Sky is always blue

I arrived in Philadelphia in the midst of scorching end-of-the-summer heat while it was quite chilly in South Hadley this morning. What a contrast of weather between the two places. Anyway, the flight took only an hour from Hartford to here but I spent more than an hour waiting in line at Hertz car rental to finally get a brand new Ford Focus for my next two days. The drive from the airport to my hotel was not bad at all even though I got off an exit prematurely and ended up driving around in a deserted ship yard somewhere along the river. Finally, I managed to get out of the maze and found my hotel right in downtown Philly.

Philly is similar to Boston than to New York City, with a stint of south side Chicago's industrial characteristics. I was a little bit surprised seeing many homeless individuals slounching around downtown area, which appears to be a poshy and high-end neighborhood with a lot of tourists and people who work in the financial industry. As I walked along Broad Street to City Hall, a woman (late 30s, white) approached me and asked me to take a photo of a homeless man/woman who was sleeping on the cemented pavement right outside of a stylish Italian restaurant. I was a little bit taken aback, and inquired of her intention. She then suggested that I should take the photo or call the police to arrest the homeless person. That was pretty odd, why should I do that? Apparently, the woman found the sight to be a little bit disturbing and as a local resident, she disapproved of it, stating that homeless people have stained the clean city atmosphere.

I bid the woman goodbye and minded my own business. With a map taken from the hotel, I strolled pass the City Hall making my way to Chinatown. Okay, I have to admit that I love visiting Chinatowns almost everywhere I go, whether it's big or small. Luckily for me, Philly's Chinatown is within walking distance from the hotel. After strolling for almost 10 blocks(or more) I began to survey the sounds of sights of the place. The sun was setting in the western sky and dusk came with the gradual change in the color of the sky and the hue of neon lights all over the place. I did some serious walking in my heels and I advise that other people should not do what I did because my feet were not cooperating with the venture I had planned; they began to ache. Fortunately, this Chinatown isn't as big as the one in New York City, and after walking up and down, crossing 5 to 10 intersections, I decided to find a place to get some chow chow. Friday night is not a good night for single dining, especially when you're in Chinatown. I still have the shyness of eating by myself in crowded and bustling Asian restaurants. It gives me the feeling of being deserted and abandoned.

When it came to the decision-making moment, I opted to visited Phở Cali and get myself a hot bowl of Phở. The place was not as crowded as other restaurants in the area, so I found myself a corner and get what I wanted. The Phở wasn't bad at all. When it time to leave, I ordered the Mango-flavor bubble tea. It was so yummy!

It's almost 11 pm, I am sitting in my hotel room, on the 11th floor, looking over a huge rooftop with countless number of cars; one of them is my rental from Hertz.

Good night!

Oh boy, first night at a strange hotel. How am I going to sleep tonight?