Today: Brotherly love for everyone.
[tweetmeme source=”elizabethev” only_single=false]When our plane touched down in the land of the delta blues cheesesteaks and brotherly love, there were three things on my to do list:
- Find a ladies’ room
- Touch the Liberty Bell
- Run to the top of the steps, Rocky-style, at the Philadelphia Art Museum
One was easy, two was not allowed, and three was so fun that I did it twice. But I’ll save that for later.
By sheer coincidence my Healthy Living Summit roommate and partner in crime, Bridget, was not only the same flight as me , she was seated just across the aisle. After a 45 minute flight from Logan, we met Janetha at the baggage claim and tooted on over to our hotel. Driving through the city, I pointed at every single old building and beautiful mural, exclaiming “Well, that’s cute!” as we passed. I could immediately tell, this is my kind of city.
After ditching our luggage, Bridget and I set out on a Philly Nerd Extravaganza. Our first stop was the Reading Terminal Market, where we browsed through rows and rows of stalls that housed anything from lobsters and cookbooks to cupcakes and fresh produce. There was so much to see, smell and devour. Fellow Bostonians, we need to help make this public market thing happen. After wandering for a bit, we settled on an early lunch at By George.
And then we set off in the direction of the Liberty Bell. Ding! Thanks to Bridget’s expert navigation, we reached Independence National Park and hopped in line. We wandered through the exhibit hall, posed with Georgie, and touched a fake bell (the real deal is strictly you can look, but you can’t touch).
- Oopsies.
And then bam! There it was, in all its cracked glory.
We flocked across the street with our fellow American history nerds to Old City Hall, Independence Hall and Philosophical Hall. Philosophical Hall was home to Of Elephants & Roses, a rather interesting exhibit of art and artifacts, including a mastodon tooth and an illustrated book on elephant… um… mating. Later, we saw (with our own eyes) real, unsigned originals of the Constitution and the tomb of the unknown soldier. It was all very National Treasure.
I was quite impressed with all the ground we covered before heading back to the hotel– stopping first for Belgian beers at Monk’s Cafe and secondly for Pennsylvania Dutch pickles. Standard. While we were busy getting gussied up for the evening, the Reading Terminal Market was getting its own makeover as the site of the Healthy Living Summit cocktail party.
I had a great time catching up with Ali, Tina, Anne, Halley and Stephanie and meeting Ashley, Kristi, Heather and so many others. After such a full day, it seemed like I blinked (literally, see photo below) and it was time for bed.
- Nice one, Elizabeth.
I brotherly loved every minute of my first day in Philly.
Also On Tap for Today:
- Happy to be home with Nick and Clark 🙂
- Visiting Philly? Check out the Visitor Center on Twitter for great tips!
- On Tap for Today was nominated for an award at CBS Boston; I would so appreciate your vote!
If you could live during any period of history, which would it be?
Comments (7)
Halley
August 21, 2011 at 10:43 pm
Thank you for letting me crash your photo booth pics! 🙂 Hope to see you around the bean soon! I’ll be the wild lady out walking her cat.
klifesprinkles
August 21, 2011 at 10:58 pm
Love the photo booth pics! 🙂 It was great meeting you too!
Bridget
August 22, 2011 at 9:16 am
Hahah i’m sitting at my desk trying not to laugh out loud at the thought fo the elephant picture! Thank god I took it off my phone or I’d be looking at it right now! Haha this is a great recap…yay for beer and pickles! Must find pickle vendors in Boston…first we need some Amish people I guess
Emily @ A Cambridge Story
August 22, 2011 at 1:41 pm
Looks like a great event!! Got any good healthy living tips?! 🙂
Elizabeth
August 22, 2011 at 3:37 pm
Yes! I have a bunch of takeaways to share later today. 🙂 Hope you had a great weekend, E!
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