I find it hard to believe that I hadn’t been to Philadelphia until this past weekend. It’s a wonderful city. And it’s easy to navigate many of the neighborhoods by foot. My cousin Norm, cousin-in-law Pat, and I stayed at Courtyard by Marriott at 21 N. Juniper Street. It was a good choice. We arrived in Philly on Friday evening and like all good tourists proceeded to lose our way to McCormick & Schmick’s where we had a dinner reservation. We had to ask for directions. We backtracked and there it was, so close to the Courtyard. There’s nothing like walking in the wrong direction when you’re looking for a place. We came upon Reading Terminal Market on our roundabout walk to McCormick & Schmick and made a mental note to go there for breakfast. Our dinner was very good. It’s a restaurant chain, but the service and food are always dependable.
www.marriott.com
www.mccormickschmick.com
www.readingterminalmarket.org
Reading Terminal Market is mostly about food. There’s a lot going on in that huge space. The Amish influence is there, the Farmers’ Market, many different kinds of eating establishments, crepe counter, bakeries, good coffee, chocolates, etc. We ate breakfast at the counter at an open-style coffee shop where people stood waiting for a seat the entire time. People from other neighorhoods in Philly shop here. So it must be good.
www.yelp.com/biz/reading-terminal-market-philadelphia
Philly is made up of many neighborhoods and one flows into the other quite nicely. We found a lovely park called RIttenhouse Square Park. Saturday was a beautiful day and people slowly gathered there. I’ll dispense with naming all the stores in that area. Suffice it to say that if you’re in the mood for shopping, you won’t be disappointed. Listing all the museums, cultural events, family activities, historical sites, waterfront district, etc. would take a long time. It’s fun to just arrive and decide at the moment the kind of day you wish to have. Philly is easy, pick a spot and go. Information on the city is everywhere. Wherever we were, when we stopped to look at our map, someone came over to ask whether we needed help. Philly is a friendly city.