A Walk in the City

I am a slacker or I was last weekend.  My elevator wasn’t working.  Saturday night when I went out, I found out the bad news.  Five flights isn’t really that bad as long as I pace myself.  It’s when I forget who I am that I get into trouble.   I go bounding up the stairs… first floor, second floor, everything is going well. Third floor is fine. It is always four that just kicks my butt.  Heading toward five can leave me wheezing and thoroughly embarrassed if there’s anyone else in the stairwell. So slow and steady wins the race, unless there is no race.  And that’s how I did it Sunday.  To make up for my lack of ambition, I did chores.  I did all the regular things, even unpacked a box, hung a picture and cooked.

I’ve been trying to cook on the weekends so I have food for the week, as well as taking a little something for my mom to have some home cooked meals.  Last weekend was Tuscan Chicken.  The weekend before was meatloaf.  Sometimes there are creations out of the slow cooker.  Once it was Mango Chicken with actual mangoes that I brought from Miami and peeled and chopped myself.  A million of them. Mom said it was good, once she got past the mangoes.  Everyone is a critic.

This weekend was different. I was up early today so I started baking even before George Stephanopolis was a thought on the TV.  I made Hamentashen, a traditional Purim treat. Here is my first batch right from the oven.  My mom likes poppy seed, so those are the dark ones.  The others are apricot preserves.  I still have dough left, so when I make more, I think I’ll do a chocolate one too.  Not traditional, but what could be bad.

Then it was off to brunch with the family.  We tried a new spot, El Vez.  Mexican brunch.  The guac was awesome and the Huevos Rancheros were pretty good.  The salsa was excellent.  The Bloody Mary even better!  Then off to Macy’s for some President’s Day sale browsing.

I decided I would home to walk off those chips.  I love walking in the city because you see things that just fly by unnoticed when you’re in a car or on the bus.  Sometimes when I’m on the bus, I’m too busy watching the drama inside, to see as much outside!

It was cold out there today, with a strong wind.  My mom and my granny before her were always complaining of the wind downtown.  Well, I get it now.  Those cross streets are like wind tunnels. As I was wandering along, I decided to note some of my landmarks.  Now mind you, it was cold, windy, I had on mittens and a drink.  There’s a lot going on here.

I was walking down Arch Street, some snow flurries accompanying me when I saw this.  What the heck is this?  I’m pretty sure this is the window of a club.  Interesting.  I haven’t seen a Barbie diorama in a long time… or maybe ever.

Recently, I bought my mom a book about Fading Ads of Philadelphia.  It is a collection of old painted wall advertisements of stores and businesses, most of which are long gone.  It has made me much more aware.  Here is one for the department store, Lit Brothers.  I can remember when they were open on Market Street. A little investigation and it turns out they opened in 1893 and closed down in 1977.

Here’s another sign I passed along the way home.  This one is actually right across the street from my apartment, the former Thomas Scientific Company building. Their first headquarters was at 12^th and Walnut Streets, but the company moved to their new seven story headquarters building in 1956, on a property once owned by the father of Betsy Ross.

Backing up a little bit on my walk, I walked through Chinatown.  That’s where the club with the freaky dolls is located.  But they also have some cool dragon statures. They stand guard at the entrance to a parking lot.

One of my favorite architectural details in my neighborhood is the Ben Franklin bridge that connects Philly to NJ.  It is a suspension bridge that was completed in 1926.  I walk underneath the spans every day to get to and from work

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This long view is from the south side of the bridge, I live just north.  This is the view as I walked along the span to get home today.  Usually I'm going under, not alongside.

As you come into Philly off the bridge, there is a circle with a cool stature.  It is a key at the bottom, bolt of electricity and a kite at the top.  We are nothing if not a city in homage to our favorite father, Ben Franklin.  The artist, Isamu Noguchi, first submitted the design in 1933, but it was rejected as it was far too radical for the time.  The idea resurfaced in 1979 when a drawing was seen in a retrospective of the artist’s work.  The 79 year old Noguchi came to Philadelphia and when he saw the spot at the foot of the bridge, he knew it would be perfect.

Well, there you have it, today's walking tour.  Come visit and I’ll show you the sites in person!