I like a little holiday magic — as long as it doesn’t involve ballet, the mall or It’s a Wonderful Life. This rules out most things, of course, except Christmas beers and tacky lights displays. This week, we ventured to two of the more spectacular light displays in the Washington Metropolitan Region: Baltimore’s 34th Street display and Gaylord Hotel’s Christmas lighting/ snowfall display.

Miracle of 34th Street

This display in Hampden, Baltimore’s colorful hipster meets hillbilly neighborhood, stole it’s name from the famous Christmas flick. It’s famous throughout the region — this site even names it one of the seven best light displays in the world. And I’m not sure why. This display is joining the long line of destinations that have disappointed the writers of the blog — up there with Asheville, NC, and Assateague Island.

Really, only on house — the first one, which is pictured in all the photos — is spectacular.  On the short block, most of the houses donned lights that were comparable to what you’d see on normal houses in a normal neighborhood: a few mechanical reindeer, some icicle lights draped from the overhangs and multi-colored bulbs on the bushes.  However, I did enjoy the hub cap Christmas tree and bike wheel snowman produced by someone the website calls “Jim the artist.”

Post lights: Grab an Irish coffee at my favorite Baltimore bar/restaurant, the quirky, Poe-themed tavern Annabel Lee’s.

Verdict: I’m always looking for a reason to go up to Baltimore, so this fills that requirement. If you’re not a fan of DC’s downtrodden neighbor, skip it.

Gaylord National Hotel

This corporate conference complex lives across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge from Old Town Alexandria. The complex was meant to be shopping, restaurants and bars surrounding the river-front Gaylord Hotel and conference complex. Unfortunately for it, the place opened its doors to the recession.

Despite the empty storefronts and annoying parking policy (street parking costs $3/hour 24 hours a day. We didn’t try the garage), the hotel and lights were beautiful. The lobby and atrium were decked out in Christmas finery. It snows — its, um, actually soap bubbles — every night at 6:15 and 9:15. I’m easily entertained and found the novelty charming — just don’t stick out your tongue to catch a flake.  We also got to see the Christmas fountain light show, which was peculiarly religious. It involved hymns and Bible readings.

Post lights: Hit up Bobby McKeys, the piano bar down the street. There’s no cover (but the beers are over-priced), and you’ll be treated to some interesting renditions of Piano Man, Journey hits, Brick in the Wall and whatever else patrons request.

For more DC area Christmas light displays see the Tacky Light Tour site and Bull Run Festival of Lights.

It’s been a busy year. We started this as a humble Wordpress blog and expanded to our own website. We traveled up and down the East Coast — covering Maine to North Carolina. We’ve eaten jelly fish, ramps, duck fat fries and lobster fresh from the boat. And we’ve had a beer (or two) in every stop along the way. Here’s a recap of the best and worst of our first year.

The Best Bars

Novare Res Bier Cafe and The Great Lost Bear in Portland, Me.: With the help of the guys from Portland Taps, we found these two amazing beer bars. Great selection, great atmosphere (Novare Res had a cellar quality; The Great Lost Beer bar was like a log cabin in the Great North Woods).  See our post here.

Brewer’s Art in Baltimore:  I don’t understand why Baltimore gets a bad rap with Washingtonians. Bar hopping there makes for a riotous, and affordable, night out.  This bar in particular is great. Its is in the cellar of a Victorian townhouse and on tap are the bar’s own Belgian-style microbrews. Even Esquire magazine noticed; it named Brewer’s Art the best bar in the US this April. Wow!  See our post here.

Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick, Md.: While this is not actually a bar – and we did visit many great bars this year – it comes in 3^rd. Flying Dog has an excellent spread of beers of which you can enjoy limitless samples.  The atmosphere at one of these Saturday afternoon tasting is that of a well-behaved college house party – strangers chatting and spilling out on to the back porch. And, did I mention, its $5. See our post here.

The Best Surprises

Yeah, of course Maine was gorgeous and New York City was a captivating metropolis filled with excellent food.  These places/events were just as amazing – in ways we never expected.  

Davis-Elkins loop – Although I’ve been singing West Virginia’s praises since this blog began, I have yet to influence anyone to actually go there. I don’t give up easily.  Follow this route for a road trip, a mellow escape from DC insanity and a getaway that’s great in the winter.  There’s skiing, burritos and beer. Just do it! See our post here.

Kinetic Sculpture Race – I heard about this race from a blogger meet-up. I mentioned that we cover quirky travel, and this event sprung to everyone there’s mind. For the Kinetic Sculpture Race, groups of friends, classmates and coworkers make human-powered parade floats that can float in the bay, push through sand and coast down bumpy brick roads. It’s amazingly odd. Next year, I’ll be bringing a bike so I can better follow along with the race. See our post here.

Ohio Brew Week –The word “festival” (and its cousin “fair”) often makes me shudder. It usually means high prices, hoards of people and lots of vendors pushing useless junk (used laser disks, anyone?) However, this beer festival was the complete opposite. It was festively crowded and reasonably priced. We heard some great music and tried beers I’ll never see elsewhere. And there was a beer choo-choo. See our post here.

The Biggest Disappointments

We really wanted to love to these popular destinations, but they just fell short.

Assateague  – Although camping on the beach sounds romantic and relaxing – think: falling asleep to the sound of the waves and taking an early morning swim — the reality is that you are camping in a hostile environment. Sand is everywhere, mosquitoes swarm and the sun beats down without mercy.  I wanted to love Assateague. But Assateague didn’t love me.  After a weekend of being eaten, burnt and drenched, I submitted. See our post here.

Asheville – Maybe it was the rain, but this southern city let us down. It wasn’t nearly as outdoorsy or hippified as I hoped it would be. Although, West Asheville had a food co-op, coffee shops and dive bars, downtown was too upscale. How many boutiques does one tiny town need?  I think we missed Asheville’s heyday.  See our post.

Best beers

Saison Dupont from Brasserie Dupont: This is a truly world class beer.  If you want an introduction to the style called Saison, this is the beer to try.  My favorite brew, at my favorite restaurants with my favorite person; it doesn’t get better than that. Find it at Annabell Lee Tavern, Baltimore MD

Grand Wazoo Batch 2 at Jackie O’s Brewery: A bourbon barrel-aged sour dark ale with raspberries, definitely a one-of-a-kind beer.  This brew really showed off the range and diversity of the beverage.  It’s flavors are probably more in line with a wine than any beer most people have tasted. Had at: Jackie O’s Brewpub, Athens OH

Dale’s Pale Ale from Oskar Blues:  Our go-to summer beer.  Dale’s is a very tasty IPA that comes in a can.  Naturally, makes it perfect for camping, tubing, and backyard barbeques.   Had at: just about every trip that involved a cooler.

However, not all Gabriel Brothers are created equal. As the cheapskate I am, I make a point to stop at any Gabes outlet in my path. Here’s my rundown on where to find (or not find) the best bargains in the Mid-Atlantic area:

Hit theses shops:

Cumberland, MD

This is the most upscale Gabes I’ve ever visited. Everything since has been a disappointment. It’s lightening and relative orderliness put it on par with higher-class bargain outlets, such as TJ Maxx. However, its prices are just as low.  It’s also remarkable for having a lot of Ann Taylor and Ann Taylor Loft clothes. I still wear the black, Ann Taylor shirt dress I snagged here for $10.

12101 Winchester Rd.
Suite 23
Lavale, MD 21502

Clarksburg, WV

This Gabes is off the shopping mecca called Emily Drive. It has every chain store and chain restaurant imaginable, and it’s not missing a Gabes. This outlet has a particularly strong men’s section. The other half of We’re Out of Here walked away with a polo, Gap pants and a Calvin Klien button down for $30.

134 Thompson Drive
Gabriel Brothers Plaza
Clarksburg, WV 26330

Skip these shops:

Parkersburg, WV:  While you should always expect Gabes to have a few racks of camo and overalls, this outlet had one hillbilly outfit too many. The men’s department was overrun by XXL sweats and hunting getups. The women’s section, though, was mysteriously empty. The racks were far apart and not well stocked. I wanted to chalk its bad performance up to the changing seasons; it was late August when we visited. But other Gabes aficionados agree that this branch is one of the weaker outlets.  It’s worth driving on to Clarksburg.

280 Park Center Drive
Parkersburg, WV 26101

Winchester, VA: The closest store to my home in Northern Va, was a disappointment. Like the Parkersburg branch, this outlet suffered from a mysteriously lacking women’s section.  There were far too many polyester dresses, ratty overcoats and garments stocked only in size 2 and 18 – but nothing in between. The normally prominent Ann Taylor section was stuffed into a corner and looking like it had just survived WWIII. However, strong men’s (French Connection coat = $20) and home wares (Corningware set = $12) sections almost made up for it.

130-3 Delco Plaza
Winchester, Va. 22602

View a map of our trip

Baltimore Crabs:

Crabs are Baltimore’s culinary claim to fame, and Faidley’s Seafood in Lexington Market claims to have the city’s best crab cakes. We had to check it out.

I’m always weary of this dish. Crab cakes are often less lumps of delicious seafood and more hunks of deep fried bread crumbs. Faidley’s gets its crab cakes right. The jumbo lump crab cakes were enormous. They were nicely seasoned with huge chunks of meat and very little filler. However, Faidley’s is not a restaurant. There’s no seating, only long counters that diners stand at while devouring their seafood feasts. Not exactly a great place to relax after fighting our way through holiday rush hour traffic.

The bill: $18.99 for the jumbo lump crab cake platter with 2 sides.

Philly Cheesesteak

Although Philly was in our top places to visit this summer post, the city of brotherly love has been demoted. It’s a dump. I had imagined it to be like Boston: Colonial architecture, cobblestone streets and old townhouses. It wasn’t. However, I may have missed the scenic part of town, because our trip to Philly lasted two hours. That was enough time to grab a cheesesteak and a beer at Devil’s Den.

As a Philly novice, I headed directly toward the most famous sandwich joint in town: Geno’s Steaks. The cheesesteak vendor is controversial. It has sign informing patrons: “This Is America: When ordering please speak English” (it’s in a largely Latino neighborhood) and is covered in police paraphernalia. It serves zenophobic attitude along with its tasty meat and cheese-wiz sandwich.

Some Philly natives, however, who sat beside us at our picnic table (the restaurant has no indoor seating), said that neighboring Pat’s King of Steaks was better. Indeed, the line a Geno’s was nearly all out-of-towners: half visiting businessmen and half teenagers at Jesus summer camp.

The bill: $16 for two sandwiches. No drinks.

New Haven Pizza

A few months ago, I watched a Travel Channel special on the US’s best pizza. They hit the standards: New York, Chicago and some organic, California hippy pies. But the country’s best pizza, known as “apizza,” was in New Haven, Connecticut. I scoffed: “New Haven? When will I ever go there?”

The answer: last week.

New Haven, most famously home to Yale, also has two storied pizza restaurants: Pepe’s and Sally’s. Both serve the thin, mozzarella-less pie. Their specialty is the white clam pizza; it’s thin crust, garlic, oil, clams and a hard cheese, such as asiago.

Sally’s was closed for the 4th. That left us with Pepe’s, the original New Haven pizzeria, which promised a crunchier crust. At 1:30 pm, the line for a table was out the door. However, it was fast-moving and we had a seat within 15 minutes.

The pie was great – and huge. A medium is plenty for three people. It was covered in fresh clams and garlic (two of my favorites). The crust was chewy and light. The staff, however, was grumpy and brought us drinks in minuscule glasses. You can’t have everything.

The bill: $29. One Medium pizza. Two soft drinks. And one Sam Adams in a Pepe’s pint glass.

Boston Clam Chowder

Apparently, Boston is a popular destination on July 4th weekend. The downtown was unbearably crowded with tourists like ourselves. So, on the hunt for the city’s most famous chowder, we had to settle for Quincy Market, a touristy corridor of food stands in the middle of downtown.

The definition of “clam chowder” is a matter of opinion and geography. Here’s a quick lesson: Manhattan chowder (a name that actually came about as a way of insulting Rhode Island clam chowder) is traditionally made with a clear broth and a generous portion of tomatoes. Boston Clam Chowder uses cream or milk based broth, butter, potatoes, and onions. You may have also heard people talk about San Francisco clam chowder, which is really nothing more than Boston clam chowder served in an edible sourdough bowl.

Many locals rave that Boston & Maine Fish Company has the best chowder (I’m saying ‘chowda’ in my head) in the city.  It didn’t disappoint. We squeezed up to the bar and sipped our soup as swarms of visiting families bumbled through the market. The soup was creamy, hot and chock full of clams and potatoes. What more could you ask for?

The bill: $7.50 for clam chowder in a bread bowl. Or get a lobster roll and chowder for $16.

I am covered in mosquito bites. Wearing long pants to cover my sizzling sunburn. And my camping equipment is hanging out to dry on the back porch. The trip to Assateague, the Maryland island known for its wild horses, was not the typical camping trip.

While we did see the wild horses, camp 15 feet away from a white sand beach, spend Friday night drinking beer around the embers of someone else’s beach bonfire and scarfed down a crab feast, our Assateague adventure was one disastrous camping trip.

Besides booking your trip early through the National Park Service website (We reserved our spot in January), here are three ways you should prepare before spending a weekend camped on the island.

Trouble #1: Mosquitoes. I was warned the mosquitoes were bad on Assateague, but it’s nearly impossible to overstate how bad they were.  Within 30 seconds of leaving the car — before I had the chance to coat myself in bug spray — we were swarmed by a cloud of these bugs. After a day on the island, our neighboring campers had to head back into town for a second can of repellent.  I now have six bites on my left arm alone.

Solution: Bring plenty of DEET and long, loose clothing (it was far too hot for the jeans and sweaters I packed alongside my shorts and tanks.) Try to secure a camping spot near the water; some spots are in the bushes in the road.  The ocean breeze blows the bugs away; the bushes provide a place to live and breed.

Trouble #2: The sun. There is no shade at Assateague. There is no where to hide from the sun, not even a picnic pavilion or some scraggly trees. Even with my 60 SPF sunblock, I still got toasted.

Solution: It’s obvious. Bring a beach umbrella. And a hat. And a shirt with sleeves.

Trouble #3: The rain. It does rain at the beach. At Assateague, you camp on the sand. Your weight inevitably causes depressions — perfect for water to gather in.  At 3 am, we were woken up by pouring rain and thunder.  While I was preoccupied by a terror of being struck by lightning, I failed to noticed that water was streaming into the tent. The tent is old, and the rain tarp doesn’t fit correctly. Something that only matters in torrential downpours like this one. Within minutes, I was sitting in a pool of water. All the run off had been collected in the depressions made by my sleeping body and soaked through my sleeping pad. We spent the rest of the night in the car.

Solution: When it rains, it pours. Invest in a tent with a decent rain fly and enough room to keep belongs away from the edges.

The roughest part about camping, in my opinion, isn’t sleeping on the the ground or having to cook over and open flame. It’s remembering all your equipment. So, I’ve assembled a master list of things to bring. What else should I add?

• Equipment:
  tent
  sleeping bags and pads
  pillows (often forget)
  Flashlight, lantern, or headlamp
  duct tape
  ground tarp (forgot this last time)
• Cooking supplies:
  frying pan
  pot
  kettle
  spatula
  olive oil (in a plastic bottle)
  salt and pepper (also in mini containers)
  coffee mugs
  plates and bowls
  silverware
  chopping knife
  cutting board
  bottle opener (for beer of course)
  dish rag and sponge
  dishwashing detergent
  trash bag
  Bottled water
  (and food, of course)
• Cooking equipment;
  burner and kerosene
  cooler and icepacks
  charcoal
  lighter

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUSDMPmo56U]

Bedford, Pa., isn’t the only place around here with a gravity hill. A two hour drive from DC, Burkittsville, Maryland, the site of 1990’s horror flick the Blair Witch Project. Unfortunately, this hill doesn’t have it’s own website, but it is captured on YouTube.

I hope to stop off in at the more famous (and better marketed) gravity hill on the way to a camping trip at Ohiopyle, Pa., over Memorial Day weekend.

Each spring, Baltimore hosts the East Coast Championship Kinetic Sculpture Race, a day-long triathlon for art. Creators pedal their masterpieces (mostly paper mache creations mounted on bicycles) across the bay, up hills, through sand and mud pits and right in the middle of downtown.

Appropriately, for this quirky contest, the biggest prize goes to the most average. The Mediocre Champion is for the sculpture that finishes closest to the middle.

For more photos of the Kinetic Sculpture Race (and We’re Out of Here blogger in the Baltimore media) click here or here.

1. Assateague Island: We attempted to camp at this National Seashore in Maryland last year. However, the place was booked up through October by the time I thought to plan the trip. So this year, I made reservations in January for a campsite in June. If you are interested in beach front camping and wild horses, go to the National Park Service site and reserve a camping spot now.

2. Philadelphia: Every time I drive up to New York, I pass by Philadelphia. I’ve never bothered to stop. This summer, I plan to change that.

3. Tubing: Tubing at Harper’s Ferry was my favorite day trip of last summer. We rented tubes from Butts Tubes and spent the afternoon floating down the Potomac, tipping over mini rapids and diving off rocks — all while towing a cooler of beer. (This year, I’ll remember to bring cans not bottles.) I want to expand my hunt for the best tubing in the region. I’m hoping to find somewhere as scenic as Harper’s Ferry W Va. but without the crowds of frat boys.

4. Tangier Island: Cheap seafood and weird accents are two of my favorite things in life. This Virginia island in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay has both. Just be forewarned, no alcohol can be purchased on the island. Bring your own.

5. The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum: I read about this unusual destination in Weston, WV, in the Washington Post travel section this winter. It closed to patients in 1994, and now — from April to Nov. — it’s open to tourists. I’m getting creeped out just looking at the photos.

Comment with your top travel plans and suggestions.

I like Baltimore. Maybe because it reminds me of Cleveland: gritty, on the water and, to use a travel writer’s favorite word: unpretentious. So, Baltimore is where I chose to spend my birthday.

Clipper City

First, I hit up Clipper City brewing company’s beer tour. Embarrassingly, I always find myself at some micro brewpub or beer destination (check out this post on Frederick, Maryland’s Flying Dog Brewery). I am becoming a beer snob. However, compared to the Flying Dog tour, Clipper City’s was lacking. No unlimited samples, only four beers on tap and no rowdy tasting room pub that spills out onto the lawn. The tour — though funny and informative, unlike the unintelligible, rambling of the Flying Dog tour guide — was way too long. After 40 minutes of hops, bottles and beer packaging, I headed back to the tasting room.

Dining with Poe

Second, We’re Out of Here visited Baltimore’s Edgar Allen Poe themed restaurant/pub, Annabell Lee Tavern. Named after the Poe love poem, this restaurant is worth a visit if only to sample the best sweet potato fries. (Yelpers also rave about the duck fat fries, but we didn’t cough up the extra $2.) The food (pub standards with an upscale twist ; we had the lamb sliders and snapper tacos) is delicious, the drink menu thorough and the place cozy.

Baltimore’s Haunted Bar

Afterward, we met two friends and headed out to two classic Baltimore bars: Brewer’s Art, the cavernous Belgian beer bar located mostly in the cellar of a Victorian mansion, and Club Charles, a haunted dive.

After a ten-hour beer marathon, I don’t remember much of what Club Charles looked like: just its red decor and creepy mural of hell, which someone claimed was painted by WPA artists in the 1930s. My friend who is writing an article on the subject for her magazine BMore Live insisted the place is haunted and showed us eerie photographs of white blobs. She said the owner had been avoiding her, because during a previous interview with a reporter, a ghost shoved the owner. She fell down the stairs and broke her arm.

Fortunately, we made it out intact. However, when we arrived back at our car, we found it had a flat tire. (Must have been the ghosts.) Watching the other half of We’re Out of Here change a flat at an inner city gas station was the perfect way to end a birthday.