Today was pretty fantastic, and as a result I decided I really like Philly. First, I really like the buildings. The architecture downtown is great, and north of downtown (the only other place we were today) is also pretty awesome. There's a lot of old, run-down brick buildings, many of which are abandoned. But at the same time it's gentrifying and there are some really great looking places. I'm a fan.
I also really enjoyed what we ate and did. We went to Reading Street Market for lunch, something every single person who gave me recommendations for Philly told me I had to do. And they were all right. It's essentially a food court, but with lots of famous stalls, and also lots of Amish people, and a bit of fresh produce and cheese and meat. We're actually planning to go back in the morning for an Amish breakfast, because as it turns out our hotel is like 3 blocks away.
After that we started walking north to visit the Rodeph Shalom Synagogue. It's the oldest synagogue in Philly and one of the oldest in the US. We got a little tour from a nice, young Jewish lady, and I have to say it is quite impressive. You walk into the chapel and it's just like being back in a big synagogue in Europe. There's a massive domed ceiling, which you actually wouldn't know is there from the outside, and the whole place is hand painted in really intricate, beautiful designs. It's super impressive to see how much space is inside, considering it does not look that big from the outside. And also that there's a synagogue like that here, cause I've never seen one like that in the US.
After that, the goal was to walk over to the Philadelphia Art Museum to see the Rocky Steps and a couple museums, but we got sidetracked by the Eastern State Penitentiary. It's the oldest penitentiary in the US, because before that they just had these sort of holding centers for criminals. The idea behind the penitentiary was to give inmates a chance at penitence through silent, solitary reflection. So basically, it was a prison for only solitary confinement. But each guy had his own little outdoor space and a pretty sizable cell. This was back when it opened in the early 1900s, but then it slowly became like a regular prison, as the population grew and they had to reuse the space for new cells and start giving people cell mates. The place was open and in use until 1971, at which point it was abandoned, and then reopened like 30 years later as a tourist attraction. Most of it was kept in a state of disrepair, which makes it not only super awesome, but also super creepy. Like really fucking creepy. There were definitely some areas I went into (specifically the solitary confinement cells behind the greenhouse) where I just wanted to leave. I think it was probably the creepiest place I've ever been in my life. And they actually do a Halloween horror nights thing where people jump out at you. I do not want to do that. Ever. But I do want to go back and visit again cause I loved that place.
And last was a fancy dinner at Abe Fisher. It's a restaurant my friend recommended, where they've taken traditional Jewish cuisine and made it all modern and fancy. Things like duck blintzes with foie gras. It was good stuff. And my dad had a chat with the GM towards the end, an Israeli guy, and he managed to get us a booking at Zahav tomorrow night, which is an Israeli restaurant from the same owner, and one of Philly's hottest restaurants. So I'm excited for that.
As for music today, it's a song I listened to the other day, recommended to a friend, and heard tonight at Abe Fisher. It is not a new song, it is actually like 5 years old. It's off of Contra, Vampire Weekend's sophomore album (and only good one in my opinion. Actually, it's a fantastic album, but generally I don't get the hype for this band. I'm not a huge fan). I randomly put it on the other day while packing after not having listened to it in forever, and it is still super good. And I think my favorite song on it is Giving Up The Gun, although there are a lot of great ones.
I also really enjoyed what we ate and did. We went to Reading Street Market for lunch, something every single person who gave me recommendations for Philly told me I had to do. And they were all right. It's essentially a food court, but with lots of famous stalls, and also lots of Amish people, and a bit of fresh produce and cheese and meat. We're actually planning to go back in the morning for an Amish breakfast, because as it turns out our hotel is like 3 blocks away.
After that we started walking north to visit the Rodeph Shalom Synagogue. It's the oldest synagogue in Philly and one of the oldest in the US. We got a little tour from a nice, young Jewish lady, and I have to say it is quite impressive. You walk into the chapel and it's just like being back in a big synagogue in Europe. There's a massive domed ceiling, which you actually wouldn't know is there from the outside, and the whole place is hand painted in really intricate, beautiful designs. It's super impressive to see how much space is inside, considering it does not look that big from the outside. And also that there's a synagogue like that here, cause I've never seen one like that in the US.
After that, the goal was to walk over to the Philadelphia Art Museum to see the Rocky Steps and a couple museums, but we got sidetracked by the Eastern State Penitentiary. It's the oldest penitentiary in the US, because before that they just had these sort of holding centers for criminals. The idea behind the penitentiary was to give inmates a chance at penitence through silent, solitary reflection. So basically, it was a prison for only solitary confinement. But each guy had his own little outdoor space and a pretty sizable cell. This was back when it opened in the early 1900s, but then it slowly became like a regular prison, as the population grew and they had to reuse the space for new cells and start giving people cell mates. The place was open and in use until 1971, at which point it was abandoned, and then reopened like 30 years later as a tourist attraction. Most of it was kept in a state of disrepair, which makes it not only super awesome, but also super creepy. Like really fucking creepy. There were definitely some areas I went into (specifically the solitary confinement cells behind the greenhouse) where I just wanted to leave. I think it was probably the creepiest place I've ever been in my life. And they actually do a Halloween horror nights thing where people jump out at you. I do not want to do that. Ever. But I do want to go back and visit again cause I loved that place.
And last was a fancy dinner at Abe Fisher. It's a restaurant my friend recommended, where they've taken traditional Jewish cuisine and made it all modern and fancy. Things like duck blintzes with foie gras. It was good stuff. And my dad had a chat with the GM towards the end, an Israeli guy, and he managed to get us a booking at Zahav tomorrow night, which is an Israeli restaurant from the same owner, and one of Philly's hottest restaurants. So I'm excited for that.
As for music today, it's a song I listened to the other day, recommended to a friend, and heard tonight at Abe Fisher. It is not a new song, it is actually like 5 years old. It's off of Contra, Vampire Weekend's sophomore album (and only good one in my opinion. Actually, it's a fantastic album, but generally I don't get the hype for this band. I'm not a huge fan). I randomly put it on the other day while packing after not having listened to it in forever, and it is still super good. And I think my favorite song on it is Giving Up The Gun, although there are a lot of great ones.
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