Dan Themba and I drove to Baltimore today. Baltimore is the largest city in Maryland and was founded as a tobacco and flour milling centre with a good harbour. it developed as colonial America's shipping centre, but in 1812 we, the British, bombarded it with ships. American soldiers resisted the attack and kept thier flag flying, an event which inspired a Maryland lawyer to write a poem called the 'Star Spangled Banner' which became the national anthem! Baltimore feels like a thriving city and the harbour area has lots going on, with bars and cafes and restaurants and museums and old ships and submarines from WWII. It feels very different to cities further west but I like it. We found a really cool little art gallery and bar next door that we spent time in.