Philadelphia Summary #1

As Sunday, April 5, 2008 was approaching, my group, consisting of Dennis Briggs, Sean Pankiewicz, and me, planned our trip to downtown Philadelphia in order to maximize our experience. After getting dropped off at City Hall, we proposed to see the Masonic Temple and afterwards walk towards Race Street and visit Chinatown. From Chinatown, we would proceed east until we reached the subway station at Chinatown. Taking the subway from China town down to Lombard-South, which is in the southwest corner of Philadelphia, we would arrive at the end of South Street. Once again walking towards the east on South Street, first we would go to the oldest African American church, then Jim’s Cheesesteaks. After satiating our craving for cheesesteaks, we were going to walk north towards Old City, where the oldest residential street in America is, and afterwards head towards our ending point, the Philadelphia Vietnam Vets Memorial.

In actuality, the trip differed from our original plans, except for the starting and ending points. We had a cold, rainy day to start off our trip. After getting off the bus and walking towards the Masonic Temple, we discovered that the Masonic Temple was under construction and was closed off from the public. What a great way to start off the day! But as we walked towards Chinatown, the adventure seemed to be setting off. Turning the corner, we entered Angel Face Spa Salon, which was holdings its opening day. We witnessed a Chinese lion dance outside the store and food, such as whole roasted pig, inside. Then we headed towards the Chinatown subway station, but since we couldn’t find it, we continued to walk ahead, until we reached the parkway and decided to walk in the southern direction. We continued until we reached the National Constitutional Center and entered the Philadelphia Visitor Center. Inside, I asked for directions to the nearest subway, which would take us to the Lombard-South station. After finding the subway and maneuvering ourselves down to the Lombard-South station, we got off and proceeded down South Street. South Street was my favorite part of the entire trip because here I felt I truly witnessed downtown Philadelphian flavor; this street depicted what it means to be from Philly. I walked past an art garden and a mosaic garden; art and music are greatly valued by the residents. We finally reached the first African American church called Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church; all the proud church members felt it necessary to continually point out that the piece of land that the church rests on is the oldest piece of land in America continually owned by blacks. My group and I walked the museum downstairs, and I talked with Susan Leath, who was the Reverend’s wife. After the museum, we reached Jim’s Cheesesteaks; the line was so long that it extended to around the corner of the restaurant. The smell of delicious cheesesteaks permeated the entire block. After waiting half an hour in line, I finally ordered the Cheesesteak Whiz, which seemed to be the most popular choice. I talked to one of the servers Tony Ryder, and he seemed very content with the flow of business and working with cheesesteaks. At Jim’s, we met up with Bridget Lang, Andre Ford, and Emily Borden; from here on, we walked around with their group. The weather around this time seemed to plunge about five degrees, and I was frozen to the core. Because we were all so cold, we decided to end our journey and head towards the Vietnam Memorial. Since we were an hour and a half early, we sought shelter in the Hyatt hotel and hung out in the lobby with the remaining time. After an hour and a half, all of us decided to walk towards the memorial, when we saw Mr. Clements and the bus driving by. When all the students boarded the bus, I thought our trip to Philadelphia had concluded, but as we were driving out, I witnessed a huge conflagration in the Camden area. Smoke permeated the air, changing the sky from a light blue to a light gray. I truly enjoyed this Philadelphia trip because I was able to explore a city in a way I have never before, while bonding with my classmates as well.