• Baltimore
  • Kunming

Baltimore (/ˈbɔːltɪmɔːr/ BAWL-tim-or, locally: /bɔːldəˈmɔːr/ bawl-da-MOR or /ˈbɔːlmər/ BAWL-mər) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was designated an independent city by the Constitution of Maryland[a] in 1851, and today is the most populous independent city in the United States. As of 2021, the population of the Baltimore metropolitan area was estimated to be 2,838,327, making it the 20th largest metropolitan area in the country. Baltimore is located about 40 miles (64 km) north northeast of Washington, D.C., making it a principal city in the Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area (CSA), the third-largest CSA in the nation, with a 2021 estimated population of 9,946,526.

Prior to European colonization, the Baltimore region was used as hunting grounds by the Susquehannock Native Americans, who were primarily settled further northwest than where the city was later built. Colonists from the Province of Maryland established the Port of Baltimore in 1706 to support the tobacco trade with Europe, and established the Town of Baltimore in 1729. The first printing press and newspapers were introduced to Baltimore by Nicholas Hasselbach and William Goddard respectively, in the mid-18th century.

The Battle of Baltimore was a pivotal engagement during the War of 1812, culminating in the failed British bombardment of Fort McHenry, during which Francis Scott Key wrote a poem that would become "The Star-Spangled Banner", which was eventually designated as the American national anthem in 1931. During the Pratt Street Riot of 1861, the city was the site of some of the earliest violence associated with the American Civil War.

Kunming, also known as Chuncheng, is the capital of Yunnan Province, the central city of central Yunnan urban agglomeration, and one of the important central cities in western China approved by the State Council. By 2018, the city had jurisdiction over seven districts, three counties, three autonomous counties and one county-level city, with a total area of 21473 square kilometers, a built-up area of 435.81 square kilometers, a resident population of 6.85 million, an urban population of 4.9902 million, and a urbanization rate of 72.85 percent. Kunming is located in southwest China and the middle of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, with the unique location of "connecting the coast of Guizhou and Guitong in the east, entering the Central Plains through Sichuan and Chongqing in the north, reaching Thailand / Cambodia in the south, and connecting India and Pakistan in the west". It is located at the intersection of the north-south international channel and the third east-west Eurasian continental bridge starting from Shenzhen.
Travel Notes In Kunming
Travel Asks In Kunming