Although the main reason for visiting this city was the course that I was attending, I was really looking forward to going to this city.
CBT course at the Beck Institute
If you have read my first post about the USA trip, then you probably know that the reason why I went to the USA in the first place was because I signed up for a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) course for Anxiety. I have a master’s in clinical psychology, but I am still waiting for my psychologist license in Norway, and the process really takes forever. Therefore, I thought that while waiting, it would be great to attend some courses that can help me in my future career and combine it with some long-term traveling while I still can. The CBT course was at the Beck Institute, and the last day of the course was going to be held by Aaron T Beck himself. For those of you who do not know; he is 98 years old and is actually one of the founders of CBT! I found it very hard to go back to “school” after being off since July, and after this amazing non stressful month in the USA of just having fun and having no obligations. However, I had been looking very much forward to this course.
I am not going to write about the course here, because it is not what my blog is about. I prefer writing about Philadelphia as a city, and if you have any questions about the course, don’t hesitate to contact me. I can just say that it was absolutely worth attending it.
Arriving in Philadelphia
I arrived on Sunday from Philadelphia. My plan was actually to stop by in Baltimore just to visit the city for a couple of hours to see the city from “The Wire”. In the end, I decided not to, and I am happy about that decision, because I would have arrived very late at night otherwise. The bus from Washington DC was on time, but getting around in Philadelphia was more complicated than I had imagined, and it was not that easy to get from where the bus stop to my Airbnb by public transportation (subway and bus). First, I could not pay for the subway ticket with my credit card, then my cash was not accepted. In the end I managed to buy it somehow, but then all of the sudden the subway to where I was going did no longer go and everything was very unclear, so I ended up taking an Uber anyway.
Airbnb in Philadelphia
I booked the Airbnb in Philadelphia many months before going, and I was surprised about how cheap the Airbnbs in Philadelphia are compared to in the other cities! I was happy to find an Airbnb close to the Beck Institute, because the hotels in the area were very expensive, even with the discount that we were given through the Beck Institute. Two weeks before my arrival, my Airbnb host contacted me telling me that she had changed her address. Luckily, the new address was in the same area, so in the end it made no difference.
To my surprise, the new address was in a very nice neighbourhood, and the house… it was HUGE! Never in my life have I been inside a house that big. It reminded me of one of those hunted house movies where the house is so big that you can get lost in it. And that is how it felt too! A very big, old house, made of bricks, with one of those huge staircases once you enter. The sister of the host met me when I arrived, because the host herself was on vacation. I was told there would be other guests staying in this house, but I saw no one on the first day, and once it got dark, it somehow became really scary. I love horror movies, but I remember at that point I really wished I had never watched any horror movies in my past. I stayed in a small room with a closet right in front of my bed (you know those closets that are not really closets but more like a tiny room?). I was just waiting for The Grudge to peak out of the closet. I also tried avoiding going to the bathroom, because it required going up the stairs to the third floor in the dark. Oh, did I mentioned there was a mouse in my room? At least I hope it was a mouse and not a rat. Luckily, I am not afraid of those, but still. Regardless of all this, it was really a cool house and definitely an interesting experience! The whole neighbourhood became very dark after sunset so I ended up locking myself inside and ordering a pizza (of course with a cheese stuffed crust!).
The next day, things got better. It was no longer as scary. Before going to the course, I made myself breakfast in the kitchen, and I finally met somebody staying in the house! It made me feel much better when I knew there were other people staying here and they were all very nice. In fact, they were long time renters from Philadelphia, so the also gave me a lot of local advice about the city.
Center City
The area were I was staying was quite a long drive from Center City, but it did not stop me from going there everyday after the course. I could not imagine coming back from Philadelphia without exploring the Centre! I always took the bus to Center City but returned by Uber, because I was advised not to take the bus after dark in Philadelphia. I was told that one should not walk around in Philadelphia in general, although the Centre City is actually supposed to be safe. I must still admit that I never felt unsafe here. The only thing that was a bit bothersome was the large amount of beggars following me. I had to be careful who I made eye contact and smiled to. I tried to help as many people as possible, but of course, I cannot help everyone. I think this issue here was even bigger than at Venice beach, at least regarding the begging.
Just like in the other cities, I did a lot of walking. I wanted to do as much as possible on foot, and it is definitely possible in this city. I was told by many people that Philadelphia is a cool city, and it sure was! I had no idea that Philadelphia was the first capital city of the USA and that it had so much history! The only downside was that I could never be Center City before 5-6 PM, and many attractions, such as the Liberty Bell were already closed by then. Luckily, I could still see it through the window. To me, it was just an experience in it self to walk around this city. Again, the architecture here is completely different than in other parts of USA. The buildings (except for the skyscrapers) are very European like, and reminded me a bit of those in England or the Netherlands. There were some really cute hidden side streets that I randomly entered and I loved how cute these were. There were also some beautiful parks throughout the city.
Rooftop Bars
I was a little disappointed about the rooftop bars in Philadelphia. I went to a couple of rooftop bars, and they all had no (or very limited) view! apparently, that is the case in the whole Philadelphia because of safety reasons: you either cannot sit too close to the “edge” or there are tall walls covering the view. That was kind of disappointing, but the bars were fun regardless. Maybe it will be better once the W opens! Regardless of the lack of view, I specifically enjoyed both rooftop bars. For example, the Attico Rooftop bar had an amazing happy hour! You have to stand up to see the view, but when you do, the view is amazing. The other rooftop bar I enjoyed was the Stratus Rooftop bar at the Hotel Monaco. I saw no view, but I really liked how classy this place is, and the bartenders were extremely friendly and gave me lots of recommendations about the city.
Attico 
Attico 
Attico 
Attico 
Stratus
South Street
I read online that the South Street is the place to go in Philadelphia, so this was the first place I headed to after having my drink at the rooftop bar. It did, however, not make the best impression on me. There were some bars and restaurants, but they looked all empty and the shops were already closed. Maybe it would be different if I would go there during the weekend or at night. Later, I found out that South Street is a very long street, so I might have missed the best part of it! I will definitely have to give this street another chance if I come back to Philadelphia.
Live music at Warm Daddy’s
After the course on the second day, I went back home, changed and went to a place called Warm Daddy’s. One of the long term-renters staying at my Airbnb recommended me this place and told me they have great food and good quality live music. This was one of the highlights of my trip! They served amazing soul food, and the singer was amazing! Sometimes I really wonder why such great artists are not already world famous! I met so many amazing people here and I really had the time of my life. If I ever come back to Philadelphia, this will definitely be the place I will be going back to! The food and drinks were surprisingly pretty cheap; I actually think the wine was the cheapest wine that I have had on my entire trip! And still, I did not even pay a penny for it, my bill was covered by the new friends that I made! This had already happened many times on this trip. There really are so many hospitable and friendly people in the USA!
Midtown Village
On the third (and last) day, I first went to the Midtown Village. I actually liked this neighbourhood better than many of the other ones that I had visited. It was full of people. I can imagine that this is a more expensive area though, and it looks quite upscale. There were tons of bars and restaurants in this area with both indoor and outside seating and the whole neighbourhood was very vibrant. I was walking around in circles on the 13th street trying to pick the best bar/restaurant. In the end I ended up going to El Vez, because they do not do reservations, so I would not have to stand in line! That is how crowded it was everywhere on a Wednesday. I was just in time for Happy Hour, and had a drink and some nachos. El Vez is a fun restaurant with some pretty interesting interior such as a motorcycle on top of the bar. The food was also good but the size of the portion was much bigger than expected! My plan was to go to Chinatown to have a snack and then to check out the Reading Terminal Market, but I enjoyed El Vez and Midtown Village so much, that I stayed there longer than I had planned. Besides, I was too full after the nachos to eat something in Chinatown.
Reading Terminal Market
I quickly walked through Chinatown, which was very close to the Reading Terminal Market, but as already mentioned, I did not eat anything there. I decided to hurry up to the Reading Terminal market, which was closing soon. I think the Reading Terminal Market was indeed worth visiting, especially for foodies like me. It is not only a market which sells food like raw seafood, meats and vegetables but there are also all kinds of streetfood stalls. Like I said, I was too full to eat a proper meal, so I just had a few really nice oysters. Just keep in mind that the food stalls do not sell alcohol. You will need to go to the bar, which is also inside the market and bring the alcohol with you to whichever stall you want to eat at.
Spruce Street Harbour Park
I was advised by an Uber driver to go to Spruce Street Harbour where I could take some beautiful photos of the bridge to New Jersey. I was not sure whether to come here or not, because the only thing I expected was a nice view of the New Jersey bridge. To my surprise, there was so much more here! It was simply beautiful! Basically, there was a boardwalk by the water with lots of attractions. The park was lighten up in many colors; there were hammocks hanging everywhere where people were relaxing, floating restaurant, snackbars, and live music was heard from everywhere. It really is a place worth visiting while in Philadelphia. I am so glad I decided to come here in the end!
Elfreth’s Alley
After the visiting the Spruce Street Harbour Park, I walked to the Elfreth’s Alley. It was not too far away, only like a 10 minutes walk. It is a very short street, but a very beautiful street indeed, which takes you to a different century and a European city. There were also horse carriages taking people around, so it definitely had a special charm.
Philly Cheesesteak
The last thing on my agenda was to eat a Philly Cheesesteak! To be honest, that was the only thing I knew about Philadelphia before coming, so it definitely was a must. I went to a place called Sonny’s cheesesteak, which I read serves the best authentic cheesesteaks in town. It is located in old Philadelphia, another cool area close to the harbour! The Cheesesteak did definitely not disappoint!
Eating the Philly Steak was the end of my Philadelphia adventure. After that, I took an uber back to my Airbnb. Once again, if it was not for the course, Philadelphia would probably not have been on my list. However, I am extremely happy that I came to this city. Again, this city is completely different than all the other cities I visited. The next adventure was now awaiting me: Miami beach! Not only was I looking forward to it because it is Miami, but also because I was going to meet my mom there who was flying in tonight!
#Philadelphia#Pennsylvania#Warmdaddies#Beckinstitute#PhillyCheesesteak#Southstreet#13thstreet#Elvez#ElvezPhiladelphia#Cheesesteak#livemusic#livemusicphiladelphia#rooftopbars#Sprucestreetharbourpark#bridgetonewjersey#elfrethsalley#midtownvillage#readingterminalmarket#airbnb#cbt#cognitivebeahvioraltherapy#downtownphiladelphia
Anyah Mroz 