Sunday Fun in Fell's Point. Ole!

     Uncle Jack and Mrs. U.J. don't ordinarily seek out crowds, especially during swine flu season, but they couldn't resist joining the horde of  funseekers who descended on Baltimore's oldest neighborhood yesterday for the second day of the 43rd annual Fell's Point Festival of Fun.   As far as Uncle Jack could tell the crowd actually outnumbered the vendors,  some of whom may actually have made enough money to cover their entry fees. The big winner is likely to be Preservation Society of Federal Hill and Fell's Point who sponsor this enjoyable event as a fundraiser and then do good things with the money they raise. The weather was flawless both days which must have brought joy to the hearts of the organizers because this was no small undertaking, rivaling ArtScape in its size and scope if not in its pre-event hype.  
           "Art" is not yet synonymous with "digital photography" at this event but the number of erstwhile photographers displaying their wares seemed  to exceed that of any other category of artistic production by a wide margin.  Uncle Jack suspects that world demand for amateurish photos of  dogs, kittens and landscapes will fall far short of supply in the foreseeable future and there will be a ruthless winnowing of would-be artists in the photographic field.
          The burgeoning Latino population of  Fell's Point was well represented on the day by numerous food stalls and a lively outpouring of music and dance from a band stand on Broadway which drew the largest crowd of any attraction at the Festival.  Upper Fell's Point has been the destination for a large fraction of Baltimore's Hispanic population which is now estimated to be around 50,000.  In previous centuries it was the first home for many immigrant groups including the Irish and Eastern Europeans.

Cobblestoned Thames Street (pronounced Tems by the gentry) presented difficulties for the spiked-heel crowd. 

                                             Even the Loch Raven Pipers had to tread carefully.

                             Punch and Judy put on a great show.  An early form of cage fighting

                           If you couldn't find something to eat at this stand you weren't hungry.

                                      
                                                                  Here's the menu.

                                                  Coming soon--- McDonald's tortillas!!

                                                     The oldest house in Baltimore.

                                                              A typical Fell's Point store.

         On-street parking is always a problem in Fell's Point but during Festival Weekend it's ridiculous.