philadelphia – Postcards from GW

Preserving the Past

AdminMay 9, 2018

One thing I was really impressed by the United States when I came here was its strong protection and preservation of its historical heritage and history. Also, the guide tours in most national museums, cemeteries, and historical sites which are made to teach or introduce their stories are well-organized. Therefore, it is not rare to see teachers bringing their students to these places to learn. As an English major, I appreciate it so much because I can learn American history vividly on the spot rather than reading all those tedious materials only based on textbooks. In addition, I believe preserving history is the only way for people to remember what efforts their ancestors made and try not to make the same mistakes that will bring disasters such as WWⅠ and WWⅡ.

Among those places where historical sites are preserved and organized in a great condition, Philadelphia is my favorite one until now, and I strongly recommend those who want to dig into the 18th and 19th American history to go there. Philadelphia used to be the temporary capital of United States where declaration of independence and the constitution were signed. Hence, Philadelphia can be viewed as the starting point of America’s democracy. There are a lot of historical sites worth visiting like Penn’s Landing, Independence Hall, Old City Hall, Congress Hall, Betsy Ross House, Benjamin Franklin Museum, Liberty Bell, and so on. In brief, Philadelphia is a place best for a few day trip to get immersed in its historical atmosphere and admire the beautiful architectures.

If you crave for some delicious food, do not forget to try the famous cheesesteaks there! (Franklin Fountain should also be in your list if you also want to try some ice cream for your dessert.)

Away from D.C

AdminFebruary 20, 2018

By geovolpe

It was a random, rainy and cold Thursday night when we decided that we had had enough of D.C.

Not actually, of course. But sometimes, when your routine gets overwhelming and the weather doesn't help you power through it, it is normal to feel the urge to escape for a few days.

Me and my roommate felt that urge last Thursday night, as soon as we found out that there were no classes on President's day and that we had not planned anything. We bought round trip tickets from DC to Philly, by bus. This type of short term, last minute planning is definitely my favorite. And the US East Coast serves that purpose pretty well. I mean, where else in the US can you get away for 2 days at a price of 80$ to visit a major city?
This isn't something you can do if you’re in California, or Texas or even Chicago. I like this European dimension of closeness that the east coast has.

We planned it out, recruited 2 friends and then we were ready to go. The details of our trip were as follows:

Departure on Sunday morning, and return on Monday night. 2 full days, 1 full night, 4 people and a full hostel. Full hostel meaning that other than us 4, our room was filled with additional people which, I know, is the very principle of a hostel. But as I had never sojourned in one, I was slightly weary of the concept. I did shared airbnb's or even co-ops several times in the past, but never hostel. The bunk beds remind me of a military setting and the fact that you share them with strangers is a 50-50 situation. Either strangers are normal, or they are not. However, there is no room for such perplexities and considerations when the price for one night is so low: 26$. Unheard of in D.C.

We arrived at around 11 am on Sunday. Unfortunately, we couldn't get rid of the D.C cold, as in Philadelphia it was about the same temperature. It was sunny, though, unlike in D.C. So the absorption of vitamin D compensated for the lack of heat.

We spent the day doing touristy stuff: the liberty bell, the independence hall, the museum of Art. We went to a pub at night, and the rest is history. No, we didn't do anything malicious by American standards, of course. We chilled at the pub and then went to bed. There was no weirdo, and we made friends with the other people in our room.

On the second day, we visited a super cool garden (see pictures) made with re-purposed waste.

Philly is a cool city. Middle ground between a European city and New York. It is high rise, but also historical. Pretty hipster-ish, and more lively than D.C on a Sunday night. Food is good (shout out to Philly cheese steak!) and cheaper than D.C

My verdict is: great get away destination for a weekend. Hostels are mostly safe.

Philadelphia Bound

AdminMay 2, 2017

By sophieheard

As we near the end of the program everyone is trying to tick as many boxes as possible off their study abroad bucket list. I had been planning to visit my friend at Swarthmore College and so this weekend I headed up to Philadelphia to explore the city and have a catch-up.

The majority of my weekend was spent on Swarthmore campus. It’s interesting to visit friends at different universities as they are always so different to what I am used to. From the acapella groups, battle of the bands, frat parties and dining halls the college culture in America is so different from back home.

As this was my second visit to Philly, I was able to skip some of the tourist sights. Heads up! If you’re planning a trip to Philly I recommend skipping some of the historical stuff (unless you’re a massive US history nerd!). Even as a history student, I still found the Liberty Bell to be underwhelming. There are also so many other interesting cultural activities to explore! Here are a few that are worth checking out:

Reading Terminal Market
One of my favourite food markets I’ve ever been to! Has a great selection of foods. Make sure you get a Philadelphia Soft Pretzel as they are absolutely delicious and you get served by authentic Mennonites.

Philadelphia's Magic Gardens
Indoor and outdoor art exhibition consisting of mosaic murals and alleyways. $8 for students. Great for photo opportunities.

City Hall
Located in Center City it is definitely worth checking out! Stunning architecture and an iconic building in Philly.

Philadelphia Museum of Art (and Rocky steps)
The PMA has a great selection of art; from a replica Marcel Duchamp’s Fountain, one of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers and Claude Monet’s Japanese Bridge and Water Lilies. Even if you’re not into art it is worth a visit just to see the iconic Rocky steps (I do not recommend trying to run them!)

Food

The Dandelion - for all the Brits studying abroad in desperate need of a Sunday roast!
Tippling Place - doesn't look like much from the outside but the interior and the beverages are delicious
Tattooed Mom - great vibe, stunning interior and a relatively cheap selection of food and drinks!

As Philly is a short bus ride away from DC I definitely recommend visiting during your time here!

Flight: The Autonomic Response to End of Exchange Semester

AdminDecember 12, 2016

By itsmaggiegwu

Last week ended with a short weekend trip to Chicago. What I forgot to mention that at the time of booking Chicago, I also managed to book 2 consecutive weekend-aways to first Philly and then Boston. I'd like this attribute this behaviour to the autonomic response to the end of exchange semester. There's only a few weeks left of the exchange program so I should/need to cram all the travel I can. This makes up for all the other times I've been too lazy to organise anything. Gotta tick off all the boxes.

So this past weekend I hopped onto the Megabus to Philadelphia, the once capital of the U.S. I've heard a mixed response from people who have been to Philly before; some say "there's nothing to do there!" while others find it quite the opposite. I felt the latter. Philly was very different to Chicago or D.C.. I stayed at the Apple Hostel which was right in the Centre of Old City so everything was pretty much walkable distance if you wanted it to be. And it actually nice to walk around for a change. The row houses were beautiful. The old cobble stones that they laid down a few hundred years ago were still in tact in at Society Hill.

My favourite thing about Philly would be the historical aspect to it. The Independent Hall was a small but I learnt a lot about the American history, the signing of the declaration of independence and its important. The quote from the declaration echoes loud in the aftermath of the presidential election - "WE hold these Truths to be self evident that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness--"

The second favourite would be the Philly Cheesesteaks that I had every-single-day, without regret. Jim's Steaks on South and Joe's Steaks + Soda were my favourites. The line snaked around the block when I stood at Jim's. To order like a true local, I tried to say just "Wiz With" for a cheesesteak with wiz cheese with onion. I probably ate it too fast walking down South Street. I missed out going to UPenn and the famous Rocky Steps and the museum that holds world renowned pieces of art, but I'll definitely return to Philly.

The other interesting thing that I have been working on for my Entrepreneurship class is building an app that allows people to find cool people to go to awesome events with. It's called CitySocial and our team has been building a landing page website that allows users to look at what we are about and sign up for a demo. If anyone's interested to see where this app takes off, you can help us by signing up! We promise we won't spam you 🙂

CitySocial - Don't Explore Alone.

As the rush to the end of semester nears, I start to reflect on all the things that I wanted to accomplish on exchange.