Philly on the Fourth

Happy Independence Day! So what if it's almost August?  I'm getting used to posting about events three weeks after the fact- weddings, holidays, trips- so why not this, too?  Now that I'm unemployed, I'll have much more time to post, hopefully in a more timely manner.  But let's start by getting caught up.  For the Fourth of July weekend I ventured to the city of brotherly love with several of my New York friends, most of whom had never set foot inside the city.  Let's get something straight- I love Philly.  Even with all of it's sketchdom and complete and utter disarray in so many ways.  The restaurants, the cheesesteaks, the history, the boat houses, the memories, the everything.  I embrace it all.  Even the homeless people on every corner.  And the fact that in any given two block radius you are more than likely able to step from the richest neighborhoods to the poorest.   So, you can imagine my joy at sharing this wonderful city with my wonderful friends. 

We packed a lot into 3 days.  A lot a lot.  We ate cheesesteaks, drank Mad4Mex margaritas, visited the Constitution Center, saw fireworks (in the rain), listened to John Legend prior to said fireworks (also in the rain), ate at the Tastes of Philly festival (yep, in the rain), ate at the All-You-Can-Eat Ice Cream Festival (in the post-rain), sat for several hours and watched the Philly natives, most of whom are obese, leaving said food festivals, saw the Phillies lose to the Mets, walked down South Street, ate Rita's Water Ice, visited my dear friends Preethi and Dan, saw a lot of architecture courtesy of Rob's insistence that we be better educated on great buildings, laughed, saw more obese people, took turns singing lullabies before we went to sleep (all 5 of us in one room- really cozy), and learned a little bit more about one another as we traveled together.  Success.

 

We tried both Pat's AND Geno's.  Yes, it's true.

The Button at Penn.

No, this is not the Amazon Rainforest.  This is a bush in which Hayley lost Rob's frisbee.  This is also their dramatic exit from said bush after it was found.

Please meet my friend Rob, the pimp.

Three of my favorite guys at the Phillies game.