Baltimore - B-More Creative and Peaceful
Baltimore is always a city full of pleasant surprises and she keeps unravelling herself in many beautiful forms, especially in her showcase of a multiplicity of arts and cultures that tells stories of history. This city bustling with creative arts and culture often speaks volumes of the struggles and resilience of the people, and of hope and intercultural connectedness.
In this beautiful city of creative people, her creative arts and culture is her palpable vibrancy of people. The city's rising architecture is also a promenade of Baltimore's beauty, and a more evocative place that depicts Baltimore at her best.
Around the Inner Harbor is the city's rising architecture, is also a promenade of Baltimore's beauty, and a more evocative place that depicts Baltimore at her best.
I was greeted warmly on this sunny day by this renowned Inner Harbor, with its nautical heritage and her outstretched harbour that also helps to provides glimpses of the city;'s cultural heritage. In addition to the vast artistic landscape of growing theatres, museums are the prestigious Baltimore Symphony Orchestra that has provided the city and visitors with undiluted classical music. The marvellous outdoor statues that dot the harbour also provides a feel of more outdoor possibilities for the curious visitor.
Yet, that seems to belie the reality of the violence that smoulders on a diurnal basis and splinters in some parts of the city. But by far, Baltimore is a city that shows a much more hopeful picture of the beauty of arts and architecture and the talents of its people that seem to lay hidden in a haze of an often embattled city.
However, this violence that punctuates in other parts of Baltimore will hopefully show diminishing signs and give way to peace so that the engaging art work and beauty becomes even more visible and not hushed by any forms of violence.
Baltimore street arts on walls, such as paintings, murals, graffiti provide space for visual artistic freedom, and all speak eloquently of love, hope, peace, non-violence, struggles, resilience, and courage. Some of the arts that I saw also poignantly portrayed high and in-dept look at the psychic toll of poverty. These arts seem to seek answers for the enforcement of Baltimore's invisible boundaries and socio-economic wall heights that infects an entire city.
Hopefully, these barriers and disparities in the Baltimore communities will change to uplift the lives of some of the people still plagued by poverty, and the people who live with it. It is hoped that this is achieved so that the brilliant artistic ideas depicting it, will no longer be an idea that thrives without hope, but these arts will be reality in people's ways of life which will be transformed through a combination of good policies and desire from the people to also act more positively for a better change.
These illustrations and collective fine arts are synonymous to a collective psyche to a dream of a far better life, (the American Dream), that portrays a future in which the idea of poverty and violence is no longer understood as a status quo and no longer defines who people are.
I envision a future for Baltimore, in which the youth population across the trenches will be provided support for educational experiences and growth and also in the humanities that can inspire them to embrace a future of education and life-long learning and in turn enrich their communities and uplift them from the wreckage of poverty and violence.
These art illustrations and painting on a wall in Baltimore reminds me of the children's competition "So You Think You Can Dance" which runs its current 13th season with an instalment featuring young dancers. FOX News has renewed the Emma-Award winning "So You Think You Can Dance" featuring a young generation of dancers across the US who are skilled in various dance styles such as contemporary, tap, hip-hop, ballroom, breaking or animation, and a paired up by All-Stars to perfect their arts and compete for Americas greatest.
These art illustrations and painting on a wall in Baltimore reminds me of the children's competition "So You Think You Can Dance" which runs its current 13th season. As Nigel Lythgoe (Co-creator and Executive Producer) of the competition puts it, " Through the Dizzy Feet Foundation, I have had the privilege of working with incredible young talent who will eventually shape the future of dance in this country".
My visit to the Inner Harbor of Baltimore was by no means a surprise though, as I have often been inspired to go to the harbour by several friends around Baltimore who had recommended that it is a must-go place to visit.
Indeed, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor has so many remarkable stories to tell her visitors. From its heyday during the years of the 18th century, when it served as the nation’s leading shipbuilding site, and then gradually transforming herself to one of the country’s major sites for oyster canning, steel working, railroad building, immigration port and military supply center, the city is a melting pot of cultures. In 1980, the Inner Harbor area underwent a major revitalization with the addition of many attractions, hotels, restaurants and shops.
Today, the Inner Harbor is a major tourist destination and port of call for cruise ships. My visit coincided with the arrival of the Japanese training ship ‘JDS Kashima’ which has docked at the Inner Harbor- and will be here all weekend long. I found time to soon catch up with Japanese crewmen who have descended the ship and determined to budge out into the scorching hot summer sun and breath some fresh air from the US shores, away from their tethering ship and supposedly, momentarily make some new friendship.
Baltimore City and Inner harbour, with her gleaming tourist attraction
Japanese training ship ‘JDS Kashima’ which has docked at the Inner Harbor- and will be here all weekend long
At Inner Harbor in Baltimore, one is spoiled for choice at where to go. From the fine cluster of family-friendly museums and restaurants to satisfy every palate to exciting evenings and nightlife, cultural experiences and spectacular people-watching, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor offers more to see and do than you can probably imagine.
These are some of the keepsakes of the Historic Ships in Baltimore - Four ships and a lighthouse that are all National Historic Landmarks – USS Constellation, USS Torsk, USCGC Taney, Lightship 116 Chesapeake and Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse. Enjoy “hands-on encounters with history,” demonstrations, activities, overnight adventures and tours.
Open daily, the harbour is indefatigable. I had plenty to see and explore at Inner Harbor and made use of the few hours I had there but not fully exhausted the vastness of facilities there as there are still plenty to see and explore. Next time I am there I will take a Cruise on the Bay with Watermark cruises or with The Inner Harbor Spirit and consume sometimes ashore with the interactive and narrated sightseeing tours of to get a clearer view of the famous Inner Harbor.
Here am I during my recent visit to Baltimore in which I observed the arts and creative culture, and the city's architectural ingenuity and beauty of this ancient city is constantly undermined by a steady wave of violence in other far-flung parts of Baltimore.
Links to other efforts
www.b-gifted.org
www.bgiftedfoundation.cfsites.org
www.couragetotraversethethreshold.blogspot.com
https://www.behance.net/gallery/24149707/The-courage-to-traverse-the-threshold
http://about.me/b.giftedfoundation
http://bgiftedsl.tumblr.com
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