Baltimore, Maryland is not the average tourist hot spot — I admit. Tucked between luscious Virginia and vivacious Washington DC, the state seems to get lost. However, those who do manage to remember the city of Baltimore, adoringly called Charm City by its residents, amidst their travel plans are definitely in for a treat. Aside from being the filming destination of HBO's famous show, The Wire, Baltimore boasts of a number of tourist hot spots.

Known for its love of Old-Bay (a chaat masala type of seasoning) and decadent seafood, the city offers a delicious assortment of food bound to tickle your palette. The famous Petit Louis, a classic French bistro is perfect for all. Bakeries such as the Baltimore Cupcake Company and Bonaparte Breads are great for a quick appetising snack. For people looking for simplicity — a visit to Bistro B is ideal and the fact that Hamid Karzai's brother owns it, makes a great conversational topic.

Baltimore is a city full to the brim with art. One can see a variety of plays — Broadway and Off-Broadway — at a number of theatres. Organisations such as the Creative Alliance showcase a series interesting and sometimes peculiar plays. If you are lucky, you might even be able to catch a burlesque show and possibly be pulled onto stage for a competition.

Baltimore also has a range of eclectic museums. The Baltimore Museum of Art displays the art of famous national and local artists. They also have a large collection of their own that includes the work of artists such as Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh, and Paul Cezanne.

The Walters Art Museum, also, has a beautiful variety of permanent work as well as travelling exhibitions. Currently, the Walters along with a number of others, is showcasing an exhibition titled 'Poetry and Prayer Islamic Manuscripts at the Walters'. It will be available for viewing until June 13, 2010. The famous Edgar Allen Poe lived a large portion of his life in Baltimore and tourists can visit his home, which has been preserved as the Baltimore Poe House and Museum and is open for viewing from April to December.

While you're on an art kick, you might as well visit the artsy neighbourhood of Hampden. Packed with a variety of galleries, boutiques, and other shops, Hampden is the perfect shopping destination for anyone looking for unique and not generic stuff. While you're at it, you can get a fabulous haircut at Hampden's Sprout Hair Salon and receive a head massage along with it. Baltimore also offers tourists the glitz and glam that one would expect from a happening city. The Inner Harbour is home to a number of places including the breathtaking Baltimore Aquarium. At a small charge you can submerge yourselves into the world of underwater sea creatures. The Baltimore Aquarium is one of Baltimore's most beautiful treasures and must be visited by all! The Inner Harbour also encompasses numerous restaurants and two malls. Power Plant Live offers a variety of night-time activities including clubs and lively piano bars.

The bright city is home to Artscape, the largest free arts festival in the United States. It spans across a number of streets and showcases performance and abstract art. There are stalls of hundreds of artists and craftspeople from all over the country selling their beautiful and unique work. One can find anything from clothing, jewellery, paintings, furniture and sculpture at Artscape.

While the city has a series of conventional tourist hotspots there is, also, an interesting counter-culture. The people of Baltimore pride themselves on their distinct English dialect called 'Bawlamerese' — from this stems the famous festival known Hon Fest. The term 'hon' is short for the word honey and is an embodiment of the love and affection that residents of Baltimore shower upon one another.

Aside from regular music and food, Hon Fest allows women to accentuate their Bawlamerese and dress up in '60s style by donning an Amy Winehouse-esque bee hive hairdo, large sunglasses and bright clothing.

For the more down-to-earth folks, Baltimore also has a historic district known as Ellicott City where one can see beautifully preserved old buildings. Ellicott City is great for shoppers being home to a number of antique and specialty shops.

Baltimore, B-more, Charm City, or whatever else it may be called, is a little city full of love, dirt, homeless people, art, and culture and no trip to the East Coast can be complete without at least a peek into Maryland and the city of Baltimore.