Summer 2016 can be summed up in one word TRAVEL, and I enjoyed every bit of it. My first trip of the summer was to Philadelphia,PA. My sister was accepted into the PhD program for the fall and needed to find an apartment. This would be the first time either of us had been to Philadelphia, but we were up for the challenge. The purpose of my trip was two-fold: find an apartment, and visit love park. As long as I can remember love park was on my bucket list, and this was my chance to cross it off. During our visit, we chose to stay in an AirBnB. It was a pleasurable experience, and I’ll definitely use them again. The first day of apartment shopping was anything but stellar. After not finding the first complex, to being up on by the landlord, we decided to pause and regroup. So we headed to find a famous Philly Cheesesteak. We asked around for recommendations and was actually  in the area and decided to try one out.  Please note: when looking for a Philly cheesesteak, do not go to the tourist recommendations. Our first experience of a Philly cheesesteak, we were not impressed. We headed for some comfort food- ice cream! Ice cream always makes the day better. Day 2 was a lot better for apartment hunting, and sissy even picked up some applications; things were looking up. Day 3 we looked at the remaining options and even had a second look from day 2 to make a decision. Sissy pooh decided on a studio apartment for her first living domain in the city of brotherly love. 

Our days were spent handling business, while our nights were spent exploring the city, and enjoying each other. The weather still had a chill in the air in June with the high in the 50s some days. Each day we walked between 13-15 miles, but it didn’t feel like it. We were walking, talking, and taking in the scenery around us. We quickly learned that we weren’t in the south, and they didn’t have any sweet tea! Night time adventures included dinner at a local favorite, beer gardens, watching the NBA finals, and a drag show. Our last full day there we had some extra time to explore, and visited love park. We arrived and it was a construction zone. My heart dropped. I knew I was in the right place from looking at maps and pictures, but the love statue wasn’t there. I was devastated. I looked all around until I found it across the street. All was right in my world at that point! We also visited the liberty bell. After seeing pictures in history books all my life, it was great to see it up close in person. 

Trip to Philadelphia was a success. I’m looking forward to visiting again now that my sister is settled in!