Fun in Philly

Last Friday Brian and I hauled our duffles and garment bags through midtown Manhattan to Penn Station. We were off for Lindsey and Brendan's wedding weekend in Philadelphia. I am so glad I decided to take the day off of work. It allowed us to have a relaxed morning, a day of sight seeing, and plenty of time to get ready before the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner that evening. On our way from our city to another, I read my chick lit of the week and listened to my Ipod as Brian looked out the train window pointing out abandoned cars and warehouses. After an hour and a half, we arrived at our hotel for the weekend. We were excited to take in our views from the balcony and some much needed Vitamin D.

After freshening up and noshing on some of the treats from our gift bag we received from the bride and groom upon checking in, we headed out to spend a few hours wandering around the city. We started off in Love Park. And really, what's not to love? 

From there we walked over to City Hall. We embarrassingly had to stop a man and ask him to confirm that the building we were standing in front of was in fact City Hall. But we were glad we stopped him, because he not only told us we were correct, but also explained that it is the largest City Hall in America. The structure was beautiful, with statues, carvings, marble, and granite every direction we turned. 

Next stop on our tour was Reading Terminal Market. This is my kind of place. The indoor market was full of restaurants with old-fashioned diner counters, greasy comfort foods, and enough coffee and baked goods to keep my mouth watering all afternoon. 

First, we ate lunch at Dutch Eating Place. I chowed down on chicken pot pie, which was more like a chicken noodle soup with homemade egg noodles, while Brian devoured fresh-cut french fries and a cheeseburger. 

Of course, after eating lunch, coffee and baked goods were a necessity. So, we stopped at Old City Coffee and got an instant caffeine buzz from a double espresso and an iced coffee. 

From there, we walked back to the Flying Monkey to get some sweet treats. Our picks were a Vegan chocolate chip cookie and a homemade Whoopie Pie. And it was the best damn Whoopie Pie I have ever eaten. 

From the market, we walked over to Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. We did not spend too much time there because Brian was planning to return the next day with my parents, but we did manage to sneak in a quick look at the bell before the museum closed for the day. 

It was really nice to get to spend the day walking around a city neither of us knew, in contrast to our weekends in Brian's hometown of Boston or our days in New York City. We were able to see a lot in an afternoon and had a great time being tourists!