Day 3 of our Philadelphia trip started much the same as day 2, with a trip to Reading Terminal Market. As we were there so early, it was super quiet and meant we could have a good look round, and we settled on Molly Malloy's for breakfast - and let me tell you the blueberry French toast was epic!
I needed the food, as we began a trek along the Delaware Waterfront (and it was SO cold) before we visited the Rocky steps aka the steps leading up to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and there were so many people imitating his favourite climb, and striking the infamous pose (both at the top of the steps and with the statue itself).
From there we ventured back into the city centre, to visit the One Libert Observation Deck, an 883ft view of 'Philly from the top'. The view of the city from 57 floors up was great, until we could literally see the rain arriving in the city, and turning the great cityscape view into a murky grey view, sigh.. it was good whilst it lasted though, and being that high off the ground gives you a great insight into the structuring of the city, and allows you to spot parts you'd already seen or planned to visit.
From here, we ventured through the rain (and by uber) to the Eastern State Penitentiary - top tip is to book online beforehand as your tickets are cheaper - but make sure you do it on a desktop, as their mobile site is a little unresponsive. You can book for a specific time-slot but it's not really a 'group tour' style, you can just work your away around at your own pace with your audio guide - which is narrated by Steve Buscemi, with aid from former guards, wardens and even prisoners. I'm the first to admit, I had no idea about this prison and instead saw it on a similar post to this one, of someone's experience, but I'm so glad we went. It was really interesting to learn about the prison and the American justice system. The prison itself operated from 1829 until 1971 and was home to notorious criminals such as Al Capone and Willie Sutton. We actually got to see the cell of Al Capone and let me tell you, it was quite literally nicer than my first-year uni accommodation. Something I found really interesting was that prisoners wore hoods outside their cell so that they weren't recognised by other prisoners. Also in 1945, a major escape - including Willie Sutton - was carried out through the digging of a 97-foot tunnel under the prison wall - talk about manual labour!
After this, we took shelter from the rain at the hotel, with some earlier purchased Federal Donuts. Again, this was a brand I'd seen talked about Instagram, and in other blog posts. We tried the Mississippi Mud Pie, and also Oreo crumbed (think of a fairground doughnut, but instead of it being coated in sugar, it's covered in warm Oreo crumbs) and quite frankly they were super tasty. We played cards, and generally chilled out - it was some well-needed relaxation time.
If I ever visited again, I'd love to visit the Franklin Institute, but still, I was very impressed with how much we managed to squeeze in, and our 2.5 (okay almost 3) days in the city were great! If you missed part one you can view it here and keep your eyes peeled for my New York posts too!
Kisses
Chlo
