I live in alabama...? -

and i want to move somewhere that is close to the same geography but i want a white x-mas. i love the countryside and not a big fan of large cities. any ideas on a good location?

Alabama has mountains and lots of nice greenery. A place to live would be a small city outside Denver, CO which has mountains snow and 300 days of sunshine a year. Look up places like Manteo Springs, CO, Colorado Springs, CO etc.

I just wanna ask, what can you say about Baltimore, Maryland? -

you re probably wondering why i asked such a question. It s because I ll be transferring there next year i just wanna know what kind of place I ll be living in. :)

Well Baltimore is an interesting city. You want to talk about crime and corrupt politics, Baltimore has it. You want to talk about cool places to visit, upscale neighborhoods, sports, museums, Little Italy, other bars/restaurants, the inner harbor, Baltimore has those too. I guess it all depends on where you live and what you want to do, chances are though that you will be looking into a downtown neighborhood somewhere close to the inner harbor where you should be OK. If Italian food is your thing, Baltimore has it s own little Italy section. It s not a knock off of NY, as Baltimore being a port city also drew in immigrants, and evidently enough Italian families of it s own to relegate in a neighborhood. I haven t been down there in quite a while but you pretty much can t go wrong with most of the restaurants there. Chiapperelli s is one I ve heard good things about, but here is a link that can help you for Little Italy http://baltimore.about.com/od/fooddrink/�� This neighborhood may not be something you do every weekend, but it can be a nice place if you have parents/family in town.As for the inner harbor, everything in Baltimore that s fun is pretty close to the harbor if not right on it. The first Mariner arena is nearby which is a venue for concerts and other events. There is also Rams Head Live at Power Plant live, power plant live is an outdoor rock venue, with a bunch of restaurants and clubs surrounding it at Market Place, there is also an indoor concert venue Rams Head Live at Market place, you have to walk through the Power Plant Live area to get to it. There is also Oriole Park at Camden Yards and right next door is M T Bank Stadium where the Ravens play. Chances are more likely that if sports are your thing, you ll take in a baseball game. Unfortunately the Orioles haven t had a winning season over the past decade, but the stadium is beautiful and one of the more charming points about Baltimore city.If you like reading or writing, you can always check out the little House where Edgar Allan Poe lived, his grave site is also in Baltimore. http://www.ci.baltimore.md.us/government��There is also the National Aquarium in town http://www.aqua.org/ If checking Ocean life is your thing. I used to go there as a kid, always a cool place. I m sure it hasn t lost it s appeal ;). There are also a lot things you will discover once you get into Baltimore. If you ever want to have a little fun, go into the bars and restaurants at Canton, Federal Hill (a.k.a known to some locals as Fed Hill), or Canton. Party nightlife really isn t my scene, but If you like it you will find a lot of it in those areas. Like history, check out where what became our National Anthem was written, Fort McHenry. It s Baltimore.Well that s about it for the fun stuff I can think of this late. So let me say that if you are wondering about town, you are best served to avoid anywhere on North ave, and also the entire Cherry Hill neighborhood. If you value your belongings and your life, those are areas you don t want to gamble with.Also just for your reference, Baltimore is an independent city within Maryland. It is not a part of any county, although sometimes Baltimore is referred to as Baltimore City to make a clear distinction between the city and Baltimore County which surrounds most of the city. You may not be aware of that, and to me growing up near Baltimore I was under the notion that most major US cities weren t a part of any respective counties. Anyway, good luck transferring to Baltimore, have fun while you are in Maryland!

I am from potomac, MD (very close to DC), but do visit baltimore often and have family there. although baltimore is known for it s crime, there are many high points to the city. Most buildings are very old. i m not sure how to describe it, but in areas that aren t completely run down, it s almost like being taken back in time... there are some really nice spots left over from baltimore s boomtown days (1950 s and 60 s) that are reminiscent of a bygone era (in a good way). The nicer neighborhoods of well-kept row houses are almost like tight knit small towns... Also. there are some nice places to go to like the national aquarium (it s called the national aquarium because the only aquarium in DC is in the basement of some building and just can t compare), and the baltimore zoo which, in my opinion, is better than the smithsonian national zoo... the baltimore zoo is very kid friendly (my little brother loves to go there) they have polar bears and okapi and a lot other stuff the national zoo does nt have. also the inner harbor is great and the maryland science center, and if you have kids, port discovery was a favorite of mine when i was little. however... my mom always does hide her GPS in the glove compartment when we go there... :P

I think the character Pinhead in the Hellraiser movie series summed it up quite nicely... Down the dark decades of your pain, this will seem like a memory of Heaven. I had a friend that wanted to take his young children to see the aquarium near the Inner Harbor area. He parked his car in a nice parking garage and went touring. When he went back to his car, he found that someone had broken the passengery side window out so they could retrieve a whopping 60 cents in loose change that was on the floor of the car. Gotta like that eh? $120 replacement window repairs so some crackhead could get 60 cents. That pretty much sums-up Baltimore for me.Oh yeah. And another friend went to an Oriels game at Camden Yards. Someone stole 2 wheels off of his car.

Most of Baltimore is a cesspool of crime, drugs and inconsiderate people. However there are a few areas in the city that have some culture and are relatively safe. Roland Park and Charles Village are the upscale areas of the city. Federal Hill, Hampden, Fells Point and Mt. Vernon are the trendy nightlife areas where a lot of the college kids and young professionals live, work and play. These areas are generally pretty safe most of the time just by the nature of the people that inhabit the area but there is still crime. The Inner Harbor is a touristy area and used to be safe but is quietly being overrun with gangs hanging around looking for petty crimes to commit. Pretty much any of the areas outside the ones I mentioned you are taking your chances. Outside of Baltimore in the suburbs is a crap shoot as well. Much like DC, generally if you are inside the Beltway (I-695), the areas have higher poverty and crime but this is not the hard fast rule. Don t mean to bring you down or make you worry about your decision to come to Baltimore. The town has a lot of problems. What you see on The Wire is an exaggeration but based in reality. Take precautions, use common sense and you should be fine.

Ace of Cakes, man, Ace of Cakes. Duff Goldman, Charm City Cakes. =D

The Baltimore accent is the most annoying one in existence.

Good luck you can have it, I wouldn t live there. Better get a permit.

All I can say is RAY LEWIS!

What areas of Mesa, AZ are the more Mexican/latino populated? -

Im moving to Mesa pretty soon, and I want to know the area of Mesa that is mostly Mexican populated. Im Mexican myself, so I always feel rite at home in a latino neighborhood. Can anyone help?

Main Street and University running west from Gilbert Road to the 101 and Broadway and Southern running west from Stapley to the 101 have a very heavy hispanic population - Generally that would be considered west-central Mesa.

Welcome! There s a big population in Mesa. Hey! Julio Cesar Chavez just opened a restaurant in Mesa, check it out! I haven t made it out there yet, but heard it s nice and really fun.http://www.juliocesarchavez.net/campeone��

Cheap/free panoramic views of New York City? -

Help me out, new yorkers!First timer traveling to NYC and would prefer not to pay $20 for an elevator ride to the top of 30 rock or the empire state building to get a nice panoramic shot. Any suggestions or alternatives would be greatly appreciated.

Just walk into the Empire State Building and go to the regular elevators. Anybody stops you, just tell them you are going to see your dentist, There are a bunch of them in there. Get off on one of the top floors knock on any door walk in and ask to use the bathroom. While your in there just look out the windows. I do it all the time. Welcome to New York Cheapo

Nyc simply payed for an elevator ride? Are you for real?

The Brooklyn Heights promenade.

Staten Island Ferry is FREE!

What is the best way to get from the Homewood Suites in Cambridge-Arlington, MA to the Celtics stadium? -

Would a bus, subway, or my own vehicle be the best way to get there? I am not familiar with the area. I am looking for an easy way with low stress. What do you think? Oh, and go Celtics! :)

Lowest stress is to drive to Alewife Station, park in the garage, and take the Red Line Inbound (Braintree or Ashmont, any train works) to Downtown Crossing, switch to the Orange Line Inbound (Oak Grove) and get off at North Station. Follow the crowd to the Garden. Don t take the 79 bus. The bus doesn t run that often at night (stops at 9:30, only comes every 45 minutes), and doesn t run at all on weekends. Better is the 77 bus to Harvard Square and pick up the Red Line at either Porter Square or Harvard Square. The 77 bus is one of the workhorses of the T -- it runs until after midnight and runs every 10-15 minutes. Alewife is about half a mile from your hotel, you could even walk it. There s a side road and a pathway.

Driving: Follow MA-16 / Alewife Brook Parkway to I-93 South towards Boston. Exit 26. Follow the road around to TD Banknorth Garden stadium parking.Public transit: You need to take the bus from MA Ave / Boulevard Ave. to the Alewife T subway station. Take the red line train towards Ashmont. You need to make a transfer at Downtown Crossing where you will take the orange line train towards Oak Grove, and get off at North Station which is the station for TD Banknorth Garden stadium.Google maps driving:http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d source=s��Google maps transit:http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d source=s��

Is Ft Irwin in Cali a good base for a family? Are there things to do? Or are they any good family bases in CA? -

My husband is just joining the military, and we want to get out of Fayetteville. I have always wanted to live in California, but a friend of mine said there not really a good family base out there. Anyone know first hand?

If he s just joining, the Army will send him to his next school and duty station. You can request the west coast but, it all goes on the Army s needs, not your wants. My daughter just moved from Ft Ord / Monterrey to Fayetteville so she would have better knowledge. Personally, any base is what you make of it. As retired Navy, I ve lived all up and down the East coast, including 2 years at Ft Bragg as a civilian employee. Here s a link to Ft Irwin:http://www.irwin.army.mil/Pages/default.��

Hi Jennifer,Ft. Irwin is the National Training Center (NTC) of the U.S Military. It s out in the dessert pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It s closest town/city is Barstow, California. And I really don t think there is much to do there at all. From there you re just about in the middle point between Las Vegas Nevada (east) and Los Angeles California (west), about 2 to 2-1/2 hours each way. But the Nevada state line is closer to Ft. Irwin then both of those cities. There s a few Casinos there if you like to gamble. One of those casinos is called Buffalo Bill s, they ve got a roller coaster and a water ride, and there s also some video arcade games. There s also a buffet... If being out in the middle of the dessert sounds good for you and your children, then Ft. Irwin is for you... Good luck!!!