walmart, Lowe's, McDonalds, banks, grocery stores, etc.  I spoke later to a man in a camera shop in San Antonio, and when I told him I had been in Floresville today, the first thing he said was, "Walmart killed that town."  Apparently, it's true.  There was not too much reason to go to the historic area, unless you had business in court.

By the way, one of my favorite photos of today was the Coca Cola ad.  It was larger than what I have shown you, all rusted on the side of a building.  If you search for the "Coca Cola Sprite Boy," you can see what he would have looked like, new.

 ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

*************************************************

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 170 - Fredericksburg, TX

(Click any photo to enlarge)

The Nimitz Hotel

Some like it hot!

I suppose it is most appropriate that I came from Frederick, MD, and ended up in Fredericksburg, TX, today.  Actually, there are quite a few characteristics that the two towns have in common, other than the name.  They both love tourists, they both have a great historic district with shops and restaurants, and they both celebrate the arts.  The streets are much wider in the TX town (to accommodate wagon trains and cattle herds, I suppose), but isn't everything supposed to be bigger in Texas?

Fredericksburg's German
heritage

My daughter Lauren and I headed for Fredericksburg today, which is in the heart of Texas hill country.  The hills are quite rocky, and not too large, and every now and then we'd see a magnificent home atop a hill.  The area is also known for wineries and peach orchards.

Fredericksburg was founded by Germans in 1846, and its German heritage is capitalized on today for tourists.  Apparently the original Germans refused to speak English, forming a Texas German dialect.  We saw German restaurants, German street signs (Main St. was also labeled Hauptstrasse), and lots of biergartens.  I'm sure that on weekend nights, they are full of patrons.  They were a little slow today, a Tuesday afternoon in February.

Keidel Hospital -- Now a
kitchen store & restaurant

We walked up one side of Main Street and down the other, from the Market Place to the Nimitz Hotel and back.   We went in and out of some of the shops, and ended with lunch in a restaurant that had a mixture of German and Tex-Mex.  I got the bratwurst with red cabbage and warm potato salad, and Lauren had the chili (no beans) and cornbread. 

I did not sample these...
They also had chocolate
covered bacon & pickles

There was so much more to do in Fredericksburg that we could have stayed in one of their famous b&b's and easily spent another day or two, just in town.  Alas, a day trip and a photo walk were all we had time for.  After all, the bulldogs were waiting at home for us to take them for their walk.

The Escape Plan

 ******************

Visit my photography show, "My Maryland," at the public library in Urbana, Maryland, on the lower level of the building.  It is there until the end of April.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog OR any photo on my website.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross. Tell me whether the photo is from the blog or the website, and Include its title along with a mailing address. The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient. Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so