G A R D E N S  •  T R A I N S  •  B I R D S

the photographic journey

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Bartram's Garden

After arriving Thursday afternoon, we rented a car so that we could visit a few locations around town.  Our host, Mary Ellen, was unable to join us as she was working.  The first place we visited was Bartram's Garden, which is the oldest garden / arboretum in the United States!  It is located on the south side of Philadelphia, right beside the Schuylkill River.  We saw the old structures, some dating from the 1700's, and the old trees, some also nearly as old, and of course some birds.  The Garden was small in comparison to the more modern arboreta we have visited, but it was great to see this place and the house that was built by Mr. Bartram's own hand.

Bartram House	Gardens	Young Robin	Robin at River	Tidal River
Schuylkill Skyline	Stonework	Stone Porch	Flower Garden	Red White Blue
	Train from Bridge		Mockingbird

Late Lunch

It was getting late in the afternoon, and we still had not eaten a proper lunch!  Nancy had been snacking, but I toughed it out and was starving.  So, on our way to the next destination, which Nancy wished to keep secret, we stopped at a Kentucky Fried Chicken.  This was after getting off of the highway (I-76, which runs north-south right beside the Schuylkill) to avoid rush hour traffic, affording us a more intimate view of the city.  We tried to take Germantown Road all the way out from Route 1, and the place we stopped for lunch turned out to be... interesting.  Something was different about this particular KFC.  It had inch-and-a-half thick glass separating the public from the workers, above the transaction counter!  This included protected pass-throughs which would allow the food to placed in from one side, preventing the door on the other side from opening until the first door was closed.  It was the Bulletproof KFC.

As we were about to leave, a black man who had been trying to get someone's attention behind us for quite some time finally came up to the counter to complain.  He claimed that he had been there 20 minutes, and still they had not given him his food.  He was angry and vocal, and the gal at the register tried to calm him by asking simply, What did you order?  His answer was immediate, and unambiguous:  "Chicken!"

Morris Arboretum

After driving up Germantown Road, through a fantastically cozy chain of old-world streetscapes, we finally reached The Place, a special destination which Nancy wanted to be a surprise to me.  Unfortunately, Mary Ellen had let slip the word "arboretum", and so I had an inkling of what kind of Place it might be.  But this place was unique in that it not only contained lots of trees, but it also had a significant garden railroad in operation!  And to top it off, there was to be a free musical performance, with music inspired by Turkish, Hungarian, and Greek folk styles.  The music wafted through the air, letting us enjoy the rest of the park and of course the trains.  Eventually, we settled down to watch the final minutes of the concert, and then when it ended, we managed to get thrown out!  We were kissing on the park bench, and were told that they were closing.

Entering Morris	Gardens	Garden Railroad	Fantasy	Baltimore & Ohio
Bridge Boy	Sunset		Log Tunnel	English Garden

National Train Show

Mary Ellen needed to work on Friday as well, so Nancy and I were on our own to return the rental car and make our way to downtown.  We trusted my sense of direction, but when we ended up on the south side of the highway and didn't see our rental car company, we had to stop and ask for directions.  Of course, we were only blocks away, needing simply to pass under the highway to the other side, which was not bad considering I was guiding us without any sort of map at all.

We waited at the airport for the commuter train, on the platforms for the R1.  As we got there, a train pulled in and so we hurried to purchase our tickets.  Then, we got out to the cars and I saw something that told me to halt:  the trainset was labeled "R2-Warminster".  I decided that we should wait for the R1, which might arrive on the other of the two tracks.  Of course, no such train ever arrived, and just as the R2 left the station I finally found Warminster on the map; turns out, the R1 and R2 routes overlap through downtown and we could have taken it!

But we finally arrived, waiting a half hour for the next train, and I was pleased to see that the Pennsylvania Convention Center was attached to the old Reading Railroad passenger terminal.  My entry to the train show was by getting off a commuter train, walking the length of a grand terminal, and with my true love at my side!  The show itself was not as impressive as I remembered the Cincinnati show being last year, but it was still more than I could see in one day.  Nancy was fascinated by the large Lego Train Layout, which was loaded with all sorts of whimsical scenes as well as models of specific buildings and even warships!

Route R2?	Platform R1?	Nancy and N&W	N-scale N&W	Lego Philly
		USS Constitution

Teikoku

Friday night, four of us got together for a meal out at this Japanese-fusion restaurant near Mary Ellen's home to the west of Philly.  David DeMarco is Mary Ellen's serious boyfriend, and Nancy had first met him on her trip to the Grand Canyon.  This was a fun time as we all got along well.  Unfortunately, this would be the only time that David would be able to spend with us.

	Foursome		Restaurant
		Yes, I had salmon.

Longwood Gardens

Mary Ellen's mother Helen joined us for a visit to Longwood Gardens, one of the most impressive such places that Nancy and I have ever visited.  We broke some rules by bringing in some of our own food; Mary Ellen is a bit of a bad influence, I think.  The pictures speak for themselves - if ever you find yourself in Philadelphia, put Longwood on your list!

Longwood Entry	Mellen and Helen	Threesome	Promenade	Frame This
Red Row	Wedding Party	Lake Looker	Shoreline	Lovely
Italian Fountains	Amish	Meadow Me	Nancy's Porch	Snapdragon
Conservatory	Fountain Show	Inside	Columns & Fuschia	Perfect Burst
In love	In Lily pads		Orchid Room	Last One

Night Swim

The condominiums included a communal pool, so Nancy and I had each packed our swimsuits just in case.  After a couple of days on my feet, I was in need of the refreshment of a swim.  Unfortunately, it was getting late, and the pool would be closed at 8 PM.  Not to fear!  The rogue Mary Ellen knew of an unlocked back way into the pool, and so we snuck past her neighbor (who was an officer of the condo association) to go frolic in the pool for a while.  At first, it was cold without the sun, but ultimately it proved to be a lot of fun and worth the potential $100 fine.

Sunday

I have no further photos of the trip, because the card in my camera was filling up and its battery was also dying.  We went to church with Mary Ellen, and then went off on our own while she spent the day with her mother.  We took in a show - "Over The Hedge" - and spent a whole afternoon and evening just talking, being with each other.  Pictures cannot capture the beauty of times like those.

Monday

We woke up at 5 AM for our return flight(s) to Chicago, and things went smoothely until we arrived in O'Hare.  We had a layover in New York City, but hazy skies prevented us from seeing much of it.  Neither of us thought anything about it, when we agreed to eat some pizza for lunch - at 10 AM!  On the second leg of our trip, we flew over Lake Erie, and then I saw its northern shore, letting me know I was seeing Canada.  I kept watching, and soon found Lake Huron, and later still I saw the bridge that let me know we were flying right over Port Huron, where Randi and Jim live!  I would never have seen this if Nancy had not sacrificially given me the window seat, proof that she really does love me.

But when we got to Chicago, we took a moment to visit the restrooms, and then hurried down to baggage claim.  Carousel #3 indicated our flight, but as we waited, it never showed that the bags for our flight were available.  Indeed, though other flights and their bags came and went, we never found our own.  Finally, our flight number was removed from the carousel, and we went to ask.  Ultimately, we had to report our missing bags, and they agreed to deliver them to us.  I had to go ahead and drive on back to Cincinnati, and hope to get my luggage there.  It was scary for a while, until I finally got mine at 9 PM on Tuesday.  Nancy had hers much earlier.

THE END
by Michael R. Rountree
wpandp.com