Not wanting to drive all the way back to North Carolina after the Washington DC International Motorcycle Show, we decided to spend a couple of nights in Philadelphia on the way to New York City. Neither of us had ever been there and it looked like there was a lot to see.

The grand entry into the city does not impress. As a matter of fact it depresses. But that is the way of many of the older cities in the northeast. The roadways are crowded, narrow and rutted, the scenery old and ragged, and many of the buildings falling down and decrepit. But we can usually find the best of things even in such places so we were eager to land.

We checked into the Embassy Suites on Logan Square and had a huge 17th floor room with spectacular view looking down Benjamin Franklin Parkway to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Nancy immediately told me the relevance of the museum. Not for the rare pieces of art that were housed there, but that it was the location of the steps that Stallone ran up while Gonna Fly Now was playing in the 1976 movie Rocky.

We brought a few brewskies for cocktail hour but not enough for a nightcap. We figured it would be no problem to pick-up a six pack down the street. This is the same mistake that we made in Toronto a few years ago.

There was a bar just down the street, but they only sold beer for consumption in the bar. The bartender said it was a mile or so to the nearest store that sold six packs - some strange state law. Not wanting to fight rush hour traffic in a strange big city I slipped him a fiver and talked him out of a sixpack in a brown bag.

We then headed out for a walk downtown. Within the first several blocks we were asked for money half a dozen times. The frame of a stripped bicycle was still locked to a metal post. Not the best neighborhood eh?

The buildings in downtown Philly make you feel like you are on a Gotham City movie set. We kept scanning the lofty spires for Batman and Robin.

We made it to the Reading Terminal Market with hopes of finding something that might rival the Saint Lawrence Market in Toronto. We were disappointed as this market was rather dingy and the various food stalls not very inviting. We bought a couple slices of greasy pizza, grabbed two draft beers, and hurriedly ate what we could stomach before the beggars found us.

On the way out Nancy heard one of the salewomen yelling "last call, one-dollar cookies". The huge chocolate chip cookies were too much for her to resist after such a dismal attempt at dinner. So we grabbed three to take back to the room; two for her and one for me.

The first day in Philly was not exactly a good one.

Day two was cold with temps in the teens. I had a big breakfast at the Suites while Nancy ran up the Ben Franklin and along the East River Drive trail. She was in a much better mood on her return having found another good running path.

After her fruit breakfast we headed out to explore more of Philly. Chinatown was another disappointment after enjoying the one in Washington DC. We walked farther eastward and found a quaint flag store. Talking to the proprietor we learned a lot about the various types of flags that we were interested in ordering. Turns out Humphry's Flag Company is one of the biggest in the US.

Just down the street was the Fireman's Hall Museum. Since I am a retired firefighter we had to take a tour. This old firehouse was packed with antique fire equipment and memorials to both Philly firefighters and those of New York who died on 911. We spent more than an hour in the old firehouse and got the first class tour.

A block down the street was one of the oldest streets in America other than St. Augustine. Elfreth's Alley dates back to 1736 and a small side alley, Bladens Court to 1749.

Walking back to the west on Arch Street we came to the house where Betsy Ross once lived and made the first American flag. The tour was excellent, and in one room we actually met Betsy who told us some of the little known details of her life and made a star using only one cut with the scissors.

A little farther down 2nd Street we saw some unusual furniture in a store window. A purple couch caught Nancy's eye and we just had to explore inside. This place was packed with some of the most unique furniture we had ever seen. Good thing we didn't have a trailer with us.

It was getting to be lunch time so we headed for the City Tavern Restaurant. We mainly wanted to try General Washington's Tavern Porter and Thomas Jefferson's Tavern Ale. The recipe for Washington's brew was found in the New York Public Library.

The Tavern was constructed from blueprints of the original tavern which was constructed in 1773 and called "the most genteel tavern in America" by John Adams when he visited it in 1774.

We ordered two Washington's and were really surprised at the great taste of this dark porter. Usually we are not fond of dark beers, but this one was perfection .... and had some punch to it too! We had a taste of Jefferson's ale, but went back for seconds on the porter. And we had two bowls of cabbage soup and bread. After a third beer we made an escape with a six pack of Washington Porter and two light heads.

A few blocks away we found the New Market and Head House which we thought was a food market. Seems it hasn't been used for a hundred years.

We kept seeing alien cut-outs on buildings around the historic district. We don't think they date back to the 1700s though. Anyone know what they mean?

On the way back to the hotel we were going to take a tour of Independence Hall, but a group of kids were lined-up ahead of us and we were not exactly in the mood for such tight quarters. Plus they make security so tight that we were afraid that we'd get stopped for having a pocket knife. We took a couple outside picts. We glanced in the window at the Liberty Bell which had similar security to get inside, and then headed for our room.

We are all for security measures, especially at government buildings, but on this trip we were stopped from taking photos in the Washington DC historic Greyhound Bus Station and then the signs about searches at Independence Hall seems a bit much.

On the way we found a small corner grocery which actually sold beer by the six pack. Nancy had to backpack and I had two bags to carry the two miles home. We walked past the beggars without turning an eye.

We had a couple of sandwiches and beer in the room and just enjoyed the view from our small balcony.

The next morning Nancy went for her Rocky Run and I walked down to the museum to take some picts of the famous Rocky steps. Oddly the City of Philadelphia has not looked too highly at the Rocky statue that stands to one side of the museum. Twice it was removed under the pretext that it was a movie advertisement. Today it has returned and at the top of the steps are Rocky's footprints. We wondered how Rocky ever made it to the museum with the horrendous traffic that passes and circles in all directions.