Kelly Gibbons, artist and writer, about me

Sunday, February 05, 2006

Philadelphia, PA

Our latest road trip took us to Philadelphia, PA to celebrate the girl's 16th birthday.

Live a Painted Life.
See more here.

We stayed right in the heart of the city at Loew's Philadelphia on Market Street. The hotel's convenient location was within walking distance to most of the main attractions. Love Park was two blocks away, and the historic sites (Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell) were about 10 blocks away. Of course, the teens in our group had no desire to do history, so luckily the Gallery at Market East (another big Mall) was super close (5 blocks), too. If I never had to shop on another vacation, I would be a happy person. Shopping does nothing for me!

Fortunately, we were also close to South Street, a funky artist haven lined with unique shops, art galleries, and eateries. It's the home of Philadelphia's Magic Gardens, the art studio and mosaic garden created by mosaic and mural artist, Isaiah Zagar.

This is my kind of place. Every inch is covered with art: The outside of the building, the inside of the building, the floors, the walls, the ceilings, the grounds. It's one huge mosaic sculpture. I could have stayed there forever. I felt like I was HOME. The gardens and studio have been open to the public for the last few years as a way to raise funds to purchase the land the mosaic garden is built on. The land was an abandoned, unclaimed, trash-strewn lot when Isaiah started the project, but eventually the owners came forward and planned to sell the lot. This meant the gardens would have to be destroyed. An anonymous donor came forward to save the gardens, but there is still a large balance owed on the mortgage, so the gardens and studio remain open in an attempt to raise the funds. When you get to Philadelphia, the gardens are a must see.

South Street is loaded with restaurants, and we had a hard time choosing. We settled on Jon's Bar and Grille (the birthplace of Stooge Larry Fine). We chose right. The food was reasonably priced, there was lots of it, and even though the place was packed it came out fast. It doesn't get much better than that.

The only downfall of the trip was the weather. A cold rain fell most of the day. This prevented us from exploring more. But, I have to say, it was another fabulous road trip, and I can't wait until the next one.

posted by Kelly @ 2/05/2006 01:50:00 PM

1 Comments:

At February 06, 2006 5:34 PM, Kelly's Biggest Fan said…

Sounds like a ton of fun :)