The City of Brotherly Love

Independence Day. What better place to spend it than the birthplace of our nation's Constitution? With my first Saturday off in a long time, I hopped on Mega Bus ($15 round trip!) and arrived in Philadelphia for a crazy weekend.

The first thing I noticed about the difference between Philadelphia and New York is the simplicity. Here is a New York subway map (Excluding upper Manhattan, The Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn):



And here is a Philly subway map:



Needless to say, the city is pretty small. I met Joe and Will, friends of mine from Penn State, in south Philadelphia. They have a 3 floor apartment with a studio in the basement. We walked next door to their neighbors' BBQ and I discovered that they were from Dallas, PA. It's a small world in Philly. South Philadelphia is sort of like the Bed-Stuy of Philly. Rent is cheap, it's a bit shady (almost got hit with some fireworks while walking), and there are some really cool up-and-coming areas.

I made my way to West Philadelphia, the home of Drexel and Penn campuses. My friend Nira and I had brunch outdoors at the Marathon Grill and I made my way into center city.

Spent the day with my friend Jess. Ate dinner at the Banana Leaf, an amazing (and quick!) Malaysian restaurant on Arch Street. Then we made our way to the Art Museum for a free Sheryl Crow concert and some pretty alright fireworks.



The next day I met my parents for the Phillies-Mets game. On a hot streak, the Phillies managed to shut them out 2-0. I saw two homeruns from Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley. Great game.








After the game, we walked from South Philly all the way to a bar in West Philly (an hour walk) called Fiume. It was an amazing, quiet bar with a bit of live music and an Ethiopian restaurant downstairs. We hung out in the park nearby for a bit before I left.

All in all, I think Philly changed my whole opinion on living in New York. I felt very slowed down (despite not working) and a lot closer to the people there. Maybe it's because I really don't have a lot of close friends left in New York. Maybe I'm just getting antsy again. I saw a job opportunity for an internship in Audio Engineering at NPR this fall. I'd have to move to Washington D.C., but maybe it would be for the best. I need something to concentrate my energy on anyway.

I also recently got a new digital camera, so from this point on, every picture on this blog (for the most part) will be taken by me. Since I've been linked to Brooklyn Vegan, I feel like I should be semi-professional.