Next Stop: Philadelphia
July 12, 2009
Over the Independence Day weekend a friend and I drove 800+ miles round-trip to visit the city where America was founded, see the places where Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin used to hang out, and explore an urban place we hadn't yet been. This was my first road trip in years, and it reminded me how much I appreciate being able to fly when traveling. Nevertheless, as I wrote last week, as far as car commutes go, this was one of the least stressful I could imagine. In the spirit of reporting on my tour of urban places, here are a few more observations about Philadelphia.
Philly Like Bikes (I think)
Yes, we did have a car, but we parked it in a garage on Friday night and didn't retrieve it until it was time to leave on Sunday afternoon. We brought bicycles and found Philly to be a relatively easy city to maneuver, thanks mostly to the simple street grid and some decent bicycling infrastructure. Granted, we only rode around on Saturday and Sunday, and didn't get much of a chance to experience a lot of real traffic, but I imagine it is still very possible to ride around during the busy times. The great thing about having a street grid like Philadelphia's is that you can get to the same places on a bike as in a car, but some of the less trafficked streets that wouldn't be advantageous for cars to use are great for bikes.
Walk Philadelphia
I was surprised by the number of people out walking downtown on the weekend. Saturday foot traffic probably had something to do with the Independence Day events taking place throughout the city, but the number of people out on Sunday was encouraging; especially for me, coming from a place where downtown streets can sometimes be nearly abandoned in the middle of a weekday. I particularly like these signs placed throughout the city. Not only do they help give pedestrians directions to places they might want to go, but they also give an idea of how long it takes to walk there.
(my photo)
Where's the Pride?
On a number of occasions we told locals that we were visiting Philly for the weekend, and the typical response was "why"? The answer "to see the city and check out the holiday festivities" apparently wasn't enough. Locals wanted to know why we chose to visit Philadelphia when New York City and Washington DC and Boston are all nearby. I understand that the City of Brotherly Love probably often gets overlooked being sandwiched powerful cities directly to its north and south, but there certainly isn't nothing to see or do. As far as cities go, Philadelphia is still one of the country's biggest, and given its history, it has enough touristy stuff to keep Clark Griswald's family entertained for a few days. I don't think it's shocking that anyone would want to visit. It's too bad that some locals make visitors feel bad for doing so.
SEPTA Token Mystery
I only used Philly's public transportation system once, so I didn't get to see much of it. I did know that the cash fare was $2, but if I had a SEPTA token it would only cost $1.45. The challenge, I found, was finding a place that actually sold these tokens. When I asked my hotel's concierge, he said on a Saturday I would have to venture pretty far from the hotel to find them. When I made my way underground to the 34th street subway station, the attendant told me she didn't sell tokes at that particular station, I would have to pay cash, but I could buy them at some of the busier stations downtown.
Look, I am all for using tokens or swipe cards our touch cards or anything that gives people an incentive to speed up the boarding process and doesn't require riders to carry around exact change all of the time, but why where these tokens not more easily available to purchase? Would a token machine like something found in a video arcade not have been sufficient? These could have been placed at every station and throughout the city. Or maybe there is something important I am missing?
The Cheesesteak Economy
The best known cheesesteak places in Philly are, of course, Pat's and Geno's, on the south side of the city. The night before we visited the cheesesteak capital, we asked a bartender for a recommendation. His complaint was that these two places have become commercialized and touristy and they aren't the places to find the best-tasting cheesesteak. So when we finally made it down, I was surprised by the fact that most of the people in the line wrapping all the way around the building appeared to be locals. Despite our best efforts to blend in, my friend and I probably stuck out as out-of-towners thanks to our cameras and lack of Philly's baseball gear.
At $8 a steak ($12.50 for a steak, fries and a drink) the whole phenomenon raised a few questions in my mind. Is this really the best cheesesteak in the world? Are the crowds like this all the time? or did we just come at a busy time on a busy day? How profitable are these places? Why don't some cities have anything resembling this? How do these places contribute to the surrounding neighborhood? Anyone willing to shed some light on any of these questions will be greatly appreciated.
Philly Like Bikes (I think)
Yes, we did have a car, but we parked it in a garage on Friday night and didn't retrieve it until it was time to leave on Sunday afternoon. We brought bicycles and found Philly to be a relatively easy city to maneuver, thanks mostly to the simple street grid and some decent bicycling infrastructure. Granted, we only rode around on Saturday and Sunday, and didn't get much of a chance to experience a lot of real traffic, but I imagine it is still very possible to ride around during the busy times. The great thing about having a street grid like Philadelphia's is that you can get to the same places on a bike as in a car, but some of the less trafficked streets that wouldn't be advantageous for cars to use are great for bikes.
Walk Philadelphia
I was surprised by the number of people out walking downtown on the weekend. Saturday foot traffic probably had something to do with the Independence Day events taking place throughout the city, but the number of people out on Sunday was encouraging; especially for me, coming from a place where downtown streets can sometimes be nearly abandoned in the middle of a weekday. I particularly like these signs placed throughout the city. Not only do they help give pedestrians directions to places they might want to go, but they also give an idea of how long it takes to walk there.
(my photo)Where's the Pride?
On a number of occasions we told locals that we were visiting Philly for the weekend, and the typical response was "why"? The answer "to see the city and check out the holiday festivities" apparently wasn't enough. Locals wanted to know why we chose to visit Philadelphia when New York City and Washington DC and Boston are all nearby. I understand that the City of Brotherly Love probably often gets overlooked being sandwiched powerful cities directly to its north and south, but there certainly isn't nothing to see or do. As far as cities go, Philadelphia is still one of the country's biggest, and given its history, it has enough touristy stuff to keep Clark Griswald's family entertained for a few days. I don't think it's shocking that anyone would want to visit. It's too bad that some locals make visitors feel bad for doing so.
SEPTA Token Mystery
I only used Philly's public transportation system once, so I didn't get to see much of it. I did know that the cash fare was $2, but if I had a SEPTA token it would only cost $1.45. The challenge, I found, was finding a place that actually sold these tokens. When I asked my hotel's concierge, he said on a Saturday I would have to venture pretty far from the hotel to find them. When I made my way underground to the 34th street subway station, the attendant told me she didn't sell tokes at that particular station, I would have to pay cash, but I could buy them at some of the busier stations downtown.
(from Wikipedia)
The Cheesesteak Economy
The best known cheesesteak places in Philly are, of course, Pat's and Geno's, on the south side of the city. The night before we visited the cheesesteak capital, we asked a bartender for a recommendation. His complaint was that these two places have become commercialized and touristy and they aren't the places to find the best-tasting cheesesteak. So when we finally made it down, I was surprised by the fact that most of the people in the line wrapping all the way around the building appeared to be locals. Despite our best efforts to blend in, my friend and I probably stuck out as out-of-towners thanks to our cameras and lack of Philly's baseball gear.
(from Wikipedia)
Final Thoughts
The Independence Day festivities were fun. As far as fireworks go, plenty of locals claim that they are the best in the country. I don't have much basis for comparison, so I don't really know; but it seems like I've seen enough fireworks in my life that among the "best" displays, there isn't a whole lot of variation. Don't get me wrong though, it was a great show.
