PHILADELPHIA: Touristang Pobre "Suroy-suroy" at Philadelphia

I woke up early that day to prepare myself for our long ride to Philadelphia.  This is my second time to visit Philly as what most Americans would call Philadelphia.  But I am excited to go because I know I will be visiting the new tourist spots which I have not seen before.
Travel time to Philly is approximately one hour and a half, depending on the condition of the traffic on the road.  We did not experience heavy traffic because by consulting the GPS, we can avoid the traffic jam, so to speak.

Since my two grandchildren were with us and we want the kids to enjoy the day, we took them to the Please Touch Children's Museum.  Since there is no one to ask, I assume that the name Please Touch, implies that children will literally touch all the exhibits, play with them and understand what these things are all about.
For example, there is a grocery shop called Shop Rite.  Children will push the cart and move around to pick their groceries, put in the cart and bring them to the cash register.  After the pretend grocery shopping, the kids will, of course, return the groceries to where they took them.  There are canned goods, fruits, vegetables, and others. There is also a hospital and dental clinic where children can pretend as doctors or patients or parents with their kids visiting the doctors.  There is a burger and coffee shop, bus and bus stop, train, car center and car repair, Alice in Wonderland, the water workshop, musical instruments, carousel, among others.  A  room with a big model of the location of Centennial Exhibition is found on the ground floor.

In May 1786, this building was the site of the Centennial Exhibition participated in by several countries from around the world.  This exhibition was held to commemorate the 100 years anniversary of the U.S. Independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776.  We spent the rest of the day in the museum since there is a food court there too.

Philadelphia is one of the oldest cities in the United States in fact it is the capital of the U.S. until 1799.  Being the capital of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Philly is the center of commerce, trade, culture and the arts. This role has a great influence on how Philadelphia should be planned. Its urban planning came in advance compared to other cities.  Infrastructures like roads, bridges, railroad systems were planned worthy of its position as the U.S. Capital.  Housing and community uses reflected an era of great European and English influence.  This is how I assess Philly as I moved around.

Philadelphia has grown between two rivers the Schuylkill and the Delaware rivers.  Just like Adelaide in South Australia that was built between two river systems.  I visited Adelaide in 2000 and Philadelphia in 2012 and this year 2014.

Other than R & R, there are many other things to do while in Philadelphia.

This building was the main site of the Centennial International Exhibition to celebrate the 100 years anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence from Great Britain. 

The following are some of the things to see in Philadelphia.

1. The Reading Terminal Market
2. China Town
3. Philadelphia City Hall
4. The Love Park a.k.a. JFK Plaza
5. The Pennsylvania Train or Railway Terminal
6. The Independence Hall
7. The Liberty Bell Center
8. Benjamin Franklin Park
9. Fairmount Park and the Schuylkill River, Boat House Row and Dam
10. The Philadelphia Museum of Art
11. Christ Church
12. The University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University
13. The Libraries and Children Playground
14. Please Touch Children's Museum, and many others.

There are a number of restaurants that offer fine dining experience.  Other than what your hotel may offer, bars and restaurants in Philly offers American, European, Mexican, Asian, and other international food.  Since, I am traveling on a tight budget, I had my meals purchased from one of the restaurants inside Reading Terminal Market.  There is also a very tasting ice cream that is sold by an ice cream parlor just before you go out of the market.  Philly's Cheesesteak Burger is very popular among tourists like me. 

Among those famous Philadelphia's Burgers are 1) The Rouge at 105 S 18th Street, Philadelphia PA 19103 2)  Village Whiskey, 118 S 20th Street, Philadelphia PA 19103   3) Grace Tavern at 2229 Gray's Ferry Avenue; Philadelphia PA 19146  4) 500 Degrees at 1504 Sansom Street, Philadelphia 19102 and there is one located near the JFK Boulevard  - 5)  Lucky Old Souls Burger Truck located at John F Kennedy Blvd and Broad St
Philadelphia, PA 19102.    And many others you can find as you move around town.

Two years back that I was here in Pennsylvania, we visited the following places which you might also check as good Spring Adventure Destinations like:

• The Hershey's Chocolate World
• Hershey's Mansion & Mrs. Hershey's Rose Garden, it is so huge.
• The Amish Village
• Eagle Rock Resort and Lodge
• The old train station
• Others like malls and food shops

A day's tour of your favorite tourist spots can be a worthwhile experience.  Enjoy your Philadelphia and Pennsylvania adventure.

Photos by Henry C. Libo-on, the Touristang Pobre.
Suroy-suroy is a Cebuano word which means to "roam around".