The present city of Baltimore dates from 1729 and is generally regarded as one of the oldest cities in the country. Once an industrial town, with a economic base focused on steel processing, shipping, auto manufacturing and transportation, Baltimore now is a modern service economy. Although de-industrialization took its toll, Baltimore today is a growing financial, business, and health service base for the southern mid-Atlantic region. It is home to John Hopkins Hospital, widely regarded as one of the world's most important despository of medical knowledge.

Baltimore is sometimes dubbed as the "city of neighborhoods" with different districts traditionally occupied by distinct ethnic groups. Most notably today are: Inner Harbor frequented by tourists due to its hotels, shops and museums; Fells Point once a favorite entertainment destination for sailors - today very much gentrified (and featured in the movie, Sleepless in Seattle), Little Italy where current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi grew up and the Mount Vernon district which has come to be known as the city's center for cultural and artistic life. Baltimore's racial make-up today breaks down this way: 63.3% Black or African American, 32% White, 0.32% Native American, about 2% Asian and Latino/Hispanic.

The birthplace of Thurgood Marshall, in January this year Sheila Dixon became the first woman to serve as the City's Mayor.

Baltimore's weather in April can be mild - about 68 - 70 degrees Farenheit. It's public transportation is impressive for a city its size. It has a bus system, a light rail system and subway line. Additionally, MARC commuter rail connects Washington DC's Union Station with the city's two main inter-city rail stations, Camden Station and Penn Station. Its main airport is Baltimore-Washington International (BWI) Thurgood Marshall Airport.

Now that we have little bit more sense of the place - Baltimore - for this year's Creating Space, we are ready to explore and enjoy the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of "Bawlmer" as the locals lovingly call their town.

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• Babe Ruth Birthplace - @ Camden Yards. www.baberuthmuseum.com; 410/727-1539 Ext.#3.
• Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary - the first metropolitan cathedral in the U.S., 408 N. Charles St. 410/727-3564.
• Baltimore Museum of Art -  has the permanent Cone (sisters - Claribel and Etta) collection that includes works of Matisse, Van Gogh, Manet, Degas, Picasso, Cezanne, Gaugin and Renoir, 10 Art Museum Dr., 443/575-1700, www.artbma.org
• Brown Memorial Park Avenue Presbyterian Church - one of the largest Tiffany stained glass collection including two of the largest and a 1930 Skinner pipe organ, 1316 Park Ave., 410/523-1542.
• Cylburn Arboretum - 207 acres of public garden and nature preserve, more than 3 miles of nature trails, man-made wetlands and a historic mansion; 4915 GreenSpring Ave., 410/396-0180.
• Edgar Allan Poe House & Museum - 203 N. Affinity St., 410/396-5662.
• Lexington Market - historic public market established in 1782 - 140 merchants; 400 W. Lexington (Westside); 410/685-6169, www.lexingtonmarket.com
• National Aquarium in Baltimore - dolphin display, rooftop rainforest, central Ray pool and multiple storey shark tanks; 501 E. Pratt St., 410/576-3800, www.aqua.org
• Washington Monument Museum @ Mount Vernon Place - first US heroic/civic monument by Robert Mills; 2600 Madison Ave.; 410/396-7837
• Frederick Douglass Isaac Myers Maritime Park - national heritage park that highlights African American maritime history; 1417 Thames St.; 410/685-0295, www.douglassmyers.org
• The National Great Blacks in Wax Museum - Baltimore's first was museum and the first wax museum of African American history in the nation; 1601-03 East North Ave., 410/563-3404; www.ngbiwm.com