<p>I took my first visit to Durham NC last weekend and was pleasantly surprised by the place. I really enjoyed it. Notwithstanding the tumultuous affairs going on at the courthouse concerning the Duke Lacrosse team members, Durham had lots of appeal socially. I was encouraged to see a fair degree of racial integration in the neighorhoods in North Durham. And there was diversity among the students who I saw lounging in the sun on the lawn of the Durham School of Mathematics and Science. The narrow light of the criminal case has obscured some of the good things about this community.</p>
<p>Durham’s strange like that. Parts of it are really nice, then suddenly you’re into the “OMG get me out of here” parts. We visited Wake Forest when I was a high school junior. We got done a little early, so we decided to visit Duke too (without directions). We got lost in the sketchy part of Durham. After passing 5 cop cars that had pulled over a car, we passed a “no drug dealing” sign riddled with bulletholes. :eek: About a block or two down, the houses became large and neat, with well-tended yards. 
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<p>Did you visit the Museum of Life Sciences?</p>
<p>I don’t think I’ll ever forgive them for cashing in on the Durham Bulls thing and tearing down the Durham Athletic Park. What a wonderful old minor-league park. But I suppose I should blame the team for that and not the city. </p>
<p>The city, at least when I was there in the dark ages, very definitely had the schizophrenia that warblers describes. </p>
<p>I liked Durham, but you could inadvertenly wander into a very rough part of town very easily. Of course, I was young and idiotic and walked from East Campus or Central Campus to Northgate Mall at 2 AM more times than I can count to meet my girlfriend getting off the late shift at a restaurant. It’s a wonder I wasn’t mugged. It’s a wonder I wasn’t killed, actually. :)</p>
<p>I remember in the late 60s there were still dirt streets in the Black part of town.</p>
<p>Warbler, I Didn’t visit the MLS this time. Will do so with my youngster next trip. This trip was for “daddy only” (everything was legal, LOL).</p>
<p>Iderochi, the drive down Gregorson Street from Northgate Mall to the Duke campus didn’t seem risky, but I imagine that once you get downtown and cross the railroad tracks, going on foot could be a risky adventure. The only actual walking I did was through the Sara Duke Gardens, and I got lost. Probably lost 10lbs that warm afternoon. Thanks to the very friendly Duke students who pointed me in the right direction.</p>
<p>Tsdad… I wasn’t sure whether to be appalled or amused when I came upon a couple of gravel/dirt streets in the Northgate Park and Braggtown neighborhoods. I double-checked my map to make sure that I was still within the city-limits of Durham. The Duke Park neighborhood reminded me of the stark demographic contrasts that you can find within 1 block in upper Manhattan (like around Columbia U and on upper Park Avenue near Spanish Harlem) and in NYC metro area towns like the Oranges in New Jersey.</p>
<p>I realize that there may be lingering or persistent racial disputes (and most are hopefully small; and public school board battles are nasty everywhere) in Durham, but my first impression of Durham from a socio-economic standpoint was positive. I’m looking forward to a return visit. My only complaint is that I really don’t like City Manager forms of municipal goverment. LOL. Elected mayors should be responsible for running their cities.</p>