Many people visiting Baltimore don't see this way into the city. Houses are boarded up, windows are barred, and there seems to be a liquor store on every corner.

I'm driving with my mom to the heart of Baltimore. Usually we take the beltway but we are coming from my aunt's house and my mom says the back way is quicker. Ofcourse I'm just along for the ride. This is a different ride as there are no pleasant aesthetic attractions to it. I want to go back on the beltway. I lock the car doors as we pull up to the red light and see the beggars come out to greet us. Most of the boarded up houses have graffiti on them. Old men sit on stoops watching staring the world go as day quickly turns into night. I begin to wonder how many people taking the beltway have ever come the back way before?