USA 2016 : 36 Hours in Philadelphia

Continuing our journey and leaving Washington behind us, we set off on our journey north to Philadelphia. As I mentioned before, we had decided to travel with Amtrak rather than go through the hassle of renting a car and then having to navigate the American highways, and of course the inner city traffic. Washington to Philadelphia was our first Amtrak experience and I must say it was very pleasant indeed.

Considering our North-East Coast adventure had taken a slightly historic spin, it was a no brainier to make Philadelphia our second stop – to see where the America that we all know started, and to learn more about the country’s history – little of which we are taught at school in the UK. This is probably because we are painted (with some justification) as the villains of the tale!

Whilst the grand total of 36 hours didn’t allow us to visit many of the city’s museums, we were able to see most of what Philadelphia has to offer – albeit at a rather swift pace.

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36 Hours in Philadelphia

Just an hour and a half after leaving Washington, we arrived in Philadelphia – the journey had taken us along the coastline of Chesapeake Bay, crossing vast expanses of water, and through the urban and industrial centre of Baltimore.

My immediate impression of Philadelphia was its modern city-like feel – there was definitely a more architecturally charged atmosphere compared to that of Washington and in that sense much more like New York. Its main street, Market Street, was lined by sleek glass-shelled skyscrapers towering over the busy streams of traffic.

After checking into our hotel – the Sonesta Downtown, which is conveniently located on the city centre’s main thoroughfare Market Street – and freshening up, we set out to make the most of the remaining hours of daylight.

On the first evening, we began by locating City Hall and also neighbouring Dulworth Park, before wandering along a variety of side streets, to eventually emerge at the ‘gates’ of Chinatown – said to be the third largest in the US! Our route took us through the oriental Friendship Gate which was gifted to Philadelphia by the Chinese city of Tianjin, and onwards through the slightly deserted Jewellery Quarter – perhaps not surprising as business hours were well and truly over for the day!

Eventually we emerged on S 6^th Street where we were confronted with the view of the lovely Independence Hall directly in front of our eyes. Naturally, we spent some time wandering around the nearby park before peeking through the window of the Liberty Bell Centre to catch a glimpse of the one and only bell itself.

At long last it was time to give into the demands of our rumbling stomachs and to find somewhere to eat. After quite a deal of searching we eventually found ourselves wandering down a little street which housed a handful of authentic looking restaurants. We didn’t spend too much time deciding which one to enter but opted for the Italian cuisine of La Viola on S 16th St – which was really very good and somewhere I would definitely recommend!

The following day, we were up early to meet with the lovely Ann from the Philadelphia Tourism Board. We breakfasted together in Gran Caffe L’Aquila, and then the three of us headed up to the heights of the One Liberty Observation Tower. Unfortunately, at this particular moment of time a heavy downpour of rain joined the party, but although a bit of a party-pooper we were still able to enjoy some great, albeit moody, views across the city.

Saying our farewells to Ann, my boyfriend and I pressed on with our day and made for the next set of city views, up the City Hall tower. This was a completely different experience to One Liberty – I can tell you that for sure!

The small (4 people max.), glass-panelled lift slowly but surely, if not a little shakily, transported us up through the various floors of the tower where we were able to view the wooden superstructure of the tower as well as the interior mechanisms of the 26 feet diameter clocks. The ride up to the observation deck also provided a glimpse of the seemingly dusty and abandoned interior spaces that make up the higher levels of what is still today the world’s largest masonry building. Eventually we arrived at the 22nd floor, just beneath the 37 foot bronze statue of William Penn, the founding-father of Philadelphia and the rest of Pennsylvania State. The observation deck is not at all big; hence why you have to book your time slot as only a few people can fit up there at a time, but it does offer wonderful 360 degree views across the city and surrounding region.

Once we had satisfied our need to see the city sky-line from upon high, we headed out of City Hall and spent some time meandering around the surrounding area. Philadelphia has in recent years become a centre for art and expression, with numerous works dotted across the city in the form of sculptures, statues, and street murals. A selection of the city’s most famous pieces are in the vicinity of City Hall including the ‘Clothespin Sculpture’ and the ‘LOVE’ Statue. We couldn’t resist taking a picture!

From here, we hopped aboard the sightseeing bus and slowly made our way around the city, ingesting the history and local knowledge passed onto us by our guides. We used the hop-on hop-off opportunities to visit the fascinating Eastern State Penitentiary; once the world’s most famous prison where it was believed that solitary confinement would inspire penitence, or true regret, in the hearts of prisoners. Nowadays however, the prison stands in ruins, with empty crumbling cellblocks, but still conveys an atmosphere of its original purpose, correction of those who broke the law, the isolation of the convicted and the senseless waste of human life, be that of the victim or perpetrator of those heinous crimes.

After a quick and traditional Philly lunch – none other but a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich – we headed across town, again by bus, towards southern Philadelphia where we spent some time admiring the gorgeous historic buildings along Pine Street, also known as Antique Row.

This was followed by us experiencing the uniqueness of Magic Gardens on South Street, on the verge of Philly’s edgy-and-alternative neighbourhood. If you’re looking for something different to do in the city, I would urge you to visit this mosaic-ed outdoor space, which was created by the visionary artist Zagar using a variety of non-traditional materials including bicycle wheels, coloured bottles, tiles, and thousands of glittering mirrors.

After South Street our next stop was in the ‘Old City’ where we stopped by Betsy Ross’ House (the lady who designed the original version of the US flag) and then strolled down Elfreth’s Alley, America’s oldest continuously inhabited residential street.

The remainder of the late afternoon was spent catching some sunshine on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, aka the ‘Rocky steps’, and of course snapping a picture or two with Rocky himself!

Evening was soon upon us, and the end of our time in Philly was fast approaching. An early morning the next day meant our evening was a quiet one, but before hopping into bed we managed one last walk around the block – passing the energetic buzz of the Rittenhouse Square restaurants on a Friday night.

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What did you think on my post on Philadelphia? Did I miss anything? I’m always eager to hear any local knowledge or past experiences from you guys, so do let me know in the comments below!