It was a good day in Philadelphia this past Monday. We ventured into the ever sunny city for a bit of pop history at the National Constitution Center and came away with so much more. I am always pleasantly surprised when I visit this place, especially the Old City District, where much of the history of Colonial America is located. Team VFH could easily devote days to just exploring this area, but we were here for Bruce.
http://www.oldcitydistrict.org/
Perhaps you have heard of this musician from Freehold, New Jersey? Bruce Springsteen has been giving the world music since the 1970's. Some of his songs are iconic, the poetry is at times powerful, but I would be remiss in trying to belabor with my thoughts on Mr. Springsteen. So much has been written about him and thousands of his adoring fans who pile into his legendary and lengthy shows that each can regale you with their own tales. I would do them all a disservice in adding my own observations, but I have to say that Thunder Road is a phenomenal song and my favorite album is Tunnel Of Love. It is at this album that Bruce first went from the working man on the road, to the man embroiled in the confines of his home and the trappings of marriage.
Better served in this are several homage websites dedicated to "The Boss".
Here is one: http://www.legendsofspringsteen.com/
Here's another: http://www.springsteenlyrics.com/
In a recent article Springsteen spoke of experiencing depression and the joy and the self preservation of his performing:...
"...there's a tremendous finding of the self while also an abandonment of the self at the same time. You are free of yourself for those hours; all the voices in your head are gone."
After our visit to the Promised Land, we headed towards the promised land of good beer, stopping first to drop a penny on the grave of Benjamin Franklin and to make a wish. The tradition stems perhaps from a line in the thrifty Ben Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac, "A penny saved is a penny earned." His grave is directly across the street from the Philadelphia Mint. As my luck has yet to change though I probably should rephrase Mr. Franklin's line with: "A penny tossed...is lost."
Along the way we stopped to devour cheese steaks at Campo's on Market Street; rated by some in the Top Ten in the city renown for cheese steaks, and the subject of great debate in Philly. See the link below for a listing and endeavor to try them all yourself. We then went to two taverns to end our visit to Philadelphia.
http://www.visitphilly.com/articles/philadelphia/top-10-spots-for-authentic-philly-cheesesteaks/?gclid=CM3ixuGIwLECFUp76wodkxcAJQ
The first was Khyber Pass on Second Street. We went there because our first choice did not open until 5 p.m. Janet said she used to go to this bar when she was underage and to party....DO NOT tell her Mom!! We were pleasantly surprised at their beer list and we just arrived in time for happy hour where drafts are discounted $2.00. The bar was beautiful carved wood and the place had a friendly feel to it and it was a great temporary fix until our next destination. http://www.khyberpasspub.com/
http://www.oldcitydistrict.org/
Perhaps you have heard of this musician from Freehold, New Jersey? Bruce Springsteen has been giving the world music since the 1970's. Some of his songs are iconic, the poetry is at times powerful, but I would be remiss in trying to belabor with my thoughts on Mr. Springsteen. So much has been written about him and thousands of his adoring fans who pile into his legendary and lengthy shows that each can regale you with their own tales. I would do them all a disservice in adding my own observations, but I have to say that Thunder Road is a phenomenal song and my favorite album is Tunnel Of Love. It is at this album that Bruce first went from the working man on the road, to the man embroiled in the confines of his home and the trappings of marriage.
Better served in this are several homage websites dedicated to "The Boss".
Here is one: http://www.legendsofspringsteen.com/
Here's another: http://www.springsteenlyrics.com/
In a recent article Springsteen spoke of experiencing depression and the joy and the self preservation of his performing:...
"...there's a tremendous finding of the self while also an abandonment of the self at the same time. You are free of yourself for those hours; all the voices in your head are gone."
 |
| ....your favorite song here... |
The National Constitution Center has been running an exhibit of Springsteen artifacts and memorabilia. It is called: From Asbury Park to the Promised Land / The Life and Music of Bruce Springsteen. If you are a fan or at least mildly interested in the Boss it is well worth the visit. On display are articles of clothing worn during shows, instruments played, lyrics and a motorcycle he rode cross country back in 1989. Music stations offer rare snippets of songs he performed with the first band he was in, The Castilles. There's documentary about the recording of Born To Run, where Bruce obsessed and changed over every word in his songs. It's all fascinating and we really enjoyed our visit. The exhibit runs until September 3.
Also included in the cost of the ticket is access to the National Constitution Center, worth the visit alone. There is a live performance entitled "We The People," that left Team VFH feeling especially patriotic, and a hands on display chronicling American history and the Constitution.
http://constitutioncenter.org/exhibits/feature-exhibitions/bruce-springsteen/
But, most wonderfully is the cost. Normally $25 per ticket, Janet was able to go to livingsocial.com and got two tickets for just $24. I had always cast a wary eye toward websites like Living Social or Groupon that offer discounts, but Janet has cured me of this. Anything to save a buck. http://www.livingsocial.com/Also included in the cost of the ticket is access to the National Constitution Center, worth the visit alone. There is a live performance entitled "We The People," that left Team VFH feeling especially patriotic, and a hands on display chronicling American history and the Constitution.
http://constitutioncenter.org/exhibits/feature-exhibitions/bruce-springsteen/
After our visit to the Promised Land, we headed towards the promised land of good beer, stopping first to drop a penny on the grave of Benjamin Franklin and to make a wish. The tradition stems perhaps from a line in the thrifty Ben Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac, "A penny saved is a penny earned." His grave is directly across the street from the Philadelphia Mint. As my luck has yet to change though I probably should rephrase Mr. Franklin's line with: "A penny tossed...is lost."
Along the way we stopped to devour cheese steaks at Campo's on Market Street; rated by some in the Top Ten in the city renown for cheese steaks, and the subject of great debate in Philly. See the link below for a listing and endeavor to try them all yourself. We then went to two taverns to end our visit to Philadelphia.
http://www.visitphilly.com/articles/philadelphia/top-10-spots-for-authentic-philly-cheesesteaks/?gclid=CM3ixuGIwLECFUp76wodkxcAJQ
The first was Khyber Pass on Second Street. We went there because our first choice did not open until 5 p.m. Janet said she used to go to this bar when she was underage and to party....DO NOT tell her Mom!! We were pleasantly surprised at their beer list and we just arrived in time for happy hour where drafts are discounted $2.00. The bar was beautiful carved wood and the place had a friendly feel to it and it was a great temporary fix until our next destination. http://www.khyberpasspub.com/
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| Can't have it all! |
We were really here though for the Eulogy Tavern just around the corner. We have visited this Belgian style tavern several times in the past. Eulogy and the equally outstanding Monk's Cafe on 16th Street each boast an incredible selection of beers from Belgium and around the world. Some reviews give the edge to Monk's, but we prefer Eulogy on Chestnut Street. We drank our first Westmalle Triple Trappist brew at Eulogy when Team VFH did research for the trip to Belgum last year and when we stumble in deciding on our selection, the knowledgeable and friendly staff are good for beer advice. On Monday. when I was unsure of the name of the Quadruppel I wanted from Brugges, the bartender swiftly produced the bottle and waggled it in front of me. When we showed him a picture of a beer we had purchased in Brugges (lifted from Facebook) he said he didn't have that particular one, a Wit Goud from Hof Ten Dormaal, but had two others available. Impressive. At Monk's we were kind of on our own with the daunting task of beer selection, but in the warm confines of Eulogy we get drunk without the angst. http://eulogybar.com/
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