City of Brotherly Love? Yes.

It seems counterintuitive....to head up north and find even friendlier people than here in the south.  But we met the most helpful and kind people in Philadelphia.  It really is the City of Brotherly Love (see all the kids running around the fountain below?  So fun!).

1.  I made friends with the people at the front desk of the Hilton Garden Inn on Arch street, where we stayed.  They not only helped me with my gargoyle hunting, but they gave me free breakfast coupons for me and Paul.  For all three mornings we were there!  We were spoiled with crepes and made to order omelets with fresh fruit and bacon.

2.  The a/c in my car went out on the drive up.  It's a 6.5 hour drive.  It was 91* outside.  It was 91* inside the car, with the windows rolled down, on I-95.  Not a fun experience.  So I had a little trouble when asking around for recommendations of a place to fix my car.  Turns out most of the folks I asked didn't have cars, because they lived in the city and used public transportation.  But I met one of the Amtrak conductors on a little train I took to catch a commuter train to Manhattan to visit my uncle for the day.  She was fascinating to talk to - telling me stories from her twenty+ years of life on the trains.  She was able to direct me to a Firestone a couple of miles from our hotel.

3.  I took my car to the Firestone.  Paul and I ran back from there, leaving my car for the day.  They put Freon in it, and tried to pressurize the a/c or something, but their machine broke halfway through the job.  They needed a new filter for their machine.  They thought we'd be okay on the way home (we were) but they apologized for not being able to complete the job 100%.  Then they didn't charge me.  And on top of that?  They also fixed a tail light that was burned out.  At no charge.

4.  We went to Hard Rock Café one night with Paul's boss and his wife.  It was crowded and things were moving a little slow.  Then they accidentally burned the burgers for two of us.  As a result, they didn't charge us for those burgers, and they gave us a round of drinks for free.

5.  A couple of times when I asked for help finding a place, I had people that left their jobs (at the hotel, and at a restaurant) to walk me to where I needed to go.  Wow.

In conclusion, Philly is awesome for all the history and museums and fun things to see.  But what struck me even more was how fantastic the people were.  Their impressions will stick with me even longer than the Liberty Bell.

Readers, when was the last time you met an incredible stranger?

Linked with Willy Nilly Friday.