virginia | NYC Expeditionist

I know. “The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel.” Yawn. Sounds really exciting, right?

But take a look at it!

It’s a bridge that becomes an underwater tunnel, and then goes back to being a bridge again while still in the water.

Pretty amazing, huh?

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is located about three hours from DC. It was built to give travelers an easier way to get across the bay from Virginia’s Eastern Shore to the rest of the state. When the structure opened in 1964, after four years of construction, it was hailed as вЂњone of the seven engineering wonders of the modern world,вЂќ according to the Washington Post .

I agree. And I’m clearly not the only one who thinks it’s so cool! The bridge-tunnel even has its own Facebook page with more than 5,000 fans, where you can see someВ amazing photos.

Other cool bridge-tunnels to check out: the Oresund, which connects Sweden to Denmark, and the Monitor-Merrimac, also in Virginia.

(Images via the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel)

assateague island

How nutty is this photo? I don’t know about you, but I don’t often see wild animals on the beaches I visit. But this is the norm at Assateague Island, which is just a few minutes from Mal and Peter’s place. The 37-mile national seashore runs from Maryland to Virginia and is known for its wild horses. On the Virginia side, the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Department owns the animals and keeps them fenced in designated areas. But on the Maryland side, they’re free to roam as they please–even among beachgoers.

Mal said that when she, Peter and Paul went to Assateague last week, the small herd in the photo above just milled around for hours. They went into the water and ambled along the sand, sometimes causing sunbathers to scramble to get their blankets out of their way. Then, at the end of day, the horses sprinted away as if they had somewhere to be.

Even though it’s on my Maryland bucket list, I haven’t made it to Assateague and probably won’t, at this point. I’m severely allergic to horses–which I discovered on a disastrous 8th grade trip to a dude ranch–and probably couldn’t be in such close proximity to them. Plus, while the horses are gorgeous to look at, the beach has some not-so-appealing equine-related issues: namely horse droppings and horseflies. But I’m glad to visit it vicariously through Mal, Peter and Paul’s photos!

(Photo via Peter Burger)