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So, I am interested in hearing opinions about taking the MARC Train everyday to Baltimore for work. Long story short is that I used to live in and work in DC and generally liked it a lot. I am very into politics, policy stuff, found that DC had a lot of single professionals also into this type of thing. I had the dream however come up for me, but it was in Baltimore. I really did not think it would be a huge deal to move, but I am finding it to be a major challenge. I am basically in a city where I don't know anyone, don't have any family, my office is very small (I am the youngest person here and only single person), and, for better or worse, I am not having a lot of luck finding people in Baltimore into my interests like politics, policy, etc.
I really don't want to leave this job, so I have thought about the possibility of moving back to DC and just commuting everyday to Baltimore. I should say -- commuting in general does not bother me. I used to do the Vienna-Fairfax to Farragut West route every morning and it was fine. Also, my job is such that I could actually do work and bill on the train in the mornings and evenings, so it would be to my advantage to do it that way.
I am just trying to find any other people that have this arrangement and get their thoughts on it. I imagine it would get old after doing it for several years. I guess I am just thinking short-term now -- maybe try it for a year, see where my social life is, etc. I could always move back to Baltimore if I wanted.
Also, I have looked at the MARC lines -- I know it runs less frequently, but I'd prefer to take the Camden line. It is very close to my office in Baltimore -- only two blocks. I'd also prefer to live within walking distance of Union Station.
well for one, I dont know the Marc schedule, but I think its not great for reverse commuting - you can go look that up on MARC site though.
second it seems like paying the premium for DC in order to commute to Baltimore would be terrible. If I were you I would check out classes at Hopkins to try to find people with policy interests there. Join a political club. I mean it won't be policy wonkish like DC, but I think there may be more there than you realize.
You might want to take another look at the Penn Line schedule. The Penn Line is faster and runs more frequently. There is also a morning express train from DC to Baltimore/Penn that doesn't make any stops, and the ride is about 35 minutes. So even if you had to take the circulator route or the light rail to your job from Penn Station, it still might be worth the time savings to catch the Penn Line (at least in the morning). Monthly MARC passes can be used on both the Camden and Penn lines (i.e., you could use your Union Station to Camden Station pass on the Penn Line).
I have lived here for a year and a half and really tried to do more stuff. The type of stuff that interests me is both sparsely attended and rarely occurs. I think there is just a big difference between Baltimore and DC, both interest wise and demographics. I think I'd be alot happier here if I was married with a family here, etc. but that's just not the case. I'm not sure why the premium would be so terrible if I had a better social life.
I'm not sure the reverse commute is much different time wise for MARC.
I would be open to either Penn or Camden stations.
What exactly is the social life premium you think you would get from DC that you can't get from Baltimore? The social scene in Baltimore seems pretty good to me from what I've seen, and a lot of people complain about difficulty meeting people in DC.
I'm not sure you'll find it any easier to meet people in DC than in Baltimore, but maybe you have a plan.
It's doable. There aren't a lot of people who do this so you'll probably get first dibbs on seating in the morning. The train ride isn't long either. I looked at the train schedules your commute would be shorter than most Virginians who are only a few miles away. I'm jealous.
However, from a money standpoint why pay the premium to live in Capitol Hill when you're commuting to Baltimore? For the same price of a shabby studio on the Hill you can get a nice two bedroom in Baltimore. I like being close to my friends too but said friends don't pay the bills. I have thought about moving to the same neighborhood but the commute to my job would make me hate life. So I can relate. With that said if living in the District will make you happy I say go for it. You'll get a few odd looks for choosing such an expensive option but life is short and you can't take it with you. There are plenty of trains going from DC to Baltimore everyday. Good luck and welcome back!
im biased, I guess. I am interested in public policy stuff, and managed to find folks who were interested in politics there (though they were more likely to talk about the nature of US history, say, than about the nuances of cost benefit analysis) I found them in the Jewish community, in Bolton Hill, etc. Intellectual people, with an interest in politics, if not policy wonks.
If you need policy wonks for your social life, than you might as well live in DC. Not sure the best nabe for that, but I guess the ones near Union Station would work.
What exactly is the social life premium you think you would get from DC that you can't get from Baltimore? The social scene in Baltimore seems pretty good to me from what I've seen, and a lot of people complain about difficulty meeting people in DC.
I'm not sure you'll find it any easier to meet people in DC than in Baltimore, but maybe you have a plan.
I can't speak for this person but it sounds like they are from DC and then moved to Baltimore. Therefore he/she already has friends and family here? I've always felt at home in DC, Baltimore not so much. So I would be hesitant to move there for a job even if the job paid more.
im biased, I guess. I am interested in public policy stuff, and managed to find folks who were interested in politics there (though they were more likely to talk about the nature of US history, say, than about the nuances of cost benefit analysis) I found them in the Jewish community, in Bolton Hill, etc. Intellectual people, with an interest in politics, if not policy wonks.
If you need policy wonks for your social life, than you might as well live in DC. Not sure the best nabe for that, but I guess the ones near Union Station would work.
Really? Seems like talking about work to me and I hate talking about work during off hours. The only time I talk about work is when I'm trying to network and get my resume out there. I just said that DC is my home but that is where we part ways. I'm work to live not vice versa but I am starting to learn how to play the networking game.
The social premium is that I lived in DC for 8 years and have lots and lots of friends already there from my time there. I was also involved in a lot of organizations in DC that are kinda unique to DC -- a group for younger policy wonks, another club that regularly had really interesting political speeches, etc. -- stuff you don't really find in say Baltimore -- or most cities of its size (Cleveland, Pittsburgh, etc.) I could very easily pick up with those activities again and in fact have been in touch with them. I went down to DC a few times over the summer and hung out with these people and really liked it a lot. It reminded me of what was missing again in my life.
I also think -- the number of young adults living in the DC area is much more than most major cities, including Baltimore. I know I underestimated this when I moved away. I figured every city had a lot of young people living there. That's really not true. DC has a very unique mixture of major universities, capitol hill, government agencies, all of which are filled with people in the 20-40 age range. Most cities don't have that.
I'd also say -- I think DC is much more transient. You have far fewer people who have lived in DC their whole lives and so it's easier a lot of times to fit in. That's more difficult with cities where people are born there and stay there. I don't mean that as a knock necessarily on Baltimore -- I grew up in Pittsburgh and its the same way. I think it would be harder to move there as an outsider.
I'm still really not sure what the Baltimore "social scene" is -- I really don't see the type of stuff that interests me. Just my two cents.
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