Page 5 of 7
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Still looking for monsters under my bed every night
There are lots of ways to get to Philadelphia for me on a Saturday, and this time I decided to go the long way. I drove to the train station in Secaucus- my local NJ Transit train goes there, but on a Saturday, the schedules added at least two extra hours each way just for that first leg. From Secaucus, I took a NJ Transit train to Trenton, then ran to the River Line station (the schedules are NOT timed for transfers), then took the River Line (a diesel light rail line) to Camden, a really interesting scenic trip that even included a section along the river where an actual bald eagle flew along side of the train. I’m not sure how much the River Line people pay that eagle to make cameos like that, but whatever it is, it’s not enough.
Once in Camden, I had about 45 minutes to kill until the next Delaware River ferry over to Penn’s Landing. I could have saved a lot of time by taking a Septa train from Trenton (I did that on the way home), but the River Line and the ferry were just a great way to go, proving once again that sometimes the long way there can be the best way there.
Some images from around the city. The ferry landed at Penn’s Landing, from there I walked along the river for a while, then through Society Hill, then across South Street and down Passyunk to Geno’s (not as good as I remembered), then up through the Italian Market back up to Center City and City Hall. Philadelphia on a nice day is a pretty good walking city, which is good news because their subways are (being generous) only ok.
My walking tour continued past City Hall and up the Parkway, with a stop at the always spectacular Barnes Foundation. Designed by Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, the Barnes seems to be getting even better with age, and remains an absolute gem in both its collection (and the weird, recreated galleries inside) and in its spectacular architecture. If I lived in Philadelphia (I don’t) I could see me getting a membership here, then really only using it to go inside, get a coffee and hang out in the atrium of courtyard all day.
If I’m on the Parkway already, you know I’m going to go all the way down to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, marvel at the huge line waiting to take a picture with the Rocky statue, walk up the steps, take some pictures, stand outside and buy my ticket on my phone, and then go in to see whatever there is inside to see.
By the time I got to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, it was later in the day and the crowds weren’t too bad. It did cause me to miss some of the galleries and avoid an exhausting tour of the entire room by room collection, but that’s ok, I was really there to see the new addition designed by Frank Gehry. It’s an interesting addition, a reactivated basement space with some pretty detailing and a fun (but not obnoxious) stair.
I left from the back side of the museum, walked through the water works and then along the Schuylkill River Train to 30th Street Station. On the way, I made a stop at Cira Green, a rooftop garden right on the river with great views all around. If you’re anywhere near 30th Street Station, it’s worth the walk across the street, then the elevator ride up, then the “am I lost?” walk across the parking deck then the staircase up to the roof to enjoy such amazing views.
We’re ending our time at sunset at 30th Street Station, where a Septa ride will soon take us back to Trenton and back to Secaucus. There is some coordination between Septa and NJ Transit in regards to ticketing, but absolutely no coordination when it comes to weekend schedules. There is always at least a half hour wait at Trenton when transferring, and the Septa trains don’t even run hourly on weekends. I don’t understand why the trains- which were packed and well used- can’t step up weekend service to tolerable levels.
