Philadelphia, PA

In today’s digital world, why bother going to a music store when you can just download to a computer in the comfort of your home? I admit, I have been taken in by the convenience of itunes and the like, however, I still miss the tactile experience of opening the cd case and flipping through the lyrics and album art as I listen to my recent musical purchase. Theres also something to be said for the smell of old records and being exposed to sounds I often have never heard before that have chosen by someone who spends all day sorting through music. Such is an experience that can’t be found in FYE or other chain stores, which is why I’ve provided a list of my top 3 favorite small music stores in the city.

AKA Music
(Old City)
27 N 2nd St
Philadelphia, PA 19106
(215) 922-3855
Monday-Thursday 11-8, Friday-Saturday 11-9, Sunday 11-6.

Main Street Music
(Manayunk)
4444 Main Street
Philadelphia, PA 19127
(215) 487-7732
Monday through Thurday 11am – 7pm, Friday, Saturday 11am – 9pm, and Sunday 12pm – 6pm

Repo Records
(Society Hill)
538 South St
Philadelphia, PA 19147
(215) 627-3775
Mon - Thurs and Sunday: 12pm-9pm
Fri and Sat: 11am-11pm

Music stores, AKA music, Main St. Music, Repo Records

Looking for something exciting and thrilling to do this Halloween? How about a Philadelphia Ghost Tour!
“Hear the chilling tales of America’s most historic…and most haunted city on this candlelight walking tour through Independence Park and Society Hill…”

Tour departs from Signers Garden, 5th & Chestnut Streets,
lasting approximately 90 minutes
October hours: 7:30 pm Daily, 9:30 pm Friday, Saturday, Halloween

LOCATION & TICKETS:
Call 215-413-1997 to reserve space on the tour.
Purchase tickets at:
Gift Shop next to Omni Hotel, 401 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia - until tour time or Independence Visitor Center, 6th & Market Streets, until 5:00 pm

While I was at the Sudoku Competition on Saturday, I ate lunch at the Reading Terminal Market. I’ve mentioned the Market before back when there was the controversy over Rick’s Steaks(which is still there by the way!!!). I had a delicious falafel pita sandwich and fresh squeezed juice at Kamal’s.

Market History
Markets have been a part of Philadelphia’s history since the city’s development by William Penn in the late seventeenth century. When William Penn’s managers established the town of Philadelphia, one of their first actions was to herd the ragtag crowd of farmers, fisherman, and huntsman, who were hawking their goods all over the bustling settlement, into an open area at the foot of what was known as High Street, along the Delaware River. Soon the so-called ‘Jersey Market’ (because most of the hucksters were from the neighboring state) began to expand westward in the middle of the thoroughfare that had been appropriately renamed Market Street. With the growth of Philadelphia came the expansion of public markets. By the middle of the nineteenth century, the string of market sheds had become six blocks long, making the easternmost mile of the city’s main street a veritable babble of farmers and food purveyors on most days.
Today, Reading Terminal Market is once again the gastronomic bazaar that its original planners had envisioned. Many of the historic Market stands survived the reconstruction and are once again filled with local produce, fresh eggs, milk, meats, poultry, seafood, handmade crafts, jewelry, and clothing. The Market is home to more than 80 merchants, two of whom are descendants of the original standholders from a century before. Today, the Market is 100 percent leased. On any given day one can find an eclectic array of fresh baked Amish goods, produce direct from the field, unusual spices, free range meats and poultry, flowers, ethnic foods, and much more. One hundred thousand Philadelphians and tourists pass through the Reading Terminal Market every week enjoying its exceptional products, history, and people. (http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/about/history)

The Market is open Monday through Saturday 8:00 am–6:00 pm, and now Sundays 9:00 am–4:00 pm. For a list of Merchant’s in the Market, check out this nifty map on the RTM’s site.
The Market also offers Special Events. Oct. 23 at noon, there will be a Cooking Demonstration at Dominique’s Tropical Latitude’s with Dominique Macquet. The demonstration will cover a variety of “southern hemisphere” foods from countries as diverse as Vietnam, Trinidad and Argentina.
Other upcoming events:
* Oct 27, 2007 · Book Sigining Atlas of American Artisan Cheese
* Oct 28, 2007 · Watch the Eagles Game Score Some Dinner
* Nov 4, 2007 · Sunday Soundbites

Reading Terminal Market, Philadelphia Markets

In Philadelphia, South Street is more than just a street. It’s a bohemian/ rock n roll shopping mecca, peppered with bars and live music venues. Among them is the Fillmore at the TLA(334 South Street).

It’s a small venue, but if you fight your way through the crowd you can usually get right up to the stage. For the over 21 crowd, there’s 2 bars; downstairs on the left and upstairs balcony. My friends and i found a cozy corner upstairs when we went to see Blonde Redhead last Tuesday. We could watch the show on several flat screen tvs, but we also popped down near the stage where I managed to get a couple shots of the band.

After the show we stopped in to one of my favorite bars on South Street, Tattooed Mom’s. I love the unique decor; downstairs is an eclectic collection of toys and found object sculpture, and upstairs they bring the aesthetic of street art on the walls and even the cushions. They even have a great menu which features a few vegetarian options; the fake bacon BLT, mozzarella sandwich, and of course, fries. The cool, laid back atmosphere made it a great way to end our night after the awesome concert.

South street, filmore, TLA, Blonde Redhead, tattooed mom’s

Cruising the Philly Metro on the bus this morning(this has become a regular occurrence), i happened across an article about a new mini golf course that opened in Franklin Square last year. How could I pass up sharing this great summer activity with you all?

Franklin Square is one of the five original open-space parks planned by William Penn during the late 17th century in central Philadelphia. It was originally named northeast park but was changed in 1825 to honor Ben Franklin. In its early years, the square was an open common used for grazing animals, storing gun powder (during the American Revolution) drilling soldiers (during the War of 1812). From 1741 to 1835, a portion of the Square was used as a cemetery by the German Reform Church; some of the graves still remain. The area around the square began to decline around the 1920s. After construction of the Ben Franklin Bridge(1922-26), traffic cut off 2 sides of the park to pedestrians and construction of the Vine Street Expressway in the late 1980s only exacerbated the problem. Over the last four decades, Franklin square has been one of the least used parks of the original five, unless you count the homeless making camp there. In honor of Franklin’s tercentenary, Once Upon A Nation and Fairmount Park debuted the newly renovated Franklin Square in July 2006 and since then theres been over 500,000 visitors. The new features from the renovations are the Philadelphia Park Liberty Carousel, Philly Miniature Golf( with miniature replica’s of Philly landmarks), new playgrounds and a restored 19th-Century Fountain.

Conveniently located near Philadelphia’s Historic District, a game of mini golf in Franklin Square is the perfect way to end a day of touring the city.

Related articles and sites
Metro: Goodtimes file
gophila
about.com: Franklin Square

Franklin Square, Ben Franklin, Ben Franklin Bridge, Mini Golf, Philly Parks, Fairmont Park, Once Upon A Nation

photo from Nationalgeographic.com

In June 1776, Betsy Ross was a widow struggling to run her own upholstery business. Upholsterers in colonial America not only worked on furniture but did all manner of sewing work, which for some included making flags. According to Betsy, in May the Congressional Committee called upon her at her shop. General Washington showed her a rough design of the flag that included a six-pointed star. Betsy, a standout with the scissors, demonstrated how to cut a five-pointed star in a single snip. Impressed, the committee entrusted Betsy with making our first flag. She finished the flag between late May and early June 1776, in time for the signing of the Declaration Of Independence in July. On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress, seeking to promote national pride and unity, adopted the national flag. “Resolved: that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation.”

The Betsy Ross House is located in Old City Philadelphia, 239 Arch Street, between 2nd and 3rd street. It is open for tours 7 days a week from 10am-5pm. The suggested donation is $5 for adults and $2 for children.
Ross never owned this house, but rented here between the years of 1773 and 1786. The house was built about 1740 and consists of 2-1/2 floors and nine rooms.

Click here for more information on the Besty Ross House.

Besty Ross, Besty Ross House, American Flag, five pointed star