July 28-31: East Coast, No Car

Well… That was an adventure.  I booked a flight to New York City and a flight back from Washington DC with not a detail planned in between.  Somehow, it all worked out.  I had a lot of fun, with tons of surprises along the way.  I’ll be making separate posts regarding the escape rooms I solved in each city; for now this is just a summary of how I got around.

Saturday July 28
-Lyft to O’Hare Airport (Chicago)
-Fly to La Guardia Airport (New York City)
-Bus to train station
-Train to Manhattan
-Explore Manhattan on foot
-Train to Stamford, CT
-Explore Stamford, CT on foot
-Train back to New York City
-Train to Metropark, New Jersey
-Lyft to/from escape room
-Train to Trenton, New Jersey
-Train to Levittown, Pennsylvania
-Lyft to hotel

July 29
-Walk to train station
-Train to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
-Explore Philadelphia on foot
-Train to Wilmington, Delaware
-Lyft to bus terminal
-Bus to Baltimore, Maryland
-Bus to Washington DC
-Lyft to Arlington, Virginia (hotel)

July 30
-Walk to train station
-Explore DC on foot
-Bus to Silver Springs, Maryland
-Explore Silver Springs on foot
-Bus back to DC
-Train to Alexandria, Virginia
-Train back to DC
-Train to Rosslyn station (Virginia)
-Bus to Georgetown (DC)
-Walk to Rosslyn station (Virginia)
-Train back to DC
-Explore monuments in DC on foot
-Train to Arlington, Virginia (hotel)

July 31
-Train to DC
-Explore DC on foot
-Train to Baltimore Airport transit terminal
-Shuttle bus to Baltimore Airport
-Flight to O’Hare Airport (Chicago)
-Lyft to home

That’s a lot of commuting!  I tried to avoid using private transit like Lyft and Uber when I could, and I was able to stay away from it for the most part.  I was usually able to find an escape room within two miles of public transportation, and the only thing that made me opt for a Lyft instead was when it was dark out in an area I was unfamiliar with.

I recommend this kind of trip for anyone.  I probably didn’t save much, if any, money by using public transportation, but it still made for a unique way to see different things along the way and experience a slice of life I otherwise would have missed.

I’m back home with plenty of stories, and I’ll be sharing them piece by piece!