Philly Cheesesteak

Geno's Steaks: 1219 S. 9th Street, Philadelphia PA
Pat's King of Steaks: 1237 East Passyunk Avenue, Philadelphia PA

Another must on my list of things to do in Philly was to see for myself which one of these places had the best cheesesteak. I've watched WAY too much Food Network and Travel Channel, and have seen these places battle for the title of best in Philly. Our first stop was Geno's, since we were walking down 9th Street and Geno's is the first one heading that direction. There were three of us in Philly, and we didn't really want to each get a cheesesteak. We decided that we would get one at each place and split it three ways. We asked the person at Geno's if we could have a plastic knife to cut it in thirds, but they said they'd cut it for us. The employees there were pleasant and seemed to be happy to be there. The sandwich was great. Nothing was overpowering on it, the bread was soft, the onions were cooked just right, and the cheese whiz was good too! Our next stop was across the street at Pat's. We got in line, and waited just a few minutes for our sandwich. We asked if we could have it cut in thirds, but he told us he only cuts it in half. Well, he said to my sister, "I only cut it in half sweetheart." If you know my sister, you know that him calling her sweetheart ticked her off. We sat down to eat the sandwich. The bread was dry, the onions were really strong, and the provolone was not melted. After eating both sandwiches, we decided that Geno's has the best cheesesteak.

Rocky Steps

Rocky Steps: Philadelphia, PA

When I found out that I was going to Philadelphia, I had a few things I wanted to do and see, but this was a must. Before heading out to Philly, my sister kiddingly said, "You should download the Rocky theme and play that as you run up the steps." She should've known better, because I did. I got ready to go up the steps, and began playing the music. I knew I was making a fool of myself huffing and puffing up the steps to the the theme of Rocky, but people were commenting on it, and smiling. That's all I could ask for. When I got to the top of the steps, I noticed that there are bronze footprints of Rocky's. We took our pictures of the feet, and of the steps going down. There were many other people there running up the stairs, many of them singing the theme. There is a statue of Rocky off to the side at the base of the steps. There were many people taking their pictures there as well. It made me feel old when there were kids asking who Rocky was. I think this was the best place we went to in Philly.

Liberty Bell

Liberty Bell: Philadelphia, PA

When I got to Independence Mall, I was expecting to see the Liberty Bell outside, roped off with some chains. Little did I know that it was actually inside a building with all sorts of history regarding the Liberty Bell. After waiting a few minutes in line to get in, and then my bag looked through (which gave the security person a laugh since my Santa hat was in there for Christmas card photos), we walked to the Liberty Bell. It's in a small area in the building, and if you're in there with a bunch of people, you have to wait for the right moment to get a picture without someone standing in front of it. Or, you can just shove your way to the front like some people were doing. I wanted to take some funny pictures, but since there were a bunch of people there I thought I should just pose for a couple. It was good to see the actual bell, and not a replica like I've seen in other places.

Longest Escalator

Western Hemisphere's Longest Escalator: Silver Spring, MD

• Directions: Take the red line train towards Glenmont. Exit on the Wheaton stop. The escalators take you out of the station.

I didn't believe my friend when he told me that the longest escalator was in the metro system in DC. My sister and I went a few years ago to double check this. It was humongous!!!!! It took us forever to get up there, and my knees were weak coming down the stairs. We decided to go again this trip to time how long it took to get up to the top. It took us 2 minutes and 49 seconds to get to the top without any walking! It's a nice place to check out, because you don't need to leave the station to see it. It does take some time to get to the stop, since it is one of the last stops on the red line.