Miles Driven – 200 ish
From – Harrisburg (PA)
To – Philadelphia (PA)
Via – Gettysburg (PA)
Today's Photos - http://www.flickr.com/photos/32017704@N03/sets/72157611026755154/
Not wanting to be out-done by Kate’s efforts the previous day, I was up at the crack of dawn to walk Moldovia and hit the gym on the extremely cold morning of Day 33. The reason for this sudden spurt of healthiness is twofold. Firstly I’m not going to make it to the age of 33 without bursting if I keep up at this rate of eating without doing a marathon a week and secondly, Kate signed us up for a 10k run in Washington this coming Sunday. I’m not sure exactly what was going through her mind as she passed our credit card details to the run organisers last night but I can tell you that it’s the last time I leave the computers unguarded whilst I’m watching sport on TV.
Anyway, today’s agenda was to get to Philly for some well earned m
eat but not before we expanded our minds with a visit to Gettysburg, the site of the defining battle of the Civil War in early July of 18somethingorother. It’s also where President Abe Lincoln gave his famous speech (Gettysburg Address, funnily enough) starting “four score and blah blah blah”. From following the fantastic and fascinating 24 mile car tour of the various battle sights and important monuments, I can summarise that it was a three day battle in which the South (the Confederates) were kicking some Northern (the Unionists) ass at the end of Day 1 but ultimately lost after some dodgy tactical decisions. ESPN coverage was sparse at best back but the whole affair was recent enough that there were living providers of eye-witness accounts still kicking around less than 70 years ago. The place is really interesting and reading accounts of the sheer numbers of lives lost is both frightening and humbling…and I’m not even American. Walking into enemy fire and almost certain death knowing you are laying down your life as basically a delay tactic has to be the ultimate definition of bravery. And whilst the Everlasting Peace Flame is a nice touch and symbol of friendship, it’s also clear that we haven’t really learnt that much considering the amount of active overseas duty currently going on. But that’s quite enough of that. Onward to Philly with more highways, Kendra and Ricky.
eat but not before we expanded our minds with a visit to Gettysburg, the site of the defining battle of the Civil War in early July of 18somethingorother. It’s also where President Abe Lincoln gave his famous speech (Gettysburg Address, funnily enough) starting “four score and blah blah blah”. From following the fantastic and fascinating 24 mile car tour of the various battle sights and important monuments, I can summarise that it was a three day battle in which the South (the Confederates) were kicking some Northern (the Unionists) ass at the end of Day 1 but ultimately lost after some dodgy tactical decisions. ESPN coverage was sparse at best back but the whole affair was recent enough that there were living providers of eye-witness accounts still kicking around less than 70 years ago. The place is really interesting and reading accounts of the sheer numbers of lives lost is both frightening and humbling…and I’m not even American. Walking into enemy fire and almost certain death knowing you are laying down your life as basically a delay tactic has to be the ultimate definition of bravery. And whilst the Everlasting Peace Flame is a nice touch and symbol of friendship, it’s also clear that we haven’t really learnt that much considering the amount of active overseas duty currently going on. But that’s quite enough of that. Onward to Philly with more highways, Kendra and Ricky.We made the (eventually unwise) decision to stay in the city centre in 
Philly as we were getting a bit miffed with always having to commute for nights out meaning one of us has to be the designated driver – a role neither of us is particularly comfortable with. The downside, of course, is that the hotels tend to be a bit more expensive…and then there are the add-ons which had me almost violent with anger by the time we left. $34 per day for parking (no choice with this one, I had to just accept it), $10 per day for internet (you can shove it) and no breakfast. On the plus side, we were just a walk away from our chosen restaurant for the night meaning that we could both have a bevy or two without the need for cabs.
Last time I was with Philly was with a few guys from cooking school as Philly resident Gavin attempted to show us why he chose to spend every weekend in Philly rather than staying in New York, arguably one of the most engaging cities on the planet. I distinctly remember eating so much at Fogo De Chao (a Brazilian Churascaria) that trying to put beers down my neck afterwards was almost impossible. This time, however, I did not need to hold back as nights out these days rarely go beyond 10pm and our dining partners for the evening were Gavin and his parents (excellent company, thanks again for seeing us and giving us all your Philly tips), none of whom seemed up for clubbing although I might just be jumping to conclusions.
I had been excited about this meal for at least a few
days and it didn’t disappoint. As an indication of how good it all was (and how giddy I was), I completely forgot to take any photos. The meal starts with a salad buffet which has a good twenty different choices well beyond the usual iceberg, tomatoes and cucumber crap. The key is not to fill up before the meat arrives but it is tough to resist and you try keeping a McNamara away from bread. Next comes the meat as baggy-panted gaucho after baggy-panted gaucho brings over various cuts of perfectly cooked lamb, beef, pork and chicken. My stand-outs were the leg of lamb, lamb chops and rib-eye and I swear I am salivating whilst typing this. The fact that this huge restaurant was crazy busy on a Monday night is testament to the quality of nosh they put out and I’m a little scared to learn that there are a few more of these around the US…as well as half a dozen in Brazil which is always a good sign. I wonder what I would get for visiting every branch? Gout, probably. I went to bed that night and got a stitch from lying down…surely that’s not a good sign.
Philly as we were getting a bit miffed with always having to commute for nights out meaning one of us has to be the designated driver – a role neither of us is particularly comfortable with. The downside, of course, is that the hotels tend to be a bit more expensive…and then there are the add-ons which had me almost violent with anger by the time we left. $34 per day for parking (no choice with this one, I had to just accept it), $10 per day for internet (you can shove it) and no breakfast. On the plus side, we were just a walk away from our chosen restaurant for the night meaning that we could both have a bevy or two without the need for cabs.Last time I was with Philly was with a few guys from cooking school as Philly resident Gavin attempted to show us why he chose to spend every weekend in Philly rather than staying in New York, arguably one of the most engaging cities on the planet. I distinctly remember eating so much at Fogo De Chao (a Brazilian Churascaria) that trying to put beers down my neck afterwards was almost impossible. This time, however, I did not need to hold back as nights out these days rarely go beyond 10pm and our dining partners for the evening were Gavin and his parents (excellent company, thanks again for seeing us and giving us all your Philly tips), none of whom seemed up for clubbing although I might just be jumping to conclusions.
I had been excited about this meal for at least a few
days and it didn’t disappoint. As an indication of how good it all was (and how giddy I was), I completely forgot to take any photos. The meal starts with a salad buffet which has a good twenty different choices well beyond the usual iceberg, tomatoes and cucumber crap. The key is not to fill up before the meat arrives but it is tough to resist and you try keeping a McNamara away from bread. Next comes the meat as baggy-panted gaucho after baggy-panted gaucho brings over various cuts of perfectly cooked lamb, beef, pork and chicken. My stand-outs were the leg of lamb, lamb chops and rib-eye and I swear I am salivating whilst typing this. The fact that this huge restaurant was crazy busy on a Monday night is testament to the quality of nosh they put out and I’m a little scared to learn that there are a few more of these around the US…as well as half a dozen in Brazil which is always a good sign. I wonder what I would get for visiting every branch? Gout, probably. I went to bed that night and got a stitch from lying down…surely that’s not a good sign.
2 comments:
When I encounter absurd charges at hotels I take it upon myself to pee in their decorative plants. They have to pay to replace the plants and it all evens out.
You don't have to thank me for the advice- it's free.
Thanks for the advice Mykonos. I ended up stealing the plasma from the room and got $50 for it from the heroin dealer who seems to live behind the hotel. I feel much better now.
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