Maine's biggest "cities" barely qualify as cities:
https://www.maine-demographics.com/cities_by_population
From the top 50 on that list, I've driven in Portland, Bangor, Brewer, Saco, Augusta, Waterville, Freeport, Skowhegan, Farmington, Fairfield, Orono, Old Town, Belfast, and Wells, with Bangor, Orono, and Waterville being the ones I've driven in / visited the most.
When I was a kid in the 1980s we went to Bangor frequently (which is about a 45-minute drive from my hometown), usually on a Friday night, for Mom to go shopping (sometimes Dad needed to buy something there too, such a tool at Sears, but it was usually just Mom who had a reason to go). Us kids loved going to Bangor, mainly to check out the toys in the big department stores, Space Port arcade at the Bangor Mall, and because we always got to eat out, such as at Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Bonanza, Wendy's, McDonald's, Burger King. Big department stores, malls, and restaurant chains didn't exist in our small town.
As for Orono, I worked there for a couple of years in the 2000s, and as for Waterville, my mother has lived there for the past 25 years or so. I tend to get lost in Waterville if I try to go anywhere other than directly to my mother's house. The streets have a weird layout. When I get lost I can look out my window and see where I want to go, but still have a hard time finding a path that takes me there. By way of contrast, Tucson, Arizona is a drastically larger city than Waterville (my brother lived there for many years), but it's far easier to navigate, because most of the streets are laid out in a logical grid pattern.
reply
share
GolfnGuitars (3117)
2 months ago
Thank you for posting that! Yes, that's why I didn't put a "minimum population," because it'll vary from state to state.
One of my older sisters lived for a time in Dover, New Hampshire, and my family and I got to visit her there in the Summer of 2003 (This was before I got married). We went into the southern part of Maine a couple of days. One day, it was 92 degrees, really warm. The next day, about 65 and rainy/overcast. I think we actually were in Waterville for a little bit. The other thing I remember was Friday afternoon...we actually got stuck in traffic heading to the northern part of Maine (I think my sister said a lot of it was probably heading to Kennebunkport). All these vehicles had their big, expensive boats hitched in the rear...I think we were the only ones who didn't have any sort of attachment! 😃.
I really liked seeing the beaches there. They're so rocky in some places... maybe not the best for swimming, but really beautiful to see in person.
reply
share
MaximRecoil (4850)
2 months ago
Yeah, Maine's coast (which is, surprisingly, slightly longer than California's coastline according to the NOAA) is very rocky. I've never swam in the ocean. The first time I went to Bar Harbor when I was maybe 7 or 8 years old, most of the coast was too rocky and cliff-like to walk down to the water, but there was a small beach area, and I waded into the water. I remember it being very cold and feeling very powerful compared to a lake; the waves felt like they were blasting sand out from under my feet. It was way too cold and tumultuous for me to even consider swimming in it.
Hoity-toity places in Maine like Kennebunkport are very much the exception. Many, if not most, of the inhabitants there aren't even originally from this state. In most of Maine you won't see many big expensive boats, but you will see a lot of old snowmobiles, old skidders, old rusty vehicles, and trailers (AKA: mobile homes).
reply
share
GolfnGuitars (3117)
2 months ago
Yes, we went to Bar Harbor also and I really liked it a lot. I didn't realize the Maine coastline is longer than California's... that's a great piece of trivia there! 😃
reply
share