Blogs from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, North America

Yes, I have been to the places that invented these ten classic and iconic foods. Of the most famous ten, here are the three I have visited: OK, this one is open to heated debate. But many sources say that brothers Pat and Harry Olivieri invented this locally beloved cheese-laden meat bomb when they were running a hot dog stand near South Philadelphia’s Italian Market in the 1930s. The sandwich started out with second billing to the franks, but cheesesteak sales soon took off, leading to the opening of Pat’s King of Steaks.Served on a long crusty roll, the best-known version of th... read more

What did the founding fathers drink when they signed the Declaration of Independence? Drunk by the founding fathers during the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Madeira was also what Francis Scott Key sipped as he composed “The Star-Spangled Banner.” George Washington (who reportedly drank a pint every night with dinner), Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin all adored it, as did John Adams (who wrote to his wife, Abigail, about the copious amounts they consumed during the Continental Congress). By the end of the eighteenth century, nearly a fourth of all the Madeira produced was being exported to the American colonies. The unbridled American passion for Madeira was certainly a testament to its compelling flavor. But Madeira’s popularity was equally based on something far more mundane: taxes. As of 1665, British governing authorities in the colonies ... read more

Each year, I usually outline a general path of travel and then select one or two major events that could be “massaged” into my itinerary by adding a week here and deleting a week there. This year found only one event making the final cut – the celebration of Independence Day in Philadelphia PA. A brief glance showed that all the Pennsylvania RV parks were a minimum one-hour drive from city center, and my attempts to find an RV park relatively close to a mass transit station were futile as well. After spending several hours in vain scouring the Pennsylvania options, I decided to look outside the box and examine New Jersey – just across the Delaware River from the target in my crosshairs, the City of Brotherly Love. I learned that the Port Authority Transit ... read more

Recently, my husband and I had the opportunity to visit the New England states. We were both born and raised in North Carolina, so we were familiar with the East Coast. However, both of our parents had never taken us more north than Tennessee, so we still had lots to discover about this part of the country! My husband had a work meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, so we decided to fly into that destination and start our journey there. Thankfully, the meeting only lasted about an hour or so and after that, we were free to explore the rest of the region on our own! We started the day out at the Liberty Bell. I was surprised to see how close we could get to the Bell itself! My husband is a huge history buff and ... read more

Today we woke up with the sweet, sweet sense of freedom on many levels—not only is it the 4th of July in the city where it began, but we are also waking up in the Bike & Build home office with a rare day off! So rare, we don’t even know what to do with this freedom or lack of a planned schedule. So we mosey around and research celebrations in the city while figuring out what others plan to do with their day off. A group decides to go on the Chris Benson tour (I swear he’ll be mayor of Philly one day!), others decide to catch up on work and stay local, while I found a parade that goes right by Independence Hall! Originally I had planned on going home to see everyone at ... read more