If your group is planning a trip to the Washington DC area and after having scheduled all the monuments/memorials, museums and government buildings, consider at day of education and fun in Baltimore. Within thirty minutes to an hour out side of the nation's capitol are many worthy attractions to invest some time in. The Inner Harbor in Baltimore has too many attractions to name but I will mention a few.



Student groups will love the Baltimore ?Ride the Ducks.? While I haven't personally ridden on these ?Ducks? I have ridden on Ducks in other cities and what fun they are. Generally about a 90 minute ride full of music, funny stories, tidbits and history of the city. It's a great way to end or even start a visit to any city because it can be an introduction to what you will see or cap off what you have seen and get a bit of trivia you won't hear anywhere else. Plus the whole duck lips things is a blast. Each passenger gets duck lips and you quack at other Ducks. Well, now your group will have to Ride the Ducks just so you can understand my story.

The National Aquarium in Baltimore is definitely a time worthy investment. See a show with dolphins along with the other 11,000 aquatic creatures. This attraction may seem a little pricey for student groups traveling about but take the time and spend the dime, it's worth it.

Baltimore has a zoo as well, The Maryland Zoo. Don't ask why when the National Zoo is in Washington DC with the pandas and all. There are enough animals to suit any visitor with leopards, elephants, warthogs, and chimpanzees. Your group can spend a few hours here or a half day. A zoo is a great place to stretch your legs when you have been traveling by coach and need to move around.

The Great Blacks in Wax Museum in an interesting and educational way to spend about two hours. The wax figures are expertly realistic, you keep waiting for one of them to blink. With each figure there is a life story to read and learn from. The time line ranges from African slave stories to the lives of influential blacks in American history like Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, Collin Powell and 100 other figures and scenes. There is a full model slave ship depicting the history of the Atlantic Slave Trade. Not only will your group learn the past history of the African American peoples fight for freedom but the current leaders involvement in politics, religion and civil rights.

Just because Baltimore is close to the Nations? Capitol that doesn't mean they depend on D.C. to entertain or educate their visitors. The Baltimore Inner Harbor has fine dining, harbor cruises, the Babe Ruth Museum, and you're just minutes away from Camden Yards where your group can enjoy a major league baseball game. If you decide to venture to DC for a day of enjoyment try Baltimore and as you must always do, enjoy your travels.

Vickie Dodson