The Chronicles of Bohdin, Nyla, and Cora: Try #2

I wrote a post this morning but it didn't make it so here is try #2. Since Paul asked for hotel details I will give them. When I was researching hotels the 4 star rates were pretty similar to the 3 star rates so I decided to try for a 4star on Priceline. When my $85 bid was rejected I decided to just go with a 3 star. We ended up with the Marriot at $70. It's possible I could have gotten it for slightly less but my bidding strategy wasn't very good. The hotel was near Reading Terminal and City Hall. We were less than a mile from Independence Hall.

On Saturday morning we went to Reading Terminal for breakfast. Reading Terminal is a collection of food places and markets under one roof. It's sort of a food court combined with a farmer's market. The Pennsylvania Dutch have a large area there selling things from baked goods to pickles. We had blueberry pancakes from what is supposed to be the best in the city. I'm not a restaurant breakfast fan and I thought these were fine. We also split a cinnamon roll which was tasty and interesting and picked up some fruit. We spent so much time wandering around it was time for Nyla's nap.

After Nyla's nap we caught the bus to the Rodin museum. A bronze replica of the Thinker and Gates of Hell were outside. We decided against going inside because Bohdin wasn't being very cooperative. Instead we caught the bus and headed to the Art Museum. This is the location where Rocky ran up the steps. The museum is located on a hill above a park that flanks a river. It's a pretty area and we explored a little. We were hoping to rent a bike and trailer from the shops near there but they didn't have trailers. We found a playground and ate a hoagie and a pretzel we picked up from the Reading Terminal.

Buddy and I were getting hot and tired so we made the trek back up to the bus stop at the Art Museum. We had to wait forever for the bus along with a million other people. The bus was extremely cramped and hot. Nyla was tired. It was a very long trip back to the hotel and we ended up getting off at an ealier stop and walking because we couldn't take it anymore.

After Bohdin and Nyla's nap we headed out for dinner. We wandered around the Rittenhouse House square area which is the upscale theater and shopping district. We stopped for pizza at what is supposed to be the best pizza in the city. It was okay. We then walked to the best gelato place in the city and it was excellent. It's the best gelato I've had in America. Bohdin picked Kiwi, I picked Chocolate Hazelnut, and Buddy picked Coconut. They were all delicious but mine was the best. Buddy agreed with me but Bohdin did not. We headed back to the hotel before trying to catch the fireworks later. On our way we walked through the city hall building which was more amazing than we would have thought. We had a view of it from our hotel room and didn't really think too much about it. The building has a very large courtyard in the center with views in each cardinal direction. A plaque said it is the largest civic building in the US. It may also be the prettiest.

It was so nice to put up our feel at the hotel. Bohdin still had boundless energy despite walking just as far as we had that day. We were too lazy to walk the mile plus to the waterfront where the fireworks were being held. At 9:15 I went outside with Bohdin to see if we could see them from the street by our hotel. They hadn't started yet. I went back in to ask the concierge about the fireworks and he suggested going to the top of the Loews hotel next door since it is the largest building. I forgot to tell Buddy where Bohdin and I were going so he ended up walking toward the river to try to see the show. In the meantime Bohdin and I were luckily able to sneak into an area that requires a key to watch the fireworks. There were a handful of other families there. While we had a good view the show was a bit of a letdown. Fireworks aren't the same from indoors. It would have been better to see a smaller show with a more accessible and closer view. Live and learn.