Traipsing around Bamberg...

A couple of weeks ago Leigh, Meghan and I traveled to Bamberg to meet Harry Chrissy for a day of surveying. After our delicious lunch at The House of Pizza, we took a short tour of the downtown. To my surprise, it was very well preserved. I immediately saw potential but wondered how someone got permission to build the black iron fence that separated the sidewalk and the main street. The sidewalk is already too small and having a fence that makes it difficult to cross the road almost ever really makes the downtown uninviting. There was literally only one or two breaks in the iron fence that allowed pedestrians to cross the 3-4 lanes on main street.

After walking the downtown, Leigh and I split from Harry and Meghan and started walking the neighborhoods directly adjacent to the downtown. I was amazed at the size and beauty of some of the houses along Railroad Ave. Our first experience with a resident was peculiar as she expressed her deep frustration with the past "planners" and current government officials of Bamberg. Leigh and I tried our best to explain our purpose and desired outcome but the resident was adiment in her annoyance. After finally getting her to fill out a survey we combed the rest of the neighborhood with a good deal of success. I only had one resident turn me down and quickly got 7 surveys completed. All of my participants were very nice and interested in what I was doing. I really enjoyed walking through the neighborhood and loved the opportunity to see some beautiful houses. As Leigh and my "survey area" was quite spread out, I did get a little tired of walking, though a small chocolate lab puppy latched on to me and followed me around one street for half an hour. He returned home safely.

All in all my experience surveying in Bamberg was much more successful and enjoyable that I had originally thought. I was glad to see that most residents were interested in the projects and did not hesitate to throw out ideas for new and redevelopment of the city. Having this kind of experience with the residents solidifies our reason for doing this project.