Mind blown during my first trip to Philly (Philadelphia, Allentown: 2015, crime)

[charlesxm]

I went to Philly last year for the first time. I have to admit I was a little nervous because of the reputation that it has for being a rough and dumpy city. I currently live in Dallas, TX and moved here a few years ago from North Carolina to go to school. One of my coworkers (who has never been to the northeast) told me to watch my back and be careful before I went. I was taking this trip because of my curiosity. I have always had an interest in traveling and never really heard much about Philly except for the crime and history. However, in all of the research that I had done, the city seemed to have a lot to offer so I decided to check it out for myself.

I flew to Philly and decided to get around on foot and use the transit so I could get a really good feel of the city. I immediately fell in love with the city. I took the regional rail from the airport into Center City. Yes the city has some pretty run down areas, but I have to say that I loved some of the graffiti art I saw during the train ride. I found Center City to be a vibrant diverse area with some great places to eat and amazing history and architecture. I rode the subway to University City and checked out Penn and Drexel and took the Broad St line north to check out Temple. Walked down South St at night and walked around society hill and the art museum area. I finally rented a car and drove out to the burbs and checked out the main line and even went up to Allentown before heading back to TX.

I have to say that Philly is a great city. It is a very underrated city with so much to offer. I felt like the city is very genuine and knows how to mix the old and the new. It's sad that the city gets such a bad reputation because of its past. I know it still has some improvements to work on but its still nowhere near as bad as people make it out to be. I decided that I am going to move to Philly in May 2015 after I graduate.

[pman]

glad you enjoyed it and philly looks forward to welcoming a new resident. reputations take a long time to change

[Louden]

I'm glad to read such a positive and well written story like this! Thanks

Half of the people I tell that I'm moving to Philly have no idea where in the US it's located, let alone know anything about the reputation. But the ones who do know it, mostly heard about it through Louis Theroux' documentary or other documentaries about drugs and violence. Even some of the first responses of my American friends were quite negative. However, the more I read about Philly, especially through stores like this, and the hours I spend walking through it on Google street view, the more I feel that this is a city with character that will have so much to offer.

[FrankInPhilly]

Originally Posted by charlesxm

I went to Philly last year for the first time. I have to admit I was a little nervous because of the reputation that it has for being a rough and dumpy city. I currently live in Dallas, TX and moved here a few years ago from North Carolina to go to school. One of my coworkers (who has never been to the northeast) told me to watch my back and be careful before I went. I was taking this trip because of my curiosity. I have always had an interest in traveling and never really heard much about Philly except for the crime and history. However, in all of the research that I had done, the city seemed to have a lot to offer so I decided to check it out for myself.

I flew to Philly and decided to get around on foot and use the transit so I could get a really good feel of the city. I immediately fell in love with the city. I took the regional rail from the airport into Center City. Yes the city has some pretty run down areas, but I have to say that I loved some of the graffiti art I saw during the train ride. I found Center City to be a vibrant diverse area with some great places to eat and amazing history and architecture. I rode the subway to University City and checked out Penn and Drexel and took the Broad St line north to check out Temple. Walked down South St at night and walked around society hill and the art museum area. I finally rented a car and drove out to the burbs and checked out the main line and even went up to Allentown before heading back to TX.

I have to say that Philly is a great city. It is a very underrated city with so much to offer. I felt like the city is very genuine and knows how to mix the old and the new. It's sad that the city gets such a bad reputation because of its past. I know it still has some improvements to work on but its still nowhere near as bad as people make it out to be. I decided that I am going to move to Philly in May 2015 after I graduate.

Philly does, indeed, have a lot to offer, and you did the right thing by mixing public and private transit. You can spend all the time you want on the web reading about a city, but there's no substitute for being there to confirm/refute/create impressions. Back in September I went to Cleveland for 3 days just to see what it was like (no relocation in mind or anything related to my job, just wanted to see the city). I got around using public transit and my feet. Had no agenda (other than the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame), and had a GREAT time. The trip blew away my preconceptions of the city. Sounds like your trip did the same, only in a possibly more life-altering way. Congratulations on being open-minded and realizing adventures aren't confined to rappelling off mountains or scooting a kayak through rapids!

[charlesxm]

Thanks. Another thing that I found interesting was that the people that I encountered were actually friendly. I had always heard that people in Philly are aggressive and rude. But I saw people as friendly and direct. I get the feeling that people in Philly aren't going to go out of their way to be polite like people in the south but, they are friendly when you interact with them. People in Philly don't seem like they are fake and that they will not waste time getting to a point. Also, I was amazed at how the drivers were noticeably aware of bicyclists and pedestrians. In Dallas, drivers will cut off pedestrians and cyclists without any hesitation. Now I'm not going in with this naive idea that EVERY person in Philly is like what I just described but these are the things that I noticed in my interactions with the people there.

[RightonWalnut]

Glad you really enjoyed it!!! Philly will be happy to have a new resident

[Ms_Christina]

We like the reputation. Keeps the annoying people from moving here

[AJNEOA]

My wife and I did the same thing as you seven years ago. Visited with an open mind and were also blown away by the city and the people. Coming from Upstate NY, we felt at home (blue collar, direct communication, etc.) and after about 30 visits later, we just moved into the city this week. It took a while, but the planning and saving has undoubtedly improved our experience in the city.

Next time you're in town, be sure to venture to other neighborhoods like East Passyunk, Fishtown, Mt. Airy, Germantown, etc. Seems like you covered some great ground on your first trip, but the coolest thing about the city is that there are so many neighborhoods that make it interesting and worthwhile. Then there are beautiful towns in the burbs to visit via day trips, many of which you can do on regional rail.

[OptimusPrime69]

Philly really does have a lot to offer.
Afterall, it is the 2nd biggest city on the east coast after NYC.

I've traveled there quite a few times for work and have always enjoyed my stay there.

[Duderino]

To the OP, glad to hear you enjoyed your exploration of Philadelphia and now intend to move to the city! There's nothing like truly immersing yourself in a place in-person, and it sounds like you did a great job doing just that.

Originally Posted by Ms_Christina

We like the reputation. Keeps the annoying people from moving here

I think there's actually a lot of truth to this. People who are obsessed with image and superficiality would not do well in Philly--this goes a long way towards keeping the city genuine and accessible to people from all walks of life.