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Let me clarify that I'm not a Philly area basher since I grew up here..about 15 minutes outside of the city in Delaware County but there's no real difference. Truthfully as of late, however, I'm realizing that it's time to go. There are quite a few perceptions and stereotypes of this "great" city ranging from the idiots that booed Santa Claus down to the City of Brotherly Love. The good and the bad. The things that only we are aware of. Let me begin.
Food
-Yes, cheesesteaks.. but "Whiz" on your cheesesteak? No. "Whiz" is garbage. The best cheesesteaks are actually right outside of the city in the Delco suburbs. A true cheesesteak doesn't have artificial cheese, but is finely chopped and fried with the sliced up provolone.
-Nifty Fiftys.. worth a trip just for the Pistol Pete Spicy fries and the 100's of milkshakes and sodas to choose from.
-Scrapple... yes they even make Turkey Scrapple for my non-pork eating brethren. For you out-of-towners, scrapple = all of the crap cut out of the pig that normally goes in the trash. Just think of the goodness of it and not that you could literally be eating a pig's anus.
-The Italian Market is no longer the Italian Market. It's there, but I guess the Italians have been on vacation the past 15+ years, but thankfully they have the Vietnamese and Koreans running shop while they're gone...wait. Gone, is the traditional price bartering. Here, is the "you buy now!" You can still find some traditional Italian delis, but many aren't on the main market strip.
Diner Culture- Philly and its surrounding area, in my opinion, is the mecca of diners. Philly seems to have plenty and in Delaware County, every town seems to have a 24-hour diner. Now we're not talking Denny's because Denny's obviously is vile. I'm talking small town around the corner diners ie Llanerch, Country Squire, Olympic etc etc. I'd rather my late night crumpled up money go to a mom and pop diner that reheats wholesale food in a giant microwave than a chain that reheats wholesale food in a giant microwave. Nothing beats getting your cake dessert that's conveniently been sitting behind the glass on display for the past thirty-six hours at room temperature at a mom and pop spot. Plus diners are great places to eat after hitting the bar. 1. Because the heavy food sits well in an alcohol oiled stomach and most importantly...2. You could be sitting at a table obliterated eating breakfast at 3am with cops sitting in the booth behind you and THEY WON'T BOTHER YOU!! Local police know that drunkards like yourself, keep the place in business because at regular hours only seniors will spend their hard earned $4.99 from social security on a meal. Yes, it's a business between the two.. police have a place to eat late at night and YOU keep them fueled with their stale jelly donuts since your hard earned money keeps the place open. Just park in the next lot and you'll be fine. When I do move, I will miss diner culture.
Location
Philly is one of the few cities I know whose surrounding suburbs have lower housing values the closer you get to city limits. Look around Delco.. Darby, Colwyn, Collingdale, Folcroft etc etc. If you want to find a nice suburb outside of Philly, believe me.. it's worth driving the extra 15-20 minutes. Not degrading everyone who lives in these places, but thanks to some, the city's heroin business is booming.
The Delco suburbs, in my opinion, have morphed into those areas surrounding southern cities. NONE OF THESE PLACES ACTUALLY HAS A DOWNTOWN (other than Media). Delco is chock full of strip malls and really always has been. It's suburban sprawl, but in the years has gotten worse and worse. There are no mom and pop shops, but plenty of Targets, plenty of Marshalls, and soon plenty of abandoned strip malls ignored because right down the street.. you guessed it, another strip mall in the works.
People
Philly is like a southern city the way it's segregated. Other than the Queen Village or Old City areas, nothing is diverse. Black people live in north, west, and southwest. Puerto Ricans rarely travel outside of K&A or North Phila. Italians in south, although that's grown smaller. Everyone basically stays to themselves racially. Compared to other NE cities, Philly seems 30 years or so behind in regards to cultural/racial progression, despite having Democrats running it for the past 60-some years and despite several African-American mayors. People seem stuck socially and economically, which explains why we're perceived as miserable. A constant state of limbo as if the MOVE bomb was dropped yesterday and not in 1985. Delco is not much better in regards to this... the further away from the city line, the whiter it gets. The further away from the Delaware River, the thinner the ghetto accents from white teenagers become. Sorry Lower Chi, but you people sound like a cross between Mac Miller and Bubba Sparxx.
The tough guy attitude.. not tough, but we're pissed off. It's the same old stuff. It's hot and humid in the summer and in the winter, I need an ice scraper to take off my underwear. Philly is ugly, just gritty if you happen to examine it while driving I-95 north or south. Other than the brief several minutes where you can view the skyline at night, Philly is like the fat girl at the bar with the gaudy hoop earrings at 2am who looks "ok" after a night of drinking. Philly is that girl you just give an inconspicuous nod to if you happened to run into her after the encounter..you may just look at your watch to "check the time" if you're walking with a group of friends. Philly is not the girl you bring home to mom. Philly is the late night desperation phone call because no one else will answer your flirtacious texts and you're internet service is down. Money, yes rising costs make us angry. True, every metropolitan area is struggling but it's always seemed to me that Philly/suburban wages haven't correctly matched up with housing expenses for years. In the burbs, home values seem to rise but people are making the same they did 15 years ago. Northern NJ even seems as though it has more of a balance.
The girls... well... I'm not going to specify it's everyone but if you're out and not near a college or artsy area, chances are you'll encounter the typical (insert derogatory term) around here. If you're into that, just look for the brightest outfit a size or two too small, frizzified hair, and the girl who carries her cell phone around in her hand at all times while at the bar... did I mention the cell case is either zebra print or is littered with glittery diamond crap. A girl who is 1/4 Italian identifies herself as a "guida" or an "Italian princess", but yet the girl's got freckles and bad skin.No tanning everyday can't hide that. Yes, this area is filled with TJ MAXX caliber women, half the price, half the brains..last year's model or overstock from the big box store. Not to sound sexist, but take a trip to Delco preferably along MacDade BLVD or any Barnaby's location. Like I said, not all.. but just like a true hunter of the wild, listen for the cackling, the smoker voice and over-exagerated behaviors to find this species.
As people, we are LOYAL. I'm a Mets fan and have been since a child but I even enjoy going to CB Park when the Mets come to town to watch a game. Yes, it can be brutal but most people are cool to deal with if you keep a joking attitude. I know I'm going to get hassled, but unlike what people may assume... I've never gotten into a fight at the ballpark at least when it comes to rivalries. The loyalty runs deep and sports is only a small portion of this ideology. This is a blue-collar town that never really made the transition to a "first-class" city. Philly isn't on anyone's radar and really hasn't had any positive news stories since...well, Ben Franklin flew his kite. Unlike NYC, Philly isn't really a transplant city. Most who are here grew up here, so many of us can relate on that level. Gino's and Pat's are where the tourists go, but I can get into a convo with someone I don't know and talk about bars or steak-shops off on a side street or a smaller family owned joint a few towns over. Most of us know someone who knows someone especially when you get out into the burbs since many families have stayed in the area for generations. But in NYC, your hipster neighbor could be from Nebraska and the guy you work with is from Cali. Really, only in small pockets of Queens and Brooklyn do people grow up and continue to live and communicate with each other. This can be good and bad I guess.
Done for now... add on plz
Last edited by toobusytoday; 01-12-2013 at 12:11 PM..
Reason: removed a couple of vulgar comments
It has been painfully obvious on this forum that being from the area does not mean you can't be a basher. The op sounds like just another attempt of a narrow mind to paint with a broad brush.
Philly is one of the few cities I know whose surrounding suburbs have lower housing values the closer you get to city limits. Look around Delco.. Darby, Colwyn, Collingdale, Folcroft etc etc. If you want to find a nice suburb outside of Philly, believe me.. it's worth driving the extra 15-20 minutes. Not degrading everyone who lives in these places, but thanks to some, the city's heroin business is booming.
That's only true with respect to the DelCo inner ring--doesn't change the high housing prices/affluent nature of Haverford, Lower Merion, Whitemarsh, Springfield MontCo, Cheltenham, Abington, Lower Moreland...
Quote:
Originally Posted by FearMr.Met
The Delco suburbs, in my opinion, have morphed into those areas surrounding southern cities. NONE OF THESE PLACES ACTUALLY HAS A DOWNTOWN (other than Media). Delco is chock full of strip malls and really always has been. It's suburban sprawl, but in the years has gotten worse and worse. There are no mom and pop shops, but plenty of Targets, plenty of Marshalls, and soon plenty of abandoned strip malls ignored because right down the street.. you guessed it, another strip mall in the works.
Haverford, Radnor, Newtown, the Media Area, Swarthmore-Wallingford, Chadds Ford, etc. etc. are far and away from soulless and sprawling. Springfield and Marple are really the only areas that broadly fit that description. Outer DelCo remains divided between sprawl and wilderness.
Oh, I found it amusing. A little messed up in parts, but definitely full of some truths that I have thought but would not speak out loud. Actually, I find it less of a bash and more of a typical Philadelphian "we love ourselves while pretending to hate ourselves" love letter (best taken with a huge grain of salt). At any rate, it made me laugh a couple of times.
While I think that most of what you are saying a vague generalization that is exaggerated and false in a lot of aspects. I do find it a shame that outer delco (darby, folcroft, collingdale etc) is really on a downswing. It would be great if those areas transformed into a more young professional scene, rather than the most of the hoodlum type of people who live there now. But I would not categorize most of the suburbs as soulless, a majority of Delaware county is not soulless, though there a lot of new development in the newer suburbs however that comes in any city, even in the northeast. Much of chester bucks and montgomery counties have a lot of old money beautiful areas, even though toll brothers is taking over, I just think if your going to be harsh on Philadelphia and calling it a southern city, than you might as well put New York Boston and DC(may be south already) in that category too.
While I think that most of what you are saying a vague generalization that is exaggerated and false in a lot of aspects. I do find it a shame that outer delco (darby, folcroft, collingdale etc) is really on a downswing. It would be great if those areas transformed into a more young professional scene, rather than the most of the hoodlum type of people who live there now. But I would not categorize most of the suburbs as soulless, a majority of Delaware county is not soulless, though there a lot of new development in the newer suburbs however that comes in any city, even in the northeast. Much of chester bucks and montgomery counties have a lot of old money beautiful areas, even though toll brothers is taking over, I just think if your going to be harsh on Philadelphia and calling it a southern city, than you might as well put New York Boston and DC(may be south already) in that category too.
The inner ring's negative transformation is entirely predictable. It's the logical place to push poor people.
Your post is very angsty. There are still a lot of edge towns in the inner ring that are un-pretentious, quality places to grow up. I lived in Folsom until college, and as I experienced the rest of the Philadelphia metro, I realized how dumpy it actually is. Then I saw a lot of the country and learned more about urbanization and ring theory and I'm slowly realizing that the area is not at all bad. I used to long to be in a "rich" family from Springfield with a nice house that had vinyl siding and a porch, and then I realized how boring that is. And I wanted to live in a place where I could really walk around until I travelled to rural Florida and Exton where you can't even get milk without a car. Delco really is a unique place and we should appreciate that.
When it comes time to buy my first hoyse, I have my eye on Lansdowne. There aren't many places in America where you can buy your own Victorian for under 350k.
Hallouise hit the nail on the head with this post. I know people from outside the region read a particular city's forum to get information about the place they either want to travel to or reside. Philly is a self loathing city, but in a weird twisted way, we take pride in our ugliness. For instance, if someone refers to you as an a**h**e, you can either a.) become offended and strike back verbally with an insult or b.) give a smirk and say, "you know it, I strive to be one". Really, we don't but we're opinionated. Sometimes borderline obnoxious if we want to spew our philosophies or passions. But that's us, we're passionate people.
There wasn't a real point to this post. I figured I'd throw a knuckleball to spice things up. I guess it can be perceived as a pros and cons of Philadelphia post, but that's been done... so consider it a rant or even a between the cracks reality check for someone new to the area.
The surrounding area comment... I'm not calling all of those towns mentioned trash, some of the people, however, yes. Trash is everywhere, but certain town's trash unfortunately fulfills a stereotype of these areas. But in all seriousness, the metro NY area has undergone a transformation. Certain cities across the Hudson in NJ that had many parallels of the Folcrofts and Landsdownes have been refurbished. Prices are through the roof now for rentals and homes to buy. I don't understand why some of these places never attempted to become part of a metro rather than a dilapidated outskirt. I saw someone mention Landsdowne. Like West Philly, there's beautiful architecture but many at least on the East Landsdowne side are barely standing. Landsdowne however has some nice spots, unfortunately Southwest/West is right there. Once again, I never understood how West Philly/Southwest (Kingsessing area) didn't ever have investors come in and try to renovate neighborhoods in the manner that sections of Brooklyn were re-done. So much potential. Same goes with Upper Darby, but like Philly corruption rules. Darby...not so much.
The inner ring's negative transformation is entirely predictable. It's the logical place to push poor people.
Your post is very angsty. There are still a lot of edge towns in the inner ring that are un-pretentious, quality places to grow up. I lived in Folsom until college, and as I experienced the rest of the Philadelphia metro, I realized how dumpy it actually is. Then I saw a lot of the country and learned more about urbanization and ring theory and I'm slowly realizing that the area is not at all bad. I used to long to be in a "rich" family from Springfield with a nice house that had vinyl siding and a porch, and then I realized how boring that is. And I wanted to live in a place where I could really walk around until I travelled to rural Florida and Exton where you can't even get milk without a car. Delco really is a unique place and we should appreciate that.
When it comes time to buy my first hoyse, I have my eye on Lansdowne. There aren't many places in America where you can buy your own Victorian for under 350k.
See I disagree with you there. From an uneducated outsider, when they hear the "Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington" MSA they go o no dangerous poor cities, why would anyone live there it must be terrible. Philadelphia is getting of that image, but not quick enough, cant say the same for the other two. However, my point on that is I feel that southeastern Pa and areas of South Jersey are some of the best areas to live in the country. Too many people are I guess obtuse, I have done extensive traveling of the entire area and I would not categorize it as dumpy. People just need to open their eyes and travel as you mentioned. Philadelphia is just a very old established area often mistaken for poor and dumpy.
Personally when I go down south or west, and I see an 8 lane road through a suburban town with a target on one side and home depot on the other, and the little tract housing blobs surrounding them I think that is so tacky and ugly and will look dumpy in 50 years or so, thats why I love Philadelphia more because so much of the area is classic and beautiful older development like Media, Swarthmore, Drexel Hill, Newtown Square, Radnor, Main Line, West Chester, Chadds Ford, Doylestown, Newtown, etc. And even newer developing areas for the most part are built in an acceptable way keeping regards to the town rather than just throwing up 500 houses that all look the same and ruin the character of the area.
I know it sounds like im defending my poor friend, but im not trying to act "angsty" or sound condescending.
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