Philly Adventure: An overnight stay
To celebrate our 13th wedding anniversary, Isaac and I took a quick getaway trip into Philly. Although we were originally thinking we’d drive to the nearest beach and spend a night and a day there, the weather was looking most definitely chilly and rainy. City adventure it is! We found a studio apartment spot through Airbnb, run by a real estate management group called Adobe, to stay in the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood. For those of you who don’t know the Philly area, Rittenhouse Square is a neighborhood within Center City buzzing with small boutique and high-end shops and restaurants for all cuisines - fit for foodies like us.
Once we got into Philly, our first stop was to the Head House Farmers’ Market, a market we’ve been wanting to explore, but unfortunately they were closing just as we arrived so we moved on to the Reading Terminal Market. We parked our car in a garage across the street and headed in. Travel tip: If you get your ticket validated by one of the market vendors you can park in the garage for 2 hours for $5, a great deal! It was super fun to see all the different kinds of businesses inside the market - ranging from bakeries and beverage stands to crafts and flowers. We both decided on fresh squeezed juice from Kamal’s Middle Eastern Specialities, @kamalsmiddleeastern, which we loved! After the market we walked around the neighborhood and checked out the grocery store Mom’s Organic Market and got a few fun groceries that we can’t find at home like, Dah! Plant-based Yogurt with no sugar added. I tried the Cherry Vanilla and Blueberry Pomegranate flavors and have been craving both since then.
Next, we headed to our Airbnb. After a very long time trying to find parking, we ended up finding a lot a block behind our building for $20 for the day. We lucked out with Monday being a holiday for Memorial Day and didn’t have to pay for a second day. The rest of Sunday evening we walked through Rittenhouse Square Park (pictured above) and checked out the surrounding shops and restaurants. For dinner we ordered delivery from Erawan Thai Cuisine and split the pineapple fried rice. It was warm, comforting, and delicious, and after walking around in the rainy cold-for-May temps all evening, it was just what we needed.
Monday morning, we trekked over to Old City (about a 40 minute walk) to the United By Blue flagship retail store and cafe. We bought a few things (reusable tumbler, t-shirt, socks, and cup of coffee) and talked to them about the possibility of selling our granola at their two retail stores - fingers crossed! Then we made our way to Sabrina’s Cafe on Drexel’s campus to grab brunch. This was another great spot with gluten-free options. I had an omelette with their house specialty, home fries, and GF toast, plus a cup of hot tea. We finished our Philly getaway by making a stop at Terrain Cafe in Glen Mills, Pa for our lunch reservations. This is a picturesque cafe with seasonal, locally-sourced food, in the middle of their lovely plant nursery and retail store. We had a relaxing time together and enjoyed checking out a bunch of new places (eating, walking around, shopping) but we were excited to get home and see our kiddos.
Whether it’s taking a big trip across the country or a ‘staycation’ just outside your hometown, it’s fun to enjoy the small things each location brings; new restaurants to try, new places to explore, and new memories to be made. If you’re looking for inspiration for your next adventure, sign up to receive our PA Adventure Guide for inspiration!