STOP 1 | Philly with Olga: what are you doing in Philly?

Many people looked at me with eyes wide open when heard about me going to Philly as the first stop of my sabbatical. I would never stressed too much how happy I was before and I am now after the Philly's stop.

What can you do in Philly with 36° C (97°F)? Well, beyond conceiving the motto of my sabbatical, it was 5 days full of amusement and amazingness, and wine, and beers, and smiles and laughs, and cultural exchanges. I had not planned anything really in advance, but life surprised me with a lot of things.

1st Day: Arrival

On this day I had to work, as it was still a working day for me. I did a lot of emails in the morning, some meetings, got in touch with all my team and my amazing replacement. Olga and I went out for a late lunch. And probably today was the very day when Olga destroyed her foot while walking to city center with flip-flops. We went to Reading Terminal Market and we had an amazing sandwich with brisket (she got corned beef). I still remember the taste in my mouth.

2nd Day | Saturday: Shopping + Cruise Dinner

I needed to buy some light colored long-sleeved tops and up until then I hadn't been lucky, so Olga drove me to the Columbia outlet. Obviously she bought something for herself as well – this is what girls usually do, even when they do not need anything – but the most amazing things were 2:

• Me wearing S-size. S size. S stands for small. I believe it had never happened to me, not even when I was a baby, probably.

• Olga giving me compliments how I was wearing white, and my sun glasses and my other glasses, and my hat: a girl congratulating me for my look?! WTF was happening?!
• (Yes, Olga, you created a monster with all the compliments, but I did not ask for it :P)

But what's next? This seemed a really cheesy thing to do, but I wanted to do a to-be-remembered opening dinner. Found Spirit of Philadelphia Cruise Tour on Viator. I went there with Olga and Julie, Olga’s friend: me surrounded by 2 girls, I felt the excitement of a teenager :P. Such dinner was pricey but worth it, every single moment of it and the food was pretty good for being a touristic thing (despite the overcooked pasta).

3rd Day ! Sunday: Tubing on Delaware River

I had not freaking idea on what Tubing was before going to Philly. Tubing is, let me find an official definition: “Tubing is a recreational activity where an individual rides on top of an inner tube, either on water, snow, or through the air.” (Wiki). There were about 20 of us, I cannot remember all the names, but apparently Olga did her best to organize this for the weekend of my visit: we spent 5h on the river, in full-relaxed mode. I also fell asleep, or tried to. I got to know a bunch of Olga’s other friends and I didn’t get burned, after 5 hours under the sun.

4th Day ! Monday: Discovering Philly with Historical Tour + Bus Tour

I did not known that the US Constitution was written in Philly, neither did I know Benjamin Franklin lived and operated in Philly: “A penny saved is twopence dear”, ie: if you save your money you can double it. I did not even know that Betsy Ross lived here and she 

 

It was 2h+ tour: our guide was amazing, however walking at 37° C was not, so I lost track of history towards the end. After that, I took a City Sightseeing tour. I seated - under the san - for additional 1.5h.

For dinner, I was able to secure a spot - with my digital skills (I was just lucky!) - in an allegedly great restaurant in New Jersey, that Olga has always wanted to try. Overall it was a nice dinner, we laughed a lot - I love when I make people laugh - and the waiters made us laugh a lot as well, as they were slightly unexperienced. Restaurant was pricey, but average probably (at least to Olga), but the amazing thing was that it was suggested by the girl, so I wouldn't take any responsibilities. I ended with a deca espresso that was "fresh" according to the waiter!

5th Day ! Tuesday: Italian Tour + Tarot Reading

Olga decided to work today and I kept my touring. Philly is full of Italian history and Italian immigrants, what I discovered once looking for things to do there. I signed-up for an Italian tour on AirBnB which was pretty good. I got also the change to taste an espresso (which was average, but not completely bad) and a pretty good Sicilian pistachio gelato (yes, gelato, not ice-cream, guys!).

After that I booked a Tarot reading. I've never done anything like this before in my life, but I felt I should do it. It was a 1h long reading. Still need to metabolize it - I got the vocal recording. Some jey points:

• I am leaving a more balanced life
• I should listen to my heart
• I should start dating again - there is wedding and honeymoon in my future (??!?!), despite some compromise I need to accept
• I need to rely on a shaman or a mentor to get more guided.

It ended with a question:

I believe I am about to switch to the feel part, but still...

After this experience, together with Olga I enjoyed the very famous Philly Cheese Stake. Olga saved a life that day at the hospital, what a great way to celebrate it! It was meat and cheese, nothing probably special, but I really liked it.

6th Day ! Wednesday: Departure

I got a haircut. Probably I am living everything like a dream, but the barber told me while talking: “Experience is the only Teacher”!

This stuck with me deeply. I then dropped by the grocery store to buy ingredients for Carbonara.

I finished my painting, but had Olga painted “Life” as I liked her style more. After carbonara and recharging all my electronic equipment, Olga dropped me at the airport – this time setting up directions in Google Maps.

Only issue with my flight was an absurd delay caused by something completely trivial, that made the flight accrue 1.5h delay. Basically I was supposed to arrive at 9:15PM local time Miami, while my flight to Ecuador was supposed to depart from Miami at 9:10PM: I was fucked!

With internet connection on the plane – I will always bless my current company and all the benefits it provides to its employees – I entered the planning mode. Spending one night in Miami, then one in Guayaquil, then paying an additional flight 600 USD to reach Galapagos, then, then…I took a breathe, I stopped and I said to myself again: take life at it comes.

Eventually my flight to Miami was full of people directed to Ecuador, so the second flight decide to wait the incoming connection. I got lucky and reached Ecuador mainland at 2AM, with the joy of the driver that was waiting for me.