Mondawmin mall, Baltimore

[paulney]

I'm in Baltimore for a couple of days for work, staying at an Inner Harbor hotel. Today I needed a TV, and I didn't have a car. So I looked up the closest Target, punched in Google directions using city transit - and off I go.

From the Charles St. station to Mondawmin. The ride in the metro was colorful, but uneventful. It was only when I got back out on the ground I realized this was probably not the greatest area to visit.

It was all right. Clearly the mall is doing a valiant effort in shedding off the image of ghetto - plenty of security everywhere, lots of stores look renovated. But I couldn't risk riding the subway back with a $300 TV and a few other misc electronic items.

Used Uber, and the driver did not know the area well either, so he took me straight trough all the scenes of The Wire. It was impressive. From boarded houses to hustling on the corners... I lived in Oakland, but I don't think I ever saw something as bad as Baltimore.

 

[1sikbITCH]

LOL Mondawmin. I imagine for a noob to Baltimore the westside is probably pretty intimidating

 

[Leyawiin]

There is nothing, I repeat, nothing in the state of California that compares to the urban blight of Baltimore. Its a cool old town in a lot of ways and I like it, but when I go there I restrict myself to a few harbor side areas (Inner Harbor, Little Italy, Canton, Fells Point, Federal Hill) and one or two others (Hampden). I took off walking through some neighborhoods near downtown on my first trip and when I told the people at our office there where I'd gone they got this panicked look on their faces and said "Were you O.K.? Did anything happen?". It did look sketchy, but I guess I was lucky.

Damn good eats in that town though - fell in love with crab cakes there.

 

[lupi]

one of the worst areas I've been through it by the old Charleston shipyard about a dozen years after it had been closed down.

 

[ussfletcher]

Why would you need a TV if you are staying in a hotel for a couple of days?

 

[destrekor]

There is nothing, I repeat, nothing in the state of California that compares to the urban blight of Baltimore. Its a cool old town in a lot of ways and I like it, but when I go there I restrict myself to a few harbor side areas (Inner Harbor, Little Italy, Canton, Fells Point, Federal Hill) and one or two others (Hampden). I took off walking through some neighborhoods near downtown on my first trip and when I told the people at our office there where I'd gone they got this panicked look on their faces and said "Were you O.K.? Did anything happen?". It did look sketchy, but I guess I was lucky.

Damn good eats in that town though - fell in love with crab cakes there.

lol

Have you heard of LA? Like.. roughly half of that city would chew up and shit out Baltimore.

Compton, for starters.
East LA

Not to say the worst areas of other towns, and/or Baltimore specifically, are a walk in the park in comparison, or any less dangerous.

I just have a very strong feeling LA "outshines" Baltimore in this case. But there is a thing about the whole urban decay of old-Europe-style old cities. Probably a lot more people packed into the worst parts of Baltimore, which combines with everything to have an oppressive, claustrophobic feeling of doom.

 

[paulney]

Why would you need a TV if you are staying in a hotel for a couple of days?

Ah, ok. I feel I need an explanation on that one. I am doing a conference and manning the booth. We could either ship one of the TVs we have just for that purpose, or, buy a $250 junk TV at Target, use it at a conference for demos, raffle it out as a traffic generator, not have to ship it back to HQ, and still come out ahead on expenses, because shipping charges to and fro CA would be more.

So, I came to Baltimore and went to the nearest Target to pick up a TV.
Makes sense?

 

[kage69]

Baltimore has some bad spots, no doubt about it. It's a shame what drugs have done to that city. I've walked around Baltimore a lot, lived in Ellicott City and Catonsville and would travel in often. Definitely need to be on your guard.


It's no Detroit though. I believe only St. Louis and Oakland hold a candle to Detroit, remember reading that somewhere.

 

[Leyawiin]

lol

Have you heard of LA? Like.. roughly half of that city would chew up and shit out Baltimore.

Compton, for starters.
East LA

Not to say the worst areas of other towns, and/or Baltimore specifically, are a walk in the park in comparison, or any less dangerous.

I just have a very strong feeling LA "outshines" Baltimore in this case. But there is a thing about the whole urban decay of old-Europe-style old cities. Probably a lot more people packed into the worst parts of Baltimore, which combines with everything to have an oppressive, claustrophobic feeling of doom.

The little post-war bungalows of Compton aren't boarded up and abandoned. There aren't blocks that are half empty from being torn down by the city (like in Baltimore). You've got one thing in L.A. that keeps it from having the decay an old city like Baltimore does - a constant flow of Mexican/Central American immigrants.

Can you find anywhere in L.A. that looks like this (scroll all the way down)?

http://www.businessinsider.com/balt...hborhoods-just-arent-worth-saving-2012-2?op=1

L.A. and Compton are Club Med by comparison.