I went to Philly.

Hi guys. I know it's taken me a week to tell you, but last weekend I went to Philadelphia for a conference. Josh joined me for the trip, and we took the Amtrak train straight from Charlottesville into Philly. It was pretty great. I haven't traveled on a train in the states like that, but it was way better than trying to fly. No security or baggage fees, bigger seats with much more legroom, the ability to get up and walk around whenever you want, and more interesting scenery.

We got into the city around noon and checked into the hotel, then had lunch in Chinatown. Next I headed to a conference panel, but was informed I needed to go run an errand for work at the American Philosophical Society, so I grabbed Josh and we headed over there instead. It's a neat place, and from there we walked around the historic area a little and visited the printing shop by Ben Franklin's no-longer-existing house. That evening we went to a reception, then Josh and I wandered around the city for a billion years looking for the perfect place to eat. We finally found it, even though it turns out they only accepted cash and were a bring-your-own alcohol establishment. So we didn't drink or have appetizers or dessert because they either didn't serve it or we didn't have enough cash to cover it. But the food was delicious.

Saturday I was busy with conference stuff all morning and for part of the afternoon, minus a lunch break during which Josh and I wandered around some more and ate sandwiches. That afternoon while I was busy he visited the Academy of Natural Sciences, then we met up and did a whole lot more walking. We visited a brewery for beer and appetizers, then walked across the river over by the university and ate dinner at the White Dog Cafe, which a co-worker had recommended. The food there was also delicious, but we ordered way more than we could handle (we should have skipped the appetizer at the brewery) and pretty much rolled ourselves out of there. There was no way we could have walked all the way back (over twenty blocks) being that full, so we took the subway (or "el") back.

Sunday I spent the morning in the conference again, and as soon as it was over we hurried to the Franklin Institute, a science museum. We spent a couple hours there, and then had to hurry back to get our bags and head to the train station.

The weather in Philadelphia was perfect, the conference was good, and it was fun doing touristy stuff with Josh. I also look forward to another train ride some day.