1. If You Try To Eat Crabs With A Fork, They'll Exile You
Baltimoreans are very particular about eating and cooking their famous Chesapeake blue crabs: they should be steamed, covered in Old Bay and piled high before being picked apart by hand and washed down with an ice-cold beer.
Stop by L.P. Steamers for some of the best crab around. If getting your hands dirty isn’t your thing, try the award-winning jumbo lump crab cakes at Faidley Seafood.
2. It's Not Water, It's "Wooder"
Baltimorese (or Bawlmerese) is most notable for dropping “t” sound from words—hence Baltimore becomes “Bawlmer.”
If a Baltimore native asks you for some “wooder,” hook her up with a good-old glass of H2O, and if she tells you need your shirt “warshed,” you probably wore it to the gym one too many times.
3. Baltimore Is Sweet On Its Hons
“Hon,” short for “honey,” is a classic Baltimore term of endearment and the inspiration for HonFest, an annual festival celebrating the Baltimore lifestyle.
Each year at the event, women from all over the city don sixties-era beehives and their best leopard-print spandex pants to vie for the title of Bawlmer’s Best Hon.
4. People In Baltimore Love A Good Brew
Baltimore has several local breweries and microbreweries known for their craft beers. Get a taste of the city’s brews during the annual Baltimore Beer Week in October. Heavy Seas, the Baltimore-Washington Beer Works and The Brewer’s Art are all worth checking out.
5. But They'll Always Hold A Special Place In Their Hearts For Natty Boh
National Bohemian was brewed in Baltimore up until the late 1990s, when the brand was bought by another company and eventually sold to the Pabst Brewing Company.
For 15 years, Baltimoreans could only get their beloved Boh in cans or bottles until Pabst started distributing Natty Boh in keg form, allowing Baltimoreans to drink drafts once again.
6. Artscape Is The Most Amazing Art Festival Ever
Each year, more than 350,000 people brave the sweltering, sticky Baltimore summer days to join in the colorful kookiness of Artscape, the country’s largest free arts festival.
It’s hot, it’s crowded and good luck finding parking, but it’s worth it to check out works by more than 150 fine artists, designers and craftspeople.
7. Baltimore Pumps Out The Best Beats
Named “City with the Best Music Scene” by Rolling Stone Magazine in 2008, Baltimore has sounds to suit all tastes.
Aside from the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and tons of talented local rock bands and hip-hop artists, the city is renowned for its thriving jazz scene. And no wonder, since legendary jazz artists Cab Calloway, Chick Webb and Billie Holiday all called Baltimore home.
8. The Inner Harbor Isn’t Just For Tourists
Baltimore’s Inner Harbor is one of the city’s top tourist destinations, but Baltimoreans love it, too!
Besides tons of cool restaurants and shops at Harborplace, sightseeing cruises and tours of historic ships like the USS Constellation, the Inner Harbor is a great place to go running or take a relaxing evening stroll.
9. Baltimore Has All The STEM Jobs
Nearly a quarter of the jobs in the Baltimore region are science, technology, engineering and math positions. In fact, the city ranks 8 out of 100 metropolitan areas for its concentration of STEM jobs.
10. And It's The Place To Be For Future Doctors
We’re home to the world-renowned Johns Hopkins Hospital and Johns Hopkins University. These institutions, respectively, are ranked among the world’s top teaching hospitals and research universities.
11. You Can Get Anywhere From Here
From Baltimore, it’s a short drive to other major cities like New York, Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia. Baltimore boasts a close proximity to three major airports, including Baltimore-Washington International, which is 15 minutes from the city’s downtown. The Baltimore harbor is also a popular cruise terminal.
12. Baltimore Built The Washington Monument First
Baltimore’s Washington Monument, while lesser known than its Washington, D.C. counterpart, was actually the nation’s first civic memorial to George Washington.
Built more than 25 years before the D.C. version, Baltimore’s 178-foot neoclassical style monument is located at Mount Vernon Place and houses a small museum in its base.
13. Baltimoreans Were Buying Fresh And Local Way Before You Were
The heart of Baltimore is home to the Lexington Market, the world’s largest continuously running market. Since 1782, Baltimoreans have flocked to Lexington Market for the city’s freshest seafood and produce.
Today, the market boasts more than 140 merchants offering everything from fresh fruits and vegetables to exotic meats, baked goods and prepared foods.
14. Baltimore’s The Best Place To Visit Your Aquatic Acquaintances
Baltimore’s Inner Harbor is home to the National Aquarium, whose living collection features more than 17,000 fish, birds, amphibians, reptiles and mammals.
Last summer, the Aquarium opened its blacktip reef exhibit, which replicates an Indo-Pacific reef and houses 20 blacktip reef sharks among more than 700 other sea creatures.
15. Baltimore’s Star-Spangled
That’s right, Baltimore is the birthplace of our national anthem. Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner” based on the Battle of Baltimore when American soldiers at Fort McHenry held off a British attack.
Stop by the star-shaped Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine to learn about the city’s role in the War of 1812.
16. Baltimore's The City That Reads, And It's Proud Of It
Despite our much-mocked 1987 moniker, “The City That Reads,” Baltimore has a thriving modern literary scene.
The CityLit Project nurtures the culture of literature in Baltimore and connects readers and writers with the community. Baltimoreans also celebrate our city’s literary art scene each year at the CityLit Festival.
17. Edgar Allan Poe Hung Out Here
Influential writers like Edgar Allan Poe, H.L. Mencken, Gertrude Stein, Ogden Nash and Frederick Douglass all called Baltimore home.
See what inspired Poe’s works by visiting his home, now the Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum, at 203 Amity Street in West Baltimore. You also can visit Poe’s gravesite at Westminster Graveyard.
18. Baltimore Shines On The Small Screen
The streets of Baltimore have been the perfect setting for gritty urban dramas like “The Wire,” and “Homicide: Life on the Street,” which were set and shot in Baltimore. The Netflix original series “House of Cards” also was shot in Baltimore, though it’s set in Washington, D.C.
19. And On The Big Screen, Too
Several major films, including “Sleepless in Seattle” and “The Accidental Tourist,” were filmed in Baltimore.
The city also has been featured in classic movies by prominent Baltimore-influenced directors John Waters, known for films like “Pink Flamingos” and “Hairspray,” and Barry Levinson, who made “Diner” and “Liberty Heights.”
20. You're Welcome For Babe Ruth
Legendary baseball player Babe Ruth was born in Baltimore, and today the city is home to two professional-level sports teams: the Baltimore Orioles baseball team and the Baltimore Ravens football team.
You’ll often find us, beer in hand and paint on our faces, cheering our teams on at Oriole Park and M&T Bank Stadium at Camden Yards.
21. The Power Plant Isn’t For Electricity
Baltimoreans know how to party. And Power Plant Live! is one of the city’s top dining and entertainment destinations.
The venue has more than twelve unique bars and restaurants to choose from and hosts all kinds of events—from battles of the bands and birthday bonanzas to concerts featuring some of the country’s top performing artists.
22. Baltimore Is Giving Itself A Makeover
City officials, police forces, citizen groups and state agencies are actively working on crime-prevention solutions, like job creation and community outreach programs, to break the cycle of violence in Baltimore. 
