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Only a two-hour drive south on I-95 or a painless train ride from 30th Street Station lands you in Baltimore — and a variety of distinct places to visit.
The city’s main attractions are in the Inner Harbor just south of the city’s center. Redevelopments since the 1970s have made this one of B-more’s hot spots and the 12 million visitors who travel to the waterfront every year confirm its appeal.
Along the harbor’s edge, those not fearful of heights will find a 360-degree view at the Top of the World observation deck on the 27th floor of the World Trade Center, the tallest pentagonal building in the world. Aside from the spectacular vista, visitors will learn a touch of history through an ongoing display showcasing Baltimore’s past, as well as rotating exhibits on people such as naval hero Robert Smalls (through Dec. 15) and photographer Greg Mickey (through Nov. 3).
"The Top of the World is a great place to start your visit so that way you can look out and see all the attractions and it’s a great way to plot and see where your next stop would be," Tracy Baskerville, communications director for Baltimore’s Office of Promotion and the Arts, said.
Throughout October, admission is free to Top of the World as a part of "Free Fall Baltimore," a month-long promotion where more than 80 organizations offer more than 300 free art events.
Neighboring National Aquarium housed 5,000 creatures when it opened in ’81. Decades later, more than 16,500 animals can be found jumping, swimming and sleeping in the cavernous space that includes a frog exhibit, dolphin show and the two-year-old "Animal Planet Australia: Wild Extremes" that boasts 2,500 animals — many hard to come by on U.S. soil such as the death adder, frilled lizard, rainbow lorikeet and snake-necked turtle.
"We tell the story of water [at the aquarium] and [Australia] has really unique dependencies on water. A lot of the animals in [‘Wild Extremes’] aren’t on display anywhere else in North America," aquarium Communications Director Molly Foyle said.
A four-dimensional theater with a three-dimensional movie that incorporates special effects will open in December, she added.
"It also has special effects built into the theater itself, so there are puffs of air, squirts of water and those kinds of things — and smell," Foyle said.
The mind never takes a vacation, even when the body does, so keep your brain brewing at the Maryland Science Center, which transports visitors to prehistoric times, lets them witness live crustaceans from the massive Chesapeake Bay and explore the earth with satellites.
Science and history aside, this is a sports town. Home to three World Series titles, two Super Bowl championships — one each for the Colts and the Ravens — and the Bambino, it’s a given that the Camden Yards section is bursting with athletic pride.
Charm City’s own George Herman Ruth was born in 1895 in a rowhome on Emory Street, which has since been transformed into the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum. Officially opening to the public in 1974, in ’83 the museum also became the Orioles and Colts official archive base.
Six exhibits showcase Ruth’s professional and personal lives with fans able to see his Orioles rookie card and a bat given to him by Joe DiMaggio, museum Communication Manager Lindsay Hebert said.
Oriole Park at Camden Yards, home of Baltimore’s ball club, offers tours until the end of November. Fans can visit the dugout, press box and scoreboard control room of the 15-year-old stadium in addition to learning about the history of the area.
Keeping with the theme is nearby Sports Legends — formerly Camden Station — at Camden Yards, which is an expansion of the Babe Ruth Museum. The exhibits do not just explore the history of the area’s sports teams, but encompass all Maryland athletics from college to pro as well as tributes to Ruth, recent Hall-of-Fame inductee Cal Ripken Jr. and former Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas. An additional exhibit in Camden Station’s restored Gentleman’s Waiting Room commemorates the building’s original use as the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad headquarters and features artifacts from the Civil War.
"Most people don’t realize how much we do have until they walk through our doors," Hebert, also communication manager for Sports Legends, said.
The second level of Sports Legends leads to the newly opened Geppi’s Entertainment Museum, which offers "pop culture with character" with toys, comics and other collectibles. Highlights include a handcrafted G.I. Joe prototype, a 1959 Barbie and a 1938 Mickey Mouse doll, museum curator Arnold T. Blumberg said.
"You’re almost invariably going to find something you personally remember, something you grew up with and it’s a chance to sort of reconnect with your childhood no matter what age you are," Blumberg said.
When living and breathing sports, why not eat sports, too. The world’s first ESPN Zone on the harbor opened in ’98, but it’s Ray Lewis’ Full Moon Bar-B-Que that brings the Ravens linebacker’s Birmingham, Ala., roots to Baltimore with game-day specials and a shuttle to and from games.
Plenty of little pockets unveil neighborhoods soaked in history. The Flag House & Star-Spangled Banner Museum is the former home of Mary Young Pickersgill, who crafted the flag that flew above Fort McHenry during the War of 1812 and inspired Francis Scott Key to write a little tribute called the "Star-Spangled Banner." Pickersgill’s creation is in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, but Oct. 20 the Flag House will offer a Free Family Festival in celebration of the 80th anniversary of the museum’s opening with music, storytelling, living history, activities and crafts
If not exhausted, the oldest section of the city, Fells Point, beckons from the beyond by visiting haunted pubs, shops and residences in a GhostWalk offered 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays and a Haunted PubWalk on select Fridays at 7 p.m., both through November.
Baltimore is known for its fine eateries, including Aldo’s Ristorante Italiano and La Scala Ristorante. The latter is known for its cannolis, owner/chef Nino Germano said, adding the restaurant recently expanded to include a bocce court.
"We’re the only restaurant in the world that has a cannoli season," Germano said, referring to the treat handmade by his mother, who periodically returns to her native Italy and leaves her son without his famed dessert. "She won’t give me the recipe."
Sure there is a Phillips Seafood at 17th and Race streets, but there is nothing like seeing the shimmering water while chowing down on a crab cake at one of the very first of the East Coast chain. But Phillips isn’t the only fish in the sea as Bo Brooks has steamed crabs with a seasoning similar to Old Bay, and Captain James offers 24-hour takeout, but in-house dining has a serene view of the harbor from its ship-shaped restaurant.
If it’s all Greek to you, there’s Samos Restaurant or Ikaros and, in Fell’s Point, The Black Olive. Samos’, named for the Greek island and birthplace of owner/chef Nicolas Georgalas, has been in business for 30 years, Manager Michael Georgalas — and son of the owner — said.
The restaurant offers traditional foods including moussaka (a Greek lasagna), stuffed grape leaves, gyros, seafood, as well as the traditional foods of Baltimore such as crab cakes. Even with all the options, the souvlaki platter remains the favorite, Michael said.
Ambiance is key to its continuing popularity, he added.
"We have an open kitchen," Michael said. "My father greets the customers as they come in. You can watch your food being prepared instead of watching your tray come out the swinging door."
