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To mark the release of our March issue (now on newsstands), we're celebrating cities over the next few weeks, and we've asked our readers to share what they love most about their towns. Would you send Rome a bouquet of roses? Did you get Miami a box of chocolates? Is it Rio you're snuggling with in the back of the movie theater? Declare your love for that special city in your heart!

We've put together a list of fill-in-the-blank questions that should help get you started. We'd love it if you would copy and paste the list into an email, fill in your answers (as many as you like) and send your responses to IntelligentTravel@ngs.org.

Today's city-lover is Anne Ditmeyer, of Baltimore, Maryland, who writes the lovely Prêt à Voyager blog. 

Baltimore is My City

The first place I take a visitor from out of town is the American Visionary Art Museum.

When I crave crabs I always go J.P. Steamers.

To escape B-more I head to D.C. on the $7 MARC train.

If I want to see a movie I go to The Charles.

For complete quiet, I can hide away in Peabody Library.

If you come to my city, get your picture taken with the Cosmic Egg @ AVAM.

If you have to order one thing off the menu from Tapas Teatro it has to be spinach and crab.

Sideshow is my one-stop shop for great random gifts.

Locals know to skip the Inner Harbor and check out Hampden instead.

When I'm feeling cash-strapped I go to Trinacria.

For a huge splurge I go to Housewerks.

Photo ops in my city include the Kinetic Sculpture Race and the best vantage points are the water entry in Canton.

If my city were a celebrity it'd be John Waters.

The most random thing about my city are snowballs with marshmallow fluff on top (trust me, it's delicious!).

We're not sure whether this will be a permanent trend here at IT, but we did feel that it was important to share the recently released news that the new baby gorilla at Washington's National Zoo is a girl! (Pause here for a collective awwww....) David Braun at the Nat Geo News Watch blog reports:

Thus far, Mandara [the mother] and her baby girl are adapting to their new lives as Zoo celebrities and seem to be unfazed by the attention they're receiving from the crowds of visitors flocking to the Great Ape House.

You can watch a video of the keeper offering an update on the baby here. Visiting the zoo in our nation's capital is free (and it's just one of the many, many free things to do here) so it might be one more reason to plan a visit.

And in more monkey news, there's also now a video of the chimp rescue we wrote about last week. In it, Emerging Explorer Jill Pruetz talks about the rescue, and we get to see baby Aimee live in action. Here's to monkey Fridays!

*Ok, we know that the technical term is "great apes" instead of monkeys. But monkey Fridays just has such a nice ring to it!

Photo: Meghan Murphy, Smithsonian's National Zoo  

Originally built at the turn of the last century as a hotel for landlocked sailors, the Jane Hotel in the West Village housed Titanic survivors just after the shipwreck in 1912. The hotel was restored in 2008, and its maritime history is reflected in its cabin-style rooms. While the accommodations are small (from 50 sq. feet to 250 sq. feet), what they lack in square footage they make up for in amenities: flat-screen TVs, free Wi-Fi, and iPod docks grace each cozy room. A ballroom and bar are set to open in the next few weeks, but in the meantime, you can eat at the Cuban Café Socialista or pack a picnic and wander across the street to Hudson River Park. Single rooms have shared bathrooms and start at $75 off-season, $99 peak season. Double rooms are not yet available but are expected to start in the mid-$200s.

The Jane Hotel: 113 Jane Street; 212-924-6700.

Photo: Jane Hotel 

A good many readers commented on contributing photographer Catherine Karnow's recent post about her last minute trip to the inauguration, and shared some links to their own pictures. So we thought we'd share a few more, and went to our Flickr pool. Here are the bunch tagged "inauguration." If you want your photo added to the mix, add them to the pool tagged "inauguration" and we'll update this post tomorrow. Enjoy!

UPDATE: Thanks for adding your additional pictures to the pool - we love them! And if you want more of Catherine Karnow's photos, you can check out her slideshow at the Huffington Post.

Cultural Tourism DC, a nonprofit coalition that promotes authentic cultural institutions in DC, has compiled a handy and extensive list of inaugural celebrations and specials at local museums for those braving the crowds next week.

Some of our faves include:

• The Marian Koshland Science Museum of the National Academy of Sciences will offer free admission next Tuesday. Stop by to learn the scientific principles behind one of Obama's campaign priorities, global warming. If you're one of the first 500 visitors, you'll get a free commemorative key chain.

• While the National Portrait Gallery is always free, what better time to visit its collection of presidential portraits, the only complete one outside of the White House, than on Inauguration Day. Be sure to also check out Shepard Fairey's now-iconic, mixed-media stencil collage portrait of Obama in the New Arrivals section on the first floor.

• Relive the drama of Obama's 18-month presidential campaign as photo historian and NYU professor Deborah Willis discusses and signs copies of her book, Obama: The Historic Campaign in Photographs, at the recently revamped American Museum of National History from 1-3 pm.

• With temperatures expected to hover in the 30s on Inauguration Day, head indoors to the National Archives to watch a live telecast of the Inauguration in the McGowan Theater. It's free but try to arrive early as Pennsylvania Avenue, a direct route to the Archives, may be closed to pedestrians as the parade nears.

For more great ideas on things to do this weekend, be sure to check out Traveler's Inauguration Travel Guide.

Image: Shepard Fairey/Obey Giant.com

With Martin Luther King Jr. Day upon us, it's time to enact the dormant civic idealism awakened by Obama's campaign slogan, "Change," and serve our communities on our day off next Monday, January 19th.

If you're in D.C. for the inauguration, you can take part in any number of volunteer opportunities. Greater D.C. Cares is organizing over 500 volunteers to help out in six local public schools, painting lockers, classrooms, and touching up murals. We Feed Our People, in conjunction with the Mayor's Office on Volunteerism, will serve warm meals to over 400 people while hosting a health fair. And the D.C. government has compiled a list of community service projects for this year's MLK Day of Service. Projects range from serving breakfast to the homeless, winterizing a fishpond at a community health clinic, tutoring a child, cleaning up a park, or sorting donated food at a food bank. You can volunteer all day or just an hour or two.

Check out the MLK Day of Service website to search their database of volunteer opportunities throughout the country to find a project in your area. Or visit Obama's own service site to pop in your zip code, and find a project that matches your availability and skills.

Are you volunteering next Monday? What projects are available in your city?

Photo: Martin Luther King Jr. at the Lincoln Memorial, by Paul Schitzer via Life Magazine Archive

Ben's Chili Bowl, where only Barack Obama and Bill Cosby can eat for free, is just one highlight of DC's U Street.  After chowing down on a killer half-smoke with chili, you can stretch your legs and explore the street that first gained fame in the early 20th century as Washington's 'Black Broadway.' Then it was home to Langston Hughes and Duke Ellington and hub for African American culture and nightlife in the city, and today it's enjoying a new renaissance, with distinctive shops like moojoo ken, top jazz clubs like Bohemian Caverns, popular bistros like Cafe Saint-Ex and Marvin, and a collection of wine bars like Vinoteca and Cork. In celebration of Inauguration Day, the bookstore cafe and gathering place Busboys and Poets will be open 24 hours, and Cake Love, our favorite place for homemade cakes, will be offering a special confection named 44, a "Salty Caramel layer cake to honor our 44th President" with individual slices for $4.40.

Traveler staffers Janelle Nanos and Krista Rossow had a blast making this walking tour photo gallery of U Street, part of our extensive Inauguration Guide to DC. But when they stopped at Ben's Chili Bowl and Krista pulled out her camera to photograph one of the famous half-smokes, the waiter stopped her. "Wait a minute," he said as he took the plate back to the kitchen. Uh-oh, thought Krista and Janelle. A minute later the waiter returned, with the half-smokes sweetly decorated, as if they were birthday cakes. Thanks, Ben's!

Photo:  Krista Rossow

Looking for a creative, collaborative, community-based (and not too expensive) way to celebrate Obama's inauguration this January 20th? Check out Art of Change's Inaugural Ball.

Sponsored by Artomatic and Playa del Fuego and housed in three performance venues along the 1000 block of 7th and L Streets, Art of Change will boast two dance floors, an art gallery, a variety stage, and even a fire performance area (!). There'll be comedy, spoken-word, belly dancing, bluegrass, acoustic guitar, and Hindustani violin along with some groundbreaking East Coast DJs.

The party starts at 8 p.m. and tickets, on sale now, are $50. Consider volunteering for the event or sign up to perform, if that's more your cup of tea.

As the venue's inside the Secret Service's restricted zone during the inauguration, plan to Metro on over. The site is close to both the Gallery Place/Chinatown and Mount Vernon/Convention Center stops.

For more suggestions on how to celebrate check out our online guide to the inauguration.

Are you going to the inauguration? How do you plan to celebrate?

Photo: Art of Change

Having just spent a week in snow-covered Seattle, the thought of spending even more time in a winter wonderland is the furthest thing from my mind. But on January 10, 100 ski resorts are lifting their fees in celebration of Winter Trails Day. Twenty-two states from Washington to Maine are giving snow-goers the chance to try cross-country skiiing or snowshoeing for free, meaning that those who claim the only winter sport they enjoy is making snow angels have no excuse not to frolic in the white stuff. January is also "Learn a Winter Snow Sport Month" (betcha didn't know that), and other resorts across the country are hosting plenty of events straight on 'til Groundhog's Day.

Thanks to Gadling for the tip!

Photo: Vahid Jahed via the Intelligent Travel Flickr pool

Late last night, President-elect Barack Obama officially arrived in Washington. He and his family are staying at the Hay-Adams Hotel for the time being before moving into the White House, in order to get the first daughters settled and started in school. Several papers have reported that the Obamas are anticipating their transition to Washington with a mix of excitement and nerves, so we at Traveler decided to do our best to help them get settled in D.C.

The Obama family spent a portion of their Christmas vacation in Hawaii, and, as the Washington Post reported this weekend, much of Obama's character is influenced by his Hawaiian upbringing. So Associate Editor Amy Alipio dug up the best ways to find a little aloha in Washington. From grabbing a plate lunch at Makakoa Enterprises to taking a hula class at the Joy of Motion dance studio, we've got a list of eateries, events, and opportunities that will help them make them feel at home.

For more tips on making the most of Washington D.C., be sure to check out our travel guide to the District's best offerings for the inauguration. 

Photo: Timothy Schenck/Istockphoto.com