3It’s that time of year again when Philadelphia celebrates freedom (Independence Day, the fourth of July, ya know!) with an over week long – eleven days celebration, Wawa Welcome America. Each year there are a score of free or low cost events to allow visitors to the city to celebrate and experience the the city in a unique way. This year The Bee, Buffy, Dill and I headed to Penn’s Landing to get a Taste of Philadelphia and be a part of the party.
Instead of driving down to Penn’s Landing we hopped on the El and were quickly transported to 2nd and Market Street and a bridge which led us directly to the event. The ride down was fun; as a driver I can now appreciate SEPTA and The Bee and Dill were fun to watch as they stared at the passing houses. When we got to Penn’s Landing, around 5:30 PM we were cooled off by gentle breeze flowing from the Delaware River and greeted by the a mini car show featuring Ford vehicles. The Bee and Dill were delighted to get behind the wheels of several cars and I had a momentary longing for a new car. We headed to the main stage area and the events.
Taste of Philadelphia is an event that invites people to sample fare from Philadelphia’s premiere restaurants. Tickets were a dollar each and most booths had things to be sampled for only two tickets. Buffy and I each bought twenty dollars worth of tickets. We decided that if we were having some outing in the city ten bucks a person is pretty good. With our tickets we visited Chenango for ribs, Cuba Libre for chicken empanadas, Gigi for water ice and cheesesteak empanadas, a stand for funnel cake and of course water. As we munched and crunched we people watched and enjoyed the view of Camden and the cooling breeze.
The food was great. For our money we were left filling satisfied; the food was filling, rich and savory. I think that a visit to the restaurant proper are in order to fully sample and appreciate the food.
There was musical entertainment all day long with Aaron Neville as the main attraction. Before Saturday I had no real opinion about Aaron Neville but after hearing him and his band (which included one of his brothers!) I am now a fan. His voice, the smooth music, the show was fantastic. When the musical portion was over we were treated to a spectacular awe inspiring fireworks show. The sky lit up in a dazzling display of brilliant The display sparkled like diamonds and even the most cynical viewer, my sister, was reduced to a gaped mouthed stare.
In the past I have hesitated to visit the city during events likely to draw a crowd. Overpriced food, overpriced parking, harassed employees and just the general frenzy of a crowd makes causes me to pause but after my experience Saturday I cannot wait for the next chance to get to the city. My only nitpicky complaint: no maps and employees not having an idea where there are located. When we would ask the people identified as Welcome America employees where any of the food boothes, ATM, anything was and the most common answer was, “I don’t know.” We had more luck asking people who had the food we wanted, or in one case using Twitter to find where we wanted to be.
The plan is to return Saturday for fireworks after the All You Can Eat Ice Cream event (Mmmmm…ice cream). I am excited and ready for some cones!
Getting ready to celebrate at the longest block party,
-r
No Comments