Philly

Things have been insanely busy. I billed a ton of hours in February, and it looks like March won't be any different. And I've had no energy during the weekends. I could spend all weekend in my sweats watching endless episodes of Grey's Anatomy -- hibernation at its finest. But I did manage to lug myself off the couch and tour Philadelphia last weekend. I've driven through it countless times, but have never actually spent any time there. We were only there a little over a day, but I ate some incredible meals while I was there.

First stop, Federal Donuts, specializing in fried chicken and donuts (amazing!). The place was packed with hungover college students, but I did manage to take this lovely photo, which totally does the food justice, as you can see:

(50mm lens in a tiny cramped space is awesome!)

After stuffing our faces with deep-fried goodness, we walked around the frigid city (probably burning off 10% of the calories we just consumed).

(Despite the sign, there was a line to climb on the "big noodle sculpture.")

Best coffee in the city was right around the corner from our hotel.  Apparently they have locations in NYC, so I'm definitely going to have to check those out.

We ran up the Rocky Steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia, had incredible drinks at Village Whiskey, saw the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.  And after all that, we also at dinner at Amada which was impeccable.  Perfect service and delicious tapas.  Finished the night at a dive bar in Old City, then to the hotel to crash.  

It was a great mini-vacation.

Cumberland County

A couple shots from my trip back to Pennsylvania. Most of my time was spent eating and sleeping (no complaints here!), but I did manage to leave the house just long enough to snap a couple photos.

The City by the Bay

I spent a week in San Francisco in October.  It was meant to be a short trip for a friend's wedding, but Hurricane Sandy left me stranded there for longer than I expected.

I love SF.  It has a totally different "feel" than NYC.  I was amazed by the total absence of traffic.  I took the bus everywhere, and we only stopped for traffic lights or at stops.  In New York, you can generally walk faster than the bus.

As you can see below, I really loved the random murals throughout the Mission.