About Amanda Krotki

Posts by Amanda Krotki:

By land, Bay or air: Maryland on the move

By land, Bay or air: Maryland on the move

50 Photos

The Maryland/D.C. corridor is frequently ranked as one of the worst traffic areas in the country. Despite (or maybe because of) this, Marylanders are pretty industrious about how they get from Point A to Point B.

Sure, a lot of states do walking, biking and commuting better than us, but do travelers in those places also board a Water Taxi, go dirt-biking through the city streets and catch the Collegetown Shuttle between campuses? We didn’t think so.

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Capturing rainbows around the world (and in Baltimore)

Capturing rainbows around the world (and in Baltimore)

31 Photos

“Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Rainbow Brite. Rain-Blo bubble gum. LGBT pride. Italian peace flag. Double rainbow euphoria. Roy G. Biv. Gateway to gold. No matter the point of reference, rainbows have a way of capturing the imagination and bringing about a sense of wonderment.

Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day and the rainy season, Baltimore Sun director of photography Robert Hamilton provides a few tips for photographing the meteorological phenomenon. As for finding that pot of gold, we can’t help you there.

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U.S. 40 is great, wish you were there [Pictures]

U.S. 40 is great, wish you were there [Pictures]

10 Photos

Mary L. Martin Postcards — the “world’s largest” postcard collection — fills the back of a Havre de Grace shop and an additional 10,000-square-foot warehouse a few miles north on U.S. 40 in Perryville.
The exact number of cards in the collection is secret, Martin says, but it’s more than a million. And, within that million there are several vintage postcards from tourist spots across U.S. 40.
Browse some vintage postcards of past hotels, restaurants and attractions on U.S. Route 40 in Maryland here.

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Baltimore signs: Night and day

Baltimore signs: Night and day

38 Photos

If you’re a Baltimore lifer or you’ve been here long enough to get yourself good and lost (and then found), you may have figured out by now that the natives like to give directions from Point A to Point B either without using street names or based solely on what buildings used to be at those locations.

Who needs street names when you can just say: “Remember where the old Caldor was on York Road? Drive there.” Or better yet: “Go north on 83, the Pepsi sign will be on your right. If you see the Mount Washington Whole Foods, you’ve missed your exit.” Of course, here in Charm City, we don’t just use landmarks for driving directions, we also use them as easy meet-up spots for the directionally challenged (ahem).

“Meet me under Mr. Boh,” “meet me in front of The Senator marquee”… are you starting to get the picture, yet?

Signs, signs are everywhere in the former City That Reads and the ones that light up are some of our faves, not to mention the most iconic — and easiest to give directions to. Here’s a sampling of Baltimore signs — night and day — to help you find your way around. — Amanda Krotki

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French photographer Frédéric Nauczyciel’s ‘Fire Flies [Baltimore / Paris]’ exhibit

French photographer Frédéric Nauczyciel’s ‘Fire Flies [Baltimore / Paris]’ exhibit

9 Photos

French photographer Frédéric Nauczyciel arrived on an artist’s grant in Baltimore in 2011 eager to point his lens at the culture that inspired the gay stick-up character “Omar” from the famed HBO series “The Wire.” Instead, he stumbled across queer ballroom voguers performing in a parking lot during Baltimore Pride, and decided he had found his muse.

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