"Philadelphia" a Philadelphia Travel Page by asturnut

Philadelphia is my birthplace. My family has a long connection with the city and I love it! I could never live there, but I am so glad that I live within driving distance and can enjoy this glorious city as often as I wish.

Like most cities, Philly is a city of many faces. It has many neighborhoods with different personalities. Olde City located in the heart of the city, is a charming and historic place with gorgeous brick buildings and tree lined streets. University City, too is lined with historic homes and is perpetually teeming with the activity generated by the fine schools in the neighborhood. Center city is sleek and sophisticated with many fine places to shop and dine. Chinatown, which is also in the heart of the city is a fun place to wander, shop and eat! My favorite part of the city, (home of the Italian Market), is South Philly which still is largely unchanged from days gone by. The corner bakery, restaurant and bar are still a fixture and it feels less like a city and more like a neighborhood in anywhere USA.

Philadelphia has been called the City of Brotherly Love despite the fact Philadelphians are generally brash and no-nonsense (myself included.) But I think that the city deserves this name because a host of people from different religious, ethnic/racial and sexual persuasions live in Philly in harmony. (Yes the city has violent crime like any city, but they are less frequently hate-crimes and more the result greed and depravity.) Large numbers of Lebanese, African-American, Vietnamese, Italian, Chinese, Haitian, Irish, Thai, Jewish, Japanese, Puerto Rican, Anglo-American, Greek, Mexican, and Filipinos all call Philadelphia home. What a wonderful place! This makes Philly an especially good place to visit if you like food. Yum.

Philadelphia is a city with a rich history. I won't get into the a history lesson, but most people don't realize that Philadelphia was our nation's first capital. There are many national historical sites you must see when you come to the city. Some people say they are tourist traps- I say they're our heritage.

Because Philadelphia is so rich in history, it has some really beautiful old churches and buildings (as do many cities on the eastern corridor of the US.) You could easily spend days roaming the streets just checking out the beautiful architecture of old churches and buildings.

Philadelphia also has a wonderful-night life. To be honest, it's not as good as New York City's nightlife because the city shuts down too early; but Philadelphia has more than it's share of outstanding restaurants, clubs and concert venues. It has something for everyone, whether you be old or young, gay or straight, single or with a family in tow.

Liberty Bell; Independence Hall; Olde City (historic district); Philadelphia Orchestra; Philadelphia Zoo; Schulykill River skulling races; Philadelphia Art Museum; and shopping downtown at the Gallery, Reading Terminal Market, Italian Market, Chinatown and South Street. See specific tips for more information.

Also, two events not to miss are the Mummer's Parade and The Flower Show. Do a search on the web and you'll see why...

The best place to get info about Philadelphia, especially as a starting place for historic sites and museums on the web is the Independence Vistor Center online or at in person at the Visitor Center. For more information call 215-965-7676 or
800-537-7676. Open daily from 8:30 am-5:00 pm

Another place to get some info is the official Philadelphia website.