Ahh, Camden ...
I've lived in and travelled to many large cities, and Camden was the only one where I really felt afraid to walk down the street (I didn't live in Camden, only visited there). The city truly looks like a war zone.
Here's a Camden story that illustrates the importance of being aware of one's surroundings, as well as why you don't go to diners in Camden at 4:00 in the morning.
In the late 1990s, a close friend attended Rutgers law school, which unfortunately is located in Camden. Occasionally, some of my friends and I would visit him there, although usually we met up with him in Philly, which is right across the river for those unfamiliar with the area. On this particular night (rather, wee hours of the morning), our intrepid band of four decided to grab a bite at a diner in Camden, then drop the Lawyerish One off at the campus. So, we finish eating and go into the parking lot to get our car, when we spy a women who clearly (at least in my amateur opinion) is high on something other than life. Not paying close attention to her (herein lies the moral of the story), she steps toward us asking for money. We ignore her, but suddenly she is behind my friend holding a box cutter to his throat. We all froze for what seemed like an eternity. Fortunately, a group of people, seeing what was happening, came out of the diner, distracting the woman enough to allow for us to get away from her.
So, I shan't be going to Camden any time soon, no matter how nice their aquarium is supposed to be ...
I travel to Baltimore, or 'Bawlmor' as they like to say, on a biweekly basis. It definitely has its dodgy areas, but at least one largely can avoid trouble there.
