Not All Who Wander... (part I)
A few months ago I decided it might cool to take a road trip to all of the Hard Rock Cafes that I could get to in a long weekend. I collect guitar pins and each cafe has different styles in stock including "city specific" pins that depict something unique about the city in which the cafe is located. My current collection consists of quite a lot from Boston and New York because they are the closest cities and I visit them more frequently than anywhere else. A good portion of my collection is also from the Orlando Hard Rock because they seem to have the most different types of pins available each time I'm there and I end up buying five at a time. Having so many pins from only three cities (and only a few random pins from other cafes that I've visited) makes for a boring collection. I needed more variety and so I decided to go on a quest.
I asked friends to go with me, but I ended up going alone. Most of the reasons not to join my quest had to do with not having any money or the quest being too expensive.
True. The quest over all for myself was somewhat expensive. However, if the cost of gas was split two or even three ways, it would have been much more affordable. I kept track of all my costs so I could post them here and rub it in my friends' faces that the whole thing wouldn't have cost them that much at all.
Gas: I started with a full tank and only filled up twice while on the road. Once home, I did fill it up again.
Total cost of gas: $70.
Food: I bought cold cuts and rolls and made sandwiches for my meals. I also had crackers and cream cheese and granola bars (but I only ate one). The only thing I ran out of was ham and rolls.
Total cost of food: $23.
Parking: I wasn't expecting parking to cost so much. (8 dollars an hour in the city centers!). I parked about 10 blocks away from the city center of Philadelphia and paid $4.50. In Baltimore, I didn't feel like walking so I parked in the parking garage for $13.00. In Washington, DC, I paid $4.00.
Total cost of parking: $21.50
Coffee: I frivolously bought three Starbucks frappaccinos while on the trip.
Totaly cost of frapps: $15.00
The only other major costs were the pins (which a traveling buddy wouldn't have bought anyway) and the tolls. I haven't checked my EZ Pass yet to see how much I spent, but I can't imagine it being more than 20 dollars or so.
So, I really only spent about 120/140 dollars over all. Which if split two or -- better yet -- three ways wouldn't be so bad for each person involved.
The only other thing would have been lodging. I slept in my car... but there wouldn't be room for three to sleep in it, so we would have to add 60 or so dollars to the total for a hotel stay.
Anyways, the trip:
I woke up Friday morning at about 5 o'clock. I had packed most of what I would need the night before. I showered, dressed and finished packing. Then I went to price chopper to buy some food and I headed out, realized I had forgotten my sunglasses, stopped back at home for them, and headed out again. It was almost 7am.
I hit a little bit of traffic near Albany (the beginnings of rush hour), but it wasn't too bad. I stopped for a short break after about two and a half hours of driving. It was beautiful out... blue skies, sunshine, and with the windows rolled down there was a nice breeze. It was wonderful driving conditions. I took another short stop just off of I-95 in New Jersey. I filled up my gas tank and had lunch.
I arrived in Philadelphia a little after noon. I drove through the city center, found Hard Rock and began looking for a place to park. There were parking garages and lots which charged upwards of 8 dollars an hour! I kept looking.
(What the hell is this thing?!)
I was about ten blocks away from Hard Rock when I found a metered parking spot. I paid $4.50 for three hours. Even so, I ended up not spending much time in Philly. I walked to Hard Rock with my guitar. I set up outside of Hard Rock and busked for about thirty minutes. No one stopped to give me change... One guy did stoop and listen to me for about ten seconds. I finished a song and said "hello." He just walked away... I received a compliment and a delightful smile from a cute girl that walked by. Then a group of thugs walked by and one of them said to the other, "It's all you." The other one stepped directly over my guitar case and said, "There ain't shit in there." (I think he was going to steal my tips, which is why I call them 'thugs'... but there wasn't anything to steal).
(This was the view while busking).
I packed up my stuff, went in Hard Rock and bought two pins. Then I headed for another area to busk at. I walked through some parks with fountains, but there were a lot of homeless people crashing on benches so I kept walking. I eventually came to this fountain which looked incredibly familiar...
(I think it's the fountain at the beginning of Married With Children).
I left Philadelphia around three o'clock. On my way out, of the city, I quickly grabbed my phone and snapped a picture of this sporting arena...
... and this one...
I'm not even sure why... I don't even like sports... I guess it's just because they are larger than life and man made marvels...
Anyways, I drove two more hours to Baltimore and as I approached Hard Rock, I took this picture:
I parked in a parking garage nearby (the one that cost me 13 dollars for two hours) because I was too excited to look for cheaper parking. Baltimore was awesome! I walked from the parking garage past this HUGE building that housed the coolest Barnes and Noble EVER, Hard Rock, and a bunch of other restaurants.
I had brought my laptop with me and went in Barnes and Noble to use their Wi-Fi. I sat on the balcony overlooking the harbor.
The harbor area was incredibly cool. There is a mini bar area outside of the Hard Rock Cafe with a small stage and tables and people and music and stuff. I checked my itinerary as per mapquest, the weather, and made a couple facebook updates about the trip. A group of girls were hanging out on the balcony and one told me that she liked my hat. Another noticed I was on facebook and mentioned it. I explained that I was updating friends on my road trip and that I was from New York. They assumed I meant New York City (as most do) and we discussed the difference and how I thought the harbor area of Baltimore was really cool.
After the girls went on their way, I bought a frappaccino and walked along the harbor. There were some musicians out here and there. I dropped a dollar in a trumpet player's case (he was old and scruffy looking).
After a bit, I turned around, went back to the Hard Rock, bought my pins and decided that this was a cool area and would probably be much cooler at night. So, I changed my plans a little bit, left early, and had every intention of making a quick trip to DC and Hard Rock and then returning to Baltimore.
(End of Part I)
I asked friends to go with me, but I ended up going alone. Most of the reasons not to join my quest had to do with not having any money or the quest being too expensive.
True. The quest over all for myself was somewhat expensive. However, if the cost of gas was split two or even three ways, it would have been much more affordable. I kept track of all my costs so I could post them here and rub it in my friends' faces that the whole thing wouldn't have cost them that much at all.
Gas: I started with a full tank and only filled up twice while on the road. Once home, I did fill it up again.
Total cost of gas: $70.
Food: I bought cold cuts and rolls and made sandwiches for my meals. I also had crackers and cream cheese and granola bars (but I only ate one). The only thing I ran out of was ham and rolls.
Total cost of food: $23.
Parking: I wasn't expecting parking to cost so much. (8 dollars an hour in the city centers!). I parked about 10 blocks away from the city center of Philadelphia and paid $4.50. In Baltimore, I didn't feel like walking so I parked in the parking garage for $13.00. In Washington, DC, I paid $4.00.
Total cost of parking: $21.50
Coffee: I frivolously bought three Starbucks frappaccinos while on the trip.
Totaly cost of frapps: $15.00
The only other major costs were the pins (which a traveling buddy wouldn't have bought anyway) and the tolls. I haven't checked my EZ Pass yet to see how much I spent, but I can't imagine it being more than 20 dollars or so.
So, I really only spent about 120/140 dollars over all. Which if split two or -- better yet -- three ways wouldn't be so bad for each person involved.
The only other thing would have been lodging. I slept in my car... but there wouldn't be room for three to sleep in it, so we would have to add 60 or so dollars to the total for a hotel stay.
Anyways, the trip:
I woke up Friday morning at about 5 o'clock. I had packed most of what I would need the night before. I showered, dressed and finished packing. Then I went to price chopper to buy some food and I headed out, realized I had forgotten my sunglasses, stopped back at home for them, and headed out again. It was almost 7am.
I hit a little bit of traffic near Albany (the beginnings of rush hour), but it wasn't too bad. I stopped for a short break after about two and a half hours of driving. It was beautiful out... blue skies, sunshine, and with the windows rolled down there was a nice breeze. It was wonderful driving conditions. I took another short stop just off of I-95 in New Jersey. I filled up my gas tank and had lunch.
I arrived in Philadelphia a little after noon. I drove through the city center, found Hard Rock and began looking for a place to park. There were parking garages and lots which charged upwards of 8 dollars an hour! I kept looking.
(What the hell is this thing?!)
I was about ten blocks away from Hard Rock when I found a metered parking spot. I paid $4.50 for three hours. Even so, I ended up not spending much time in Philly. I walked to Hard Rock with my guitar. I set up outside of Hard Rock and busked for about thirty minutes. No one stopped to give me change... One guy did stoop and listen to me for about ten seconds. I finished a song and said "hello." He just walked away... I received a compliment and a delightful smile from a cute girl that walked by. Then a group of thugs walked by and one of them said to the other, "It's all you." The other one stepped directly over my guitar case and said, "There ain't shit in there." (I think he was going to steal my tips, which is why I call them 'thugs'... but there wasn't anything to steal).
(This was the view while busking).
I packed up my stuff, went in Hard Rock and bought two pins. Then I headed for another area to busk at. I walked through some parks with fountains, but there were a lot of homeless people crashing on benches so I kept walking. I eventually came to this fountain which looked incredibly familiar...
(I think it's the fountain at the beginning of Married With Children).
I left Philadelphia around three o'clock. On my way out, of the city, I quickly grabbed my phone and snapped a picture of this sporting arena...
... and this one...
I'm not even sure why... I don't even like sports... I guess it's just because they are larger than life and man made marvels...
Anyways, I drove two more hours to Baltimore and as I approached Hard Rock, I took this picture:
I parked in a parking garage nearby (the one that cost me 13 dollars for two hours) because I was too excited to look for cheaper parking. Baltimore was awesome! I walked from the parking garage past this HUGE building that housed the coolest Barnes and Noble EVER, Hard Rock, and a bunch of other restaurants.
I had brought my laptop with me and went in Barnes and Noble to use their Wi-Fi. I sat on the balcony overlooking the harbor.
The harbor area was incredibly cool. There is a mini bar area outside of the Hard Rock Cafe with a small stage and tables and people and music and stuff. I checked my itinerary as per mapquest, the weather, and made a couple facebook updates about the trip. A group of girls were hanging out on the balcony and one told me that she liked my hat. Another noticed I was on facebook and mentioned it. I explained that I was updating friends on my road trip and that I was from New York. They assumed I meant New York City (as most do) and we discussed the difference and how I thought the harbor area of Baltimore was really cool.
After the girls went on their way, I bought a frappaccino and walked along the harbor. There were some musicians out here and there. I dropped a dollar in a trumpet player's case (he was old and scruffy looking).
After a bit, I turned around, went back to the Hard Rock, bought my pins and decided that this was a cool area and would probably be much cooler at night. So, I changed my plans a little bit, left early, and had every intention of making a quick trip to DC and Hard Rock and then returning to Baltimore.
(End of Part I)