A couple months ago, I decided I needed to make the trek up north to visit my dear friend. I booked the flight, made the plans, and got excited. Fast forward to last week, and it was time to venture up to the city of "brotherly love"
I traveled up last Thursday. 2 planes, 1 train, and some walking later, I arrived at Courtney's apartment. Even from my first few hours in the city, I knew it was going to be a fun trip. Cities give you something to look at every second you spend in them. I noticed this from the very first walk.
Day 1 -
We went to lunch at The Shack, which is a little fast food place featured in "Something Borrowed" (the NYC location). It was sooo good. It also has a really cool vibe and atmosphere. We then ventured out and walked across the city, stopping at cool fountains, statues, and buildings. We attempted to visit the famous "Love Park", but when we got there, 500 dancing people greeted us. We decided to attempt that another day. It was however, a really neat park and sign. City hall was also beautiful!
We walked on and went through the "Your Move" park which has huge game pieces throughout it. Afterwards, we walked to Reeding Terminal Market and looked at all the food, people, and shops. It was an open market with tons of vendors selling food and items. Lots of culture within one place. I had a delicious smoothie to cool off, and then we headed back.
I hopped on my first Philly bus and went back to Court's apartment to rest and make evening plans.
For dinner, we met up with one of Courtney's nursing school friends, Susie (who is hilarious). We ate at Dock's Brewery and had really good pizza, however, there was no AC - so it was a bit steamy in there! We cooled off with some ice cream from a neat little shop called Scoop Deville's. Delish!
Day 2 -
We woke up EARLY and made plans for the day. Muffins and juice were the first items on the list. We stopped at this cool little coffee place called Saxby's and had a quick breakfast. We hopped on the bus and headed to the historical part of town. Long lines and tones of tourists greeted us at the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. I got to peek in the window and get a glimpse of the famous bell. Walking through this part of town was beautiful. It is full of rich history and beautiful streets.
One of the main things I HAD to do while in Philadelphia was try and authentic Philly cheese steak. Evidently, the only place to do this is either at Geno's or Pat's. I got mine at Geno's and Court headed over to Pat's and got one of theirs. It is very tricky to order these, because you want to sound like you belong and know what you're doing. Do you want one "whit" or "whit out" - onions that is. The two eateries are right across the street from one another and are evidently in constant competition over who has the BEST cheesesteak. We decided that in our humble, southern opinion, we preferred Geno's!!
We walked through Little Italy and saw the sights and culture. Tons of authentic cuisine and culture. Catching the bus, we rode over to the Univ. of Penn., where I was instantly smitten with all the Ben Franklin references. I have a little crush on him. There was also a replica of the "Love" sign! It was a beautiful campus.
We caught the underground trolley and rode back into the city. We made a couple stops and then went back for our AC'ed siesta at Courtney's place.
For dinner, Courtney wanted to take me to her favorite Mexican place. We had dinner and margaritas. It was a really good place and the waiters all knew Courtney! I spoke a lot of Spanish I didn't know I remembered and in turn also made friends with the waiter.
We hailed a cab (and I officially marked off all modes of city transportation) and beat the storm back to the apartment. We facetimed Leah and reminisced about old times - she even got to ride in the taxi with us!! It was an awesome day!!
Day 3 -
We slept in after a fun night and took our time getting ready for the day. We went out for Dunkin Donuts - my first (I am from the land of Krispe Kreme) donut. Pretty good. I approve. We then walked over to the art museum. It was such a gorgeous walk! There were beautiful trees and statues and of course some fountains - there are a ton in that city!!
In front of the museum was the famous "Rocky" statue and the steps leading up to the museum. The view from the city there is simply stunning! We went into the museum and walked through all the many halls. So many beautiful, historical paintings, rugs, statues, and collections of artifacts. Some of the pieces date BC! I loved the modern art and looking at pieces from my favorite artists: Monet, Picasso, and Van Gogh. Stunning. Simply stunning.
We left the museum and looked at some of the outside pieces. There is also a cool park in front of the museum. It had life size checker, chess, and twister boards, along with food trucks, music, and even a fire truck. We got an Italian Ice and rested a while.
We headed out and walked back through the city, stopping to take in some cool art (my favorite was the Holocaust statue). We went back to Love Park and actually got a pic! It wasn't nearly as crowded as it had been when we first went by there. We also went into the Macy's. It is a very old building and had a gorgeous organ in the middle of the store.
We headed back and walked through the city. I was enthralled by the grandness of the city. It's so big!!
We went back for our daily siesta and took a much needed nap.
We were refreshed and energized for dinner and went out to Devil's Alley. Good burger and awesome vibe. We walked to Court's favorite cookie place, Insomnia Cooke, and took our cookies back to the park to eat them. All was well until I noticed what I thought was a small squirrel...alas, it was a rat. My first sighting of a city rat...I thought my country mice were big! We quickly walked back to Courtney's and watched a movie.
Day 4 -
For my last full day in Philly, we debated over what to do and where to go. We started out by eating breakfast at a really cute, tasty, little place. The pancakes were delicious!
We decided on going exploring through the Ben Franklin Institute. Lots of things to look at and do within the building. Very hands on and science based. Several exhibits, pictures, demonstrations, and even a planetarium! We caught one of the shows and it was very entertaining...but being the old ladies we are...we might have fallen asleep through the last of it. Oh well!!
We stopped for lunch at The Shack - because I had to go back - and then back to Courtney's for a rest. We rested and then walked up to Barnes and Noble. It was three stories! Great store!
We went back to the apartments and waited and decided on dinner. We ended up going to a bar called "Mix". Good food. But then, oh but then...we went for dessert at Max Brenner's. It was so good! The restaurant itself is precious!! Lots of chocolate and treats! Best of all, the presentation of the desserts were a piece of art in themselves!
Tired, we headed back and went to bed before our early morning!
What an awesome trip! Already want to go back next summer and visit again! I can't thank Courtney enough for being my patient, knowledgeable, and dear hostess/tour guide! You are so awesome and I am so happy I was able to visit!!
