What to do/see in Philadelphia?

[el jefe 302]

Scale the the facade of Citizens Bank, just make sure you have the core strength.

 

[cbj5259]

Make sure you wear a Cowboys jersey everywhere you go. People in philly like that.

 

[03cobra#694]

Note to self, never visit Philadelphia.

 

[ford fanatic]

Note to self, never visit Philadelphia.

This.

We drive an hour north to fly out of Philly when they have better rates, but that's as far as we go.

 

[cbj5259]

Note to self, never visit Philadelphia.

It's actually a pretty cool town. It gets a bad rap nationally though because people bring up shit from 30 years ago. It is a typical large city. It has some really impressive arts/cultural/dining/historical areas and it has some shitty ass ghettos where crime is high. You could say the same about any city of similar size.

 

[Planter]

Silence usually says more than words. Just sayin'.

Philly mint is where it is at. It is central to center city as is pretty much most of the Revolutionary War/ Independence sights. Leave the city and explore King of Prussia and Valley Forge.

no medical procedures going on. just a consult. The Revolutionary War/Independence stuff sounds killer.

Going to pick something up or drop something off?

Get a cheesesteak at one of those famous places. Damn good stuff.

neither! just a consult. that's all.

Be careful of where you are, especially at night, this is not a safe place to walk around in.

thanks for the heads up.

Stay in Center City and you can walk to almost everything. A lot of the historic stuff is all lumped together downtown around 6th and Market St (independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross House, the Constitution Center, etc.) You could spend the whole day in this area visiting historic sites. Additional places are Reading Terminal Market, South Street, the Philadelphia Art Museum, and the Franklin Institute.

The water front is also close by and there are some old ships to see there. If you take the train over to Camden you can tour the USS New Jersey battleship which is pretty cool.

Valley Forge is nice but it is about 45 minutes outside of the city.

As mentioned, don't walk anywhere at night. Even the nicer areas of the city are pretty dangerous at night. During the day you are fine though.

now we're talking. thanks! :beer:

Olympia Spanish American war cruisr is also there. http://www.phillyseaport.org/then-and-now

Honestly, It is worth the drive to Gettysburg to see the battlefield which is the best preserved of any Civil War one. It is 2hrs one way. So it is an all day event. 2 hrs out 2-4 hours battlefield, 2 hrs back.
I mean if Civil War rules out over Revolutionary War in your historical preference.

Dr's appt.? Best wishes with that.

awesome! I have always wanted to see Gettysburg. Definitely taking the Canon 7d and lenses with me.

Steve's Prince of Steaks....best in town. Geno's is decent as well as Tony Lukes too. Pats is crap.

Since you probably like cars (since this is a car forum) check out the Simeone Auto Museum. Some great historical race cars there. One of the 6 remaining 1964 Shelby Daytona coupes in the collection as well. South street is also pretty interesting to visit as well. There are a ton of great niche places to eat in Center City (some are very pricey so be forewarned). As was mentioned, if you are history buff there is plenty to see in center city (Independence mall, etc). If you get a chance to get out to the suburbs, Washingtons Crossing is only about 30 mins or so outside the city in Bucks County. Pretty much the entire area is chock full of significant historical places. As far as the city itself goes. Center City is very nice and safe. Don't venture into north or west philly though. They are the problem areas.

:beer: sounds good. Thanks for the warning on the bad areas.

This further cements my theory that in PA there is literally no one within a 50 mile radius of the city that knows what a cheesesteak is supposed to be. Same goes for Pizza. Steak & Cheese hoagie? LOL. Surprised you don't want pizza sauce on it instead. OP wants to eat Philly food, not some Scanton or coal region favorite. I bet you love banana peppers.

OP,

If you want to eat actual Philly food and not drive hours to some depressed town in PA; get pizza at Lorenzo's on South Street, a cheesesteak at Philips on W. Passyunk Ave, and either a roast beef or Italian pork sandwich at DiNick's in the Reading Terminal Market. Jim Steaks on South street is probably more tolerable for a non native, might want to try too. Don't get pizza sauce or lettuce tomato ect on it. People there do not eat it that way.

I can't eat philly cheesesteaks. my digestive system does not like them at all. I'd be on the toilet the entire weekend.

any good italian around?

 

[SolarYellow]

Seeing Ben Franklin's toilet/hole in the ground should always be high on the list.

 

[RedRocketMike]

This.

We drive an hour north to fly out of Philly when they have better rates, but that's as far as we go.

You may want to drive further, PHL is not in the city.

 

[RedRocketMike]

any good italian around?

http://www.lecastagne.com/

 

[jbs$]

Note to self, never visit Philadelphia.

W. C. Fields ( most here are to young to know who that is) has on his grave stone "better here than in Philadelphia".

 

[RedRocketMike]

It's actually a pretty cool town. It gets a bad rap nationally though because people bring up shit from 30 years ago. It is a typical large city. It has some really impressive arts/cultural/dining/historical areas and it has some shitty ass ghettos where crime is high. You could say the same about any city of similar size.

I always tell people that Philadelphia peaked in 1776. It's a cool place but it's not easy to just go, you need an itinerary or someone who really knows the area. The problem is the layout is poor and the nice to ghetto streets are too block to block. Meaning you can be in a real nice area and then suddenly you are not.

 

[Planter]

got a rental car for 2 days. hotel is booked. so I have some flexibility with where I can go now, since I will have wheels.

Definitely gonna try and squeeze in Gettysburg if possible. May get up REAL early Sunday morning, get out there early, get the sunrise photos on the battlefield, see the rest, then head back and then hit the rest of the city up in the afternoon.

there will definitely be some photography posted in the Pics and Vids section after I get back from the trip. Will probably have a few hours to kill on Monday after my consult is over with too.

 

[SID297]

Go to this bar, try the rum ham:

 

[Planter]

pic is too small Sid, can't read what it is.

 

[venom_inc]

Ask yourself why it is famous. Is it for the food or the way in which you order and perhaps the "ambiance" surrounding both food establishments?

I'd agree that the ambiance and experience is why people tend to go to Pat's and Geno's. It's still a good steak though lol.

 

[jbs$]

got a rental car for 2 days. hotel is booked. so I have some flexibility with where I can go now, since I will have wheels.

Definitely gonna try and squeeze in Gettysburg if possible. May get up REAL early Sunday morning, get out there early, get the sunrise photos on the battlefield, see the rest, then head back and then hit the rest of the city up in the afternoon.

there will definitely be some photography posted in the Pics and Vids section after I get back from the trip. Will probably have a few hours to kill on Monday after my consult is over with too.

If you do this, read up on what 10's of thousands of men did over four hot days in early July, 1863. Also, envision the time and the difficulty that they all went through, not only the prolong battle, just the process of being there. Walking the Gettysburg battle ground is close to a Religious experience.

 

[Felix C]

At Gettysburg you can drive around the lines, there are observation towers you can climb and have an outstanding aerial view of the battlefield. The drive-around takes you behind Union lines behind Round Top/Little Round Top and you will see numerous monuments placed in the 1880s or so by vets to remember their fallen comrades.You can park and walk out to Devil's Den. etc. I did it on a misty tornado warning day and it seemed the dead had come up from the ground. Sobering experience.

 

[Planter]

sounds awesome! cant wait to text pics to my dad from there. he will be jealous!

 

[SID297]

pic is too small Sid, can't read what it is.

Paddy's Pub

 

[Blackness03]

All I know is that the famous place was a lot better then subway. I guess that could be like coming here and calling smithfields good bbq though.