Phun in Philly: Days One and Two

Ever feel like you need a vacation from your vacation? I'm feeling that way right now. E and I got home yesterday from a four day mini-vaca to Philly, and my legs are jello. I wish I'd worn a pedometer because I feel like I walked a hundred miles. Two hundred maybe. Anyway, it's a good thing, because I definitely needed to walk off everything I ate: milkshakes, cheese steaks, Thai, and Mexican, plus the best brunch in the history of brunches. Philadelphia is foodie heaven, people. Luckily for us, it's only a two hour drive, but if you get a chance to swing by, do so immediately! It's a really fun city, full of amazing American history, great shopping and food, and too much to do in only a few days. I took a ridiculous amount of photos, so I'm just going to highlight a few of them and add links so as not to lull you to sleep with my grandiose photo stylings :P Every place we went I would go back to, so hit them up if you can!

Day One: We checked in to our hotel right across from City Hall, and then hit up La Scala for Happy Hour. We ordered these insane little risotto and mozzarella arancine (basically risotto and cheese rolled into balls, then breaded and fried) and the calamari, which was also good. Then it was on to McGillin's Olde Ale House, the oldest bar in town. They opened in 1860 and still serve beer made from original recipes, plus they serve sauerbraten, which makes E happier than a pig in sheisse. It's charming and full of locals, so you won't feel surrounded by tourists.

Day Two: Our official sightseeing day and the day of a million footsteps. We started at the National Constitution Center, which is so interesting, even if you aren't a big history dork. It takes about an hour and is right downtown, so you can stop there after seeing the LOVE statue and head over to Reading Terminal Market aka Heaven. 

I could have spent all fricking day in this place! Holy crap, you guys, food for miles. Fresh and local produce, meats, specialty foods, tons of little places to sit and eat any kind of cuisine you want, plus adorable Amish girls hawking bread, old dudes with homemade sausage, and it smells some kind of amazing I can't even describe. Basically, I want to move in. If you dig food, this place is a must see. 

From there we walked through Chinatown to Liberty Bell Center, then stopped for beer at City Tavern. This is another place that has been around forever is is full of history, and they make the poor staff dress up. It's a little like traveling back in time, and the food is supposed to be great. 

Next we wandered over to Penn's Landing, where we had cheese steaks at Campo's and milkshakes at Franklin Fountain. Honestly, cheese steaks don't do much for me, but that little ice cream shop was the cutest thing ever. 

By then I needed a nap. Instead we went to Ben Franklin's house, shop hopped, and went out for Thai food. See what I'm saying about needing the walking? We had lemongrass soup, lettuce wraps and green curry at Aqua, which was all so good. It was a little loud thanks to a couple of big loudmouth parties, but the pricing was really reasonable for the area and the food we had. It's BYO, which it seems like may of the smaller restaurants are in town, so stop for booze on your way! After that, we went back to the hotel and I passed the f out. Philly made me tired! 

Stay tuned for Days 3 and 4, when E and I go to jail!