Poll: Baltimore as a Destination

For a long time, I never gave Baltimore a thought as a destination.
Busy, loud, dirty and expensive.
As a Navy reservist, I drilled at Ft. McHenry for years, so I figured I'd seen enough of Baltimore.

Then, I helped someone deliver a boat to Henderson's Wharf. The water side of Baltimore is fascinating and a lot of fun. There's great food and entertainments, all walking distance from the marinas. I find that the city noise doesn't quite make it down to the marinas, so I still get a good night's sleep. It's true that there isn't a lot of free anchorage, and the commercial traffic can be intimidating at times, but it's a total change of scene from the bay's typical, tranquil gunkholes.

I rate Baltimore as a destination that merits a visit once or twice per season to change pace from the uninhabited creeks along the bay.

All that being said, I would like to see the city/county/state work at cleaning up Baltimore harbor, offering more services to boating visitors, and being more friendly in general.

G9-

No, I don't think it's the "same". All I'm saying, is that the rural areas are not the bucolic paradise that some are making it out to be.

Also, it's disingenuous to just say that "cities have more crime". Of course they do... "per capita". With the lower population density, there will be less crime, but as a ratio or a percentage, it might not be as low as you think.

I live in Edgewater/Mayo. It's a quiet little suburb that seems quite peaceful on the surface. There are a lot of good people here. Unfortunately, we also have a big weed and heroin problem, bubbling under the surface, among the younger set.

Frankly, I'm sick and tired of hearing how kids resort to drugs because they are "bored" and there aren't enough community programs or resources to keep them out of trouble.
I grew up in rural Florida where there were no such programs. Both of my parents worked, and I was a latch-key kid. I have NEVER tried drugs or smoked a cigarette. My buddies and I played in the swamps and swam in the canals (or pools and beaches when we could get to them). We rode our bikes all over town. The worst vandalism we ever got into was toilet paper.

"Boredom" is not an adequate excuse for the crap that kids are into today.