Last weekend, I told my husband we didn't need to make our usual grocery run, because for the next two weeks we'd be taking part in that time-honored tradition - the graduation party - nearly a dozen times. Prepare for hot dogs, hamburgers, potato salad and, of course, cake.
Tyburn held its graduation ceremony June 20 at St. Mary's, and watching our small but determined senior class over the last few months has been fun as well as nostalgic. For the past month, the seniors have been literally stuck together, loathe to leave each other as they realize they're about to go their separate ways.
My husband and I were fortunate that a last-minute change of plans gave us the opportunity to chaperone the senior class trip, this year to Philadelphia. When asked, we said sure, we've never been there, and we were glad we did. With the price of gas out of sight and people looking for vacation destinations closer to home, we can highly recommend Philly, less than a five hour drive from Auburn.
We, as well as the students, were very impressed by this beautiful city. The city is very green and there are parks everywhere. Several of the students commented on how clean it was, and we noticed that it was probably so because there seemed to be trash cans every few feet. Our hotel was only a block from the well-kept historic district, and we, of course, visited Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell.
Also nearby was the National Constitution Center, less than 10 years old. Since our CityPass included tickets to it, we stopped in and found we could have spent much more time than we had allotted - I hadn't realized there was so much to learn about the Constitution.
We've gotten quite a few raised eyebrows when we mention our most unusual tour. In the middle of Philadelphia sits the Eastern State Penitentiary, billed as America's most historic prison. Opened in 1829, the prison was a model for others around the world for more than a century. Now its crumbling wagon-wheel layout is open for self-guided tours directed by audio tapes through headphones. Al Capone spent a year there, and his cell is preserved with his desk, lamp and comfortable bed.
Being from a “prison town,” not to mention having one student's parent a correction officer, we all found this tour very informative and fun.
When he heard that we were headed to Philly, Father Lioi from St. Mary's said, “Oh, you must see the famous organ in Wanamaker's.” The store, which is now Macy's, contains what is the world's largest operational organ. There is a larger one in Atlantic City, but it is not functional. Wanamaker's is played twice a day. We managed to see it but unfortunately didn't get to hear its 28,000 pipes or see anyone play on its six manual keyboards.
Our CityPass included one of those standard hop-on, hop-off bus tours through a good portion of the city. We were lucky to have very knowledgeable and entertaining guides. We saw the statue of “Rocky” at the base of the 72 steps to the Philadelphia Art Museum. Apparently when the statue was first placed there it caused a great deal of controversy, with art purists insisting that a “movie prop” had no business among the Van Goghs, Rubens and Monets. But when they discovered that after people were finished posing for a picture next to the statue, many of them actually came in and looked at the art work, Rocky prevailed and the statue stands.
The museum itself is on beautiful Benjamin Franklin Parkway, which is modeled after Paris' Champs Elysees and lined on both sides with international flags. We spent a couple of hours at the Franklin Institute, a hands-on science museum. On Saturday evening, we attended a performance of “Les Miserables;” it's my favorite show (and my sixth time).
It's funny how some things work out well without planning. On Sunday morning, we asked at the hotel for a list of nearby churches and chose one simply because it was two blocks away and had a Mass in 10 minutes. St. Augustine's turned out to be one of the most beautiful churches we've ever seen, with art work by Philip Costaggini, who was one of the painters of the frieze on the Capitol Rotunda in Washington. Father Joe turned out to be a dynamic speaker, and parishioners who recognized us as - an obvious Catholic school group - invited us to coffee hour. Teenagers are always cheerful after free doughnuts.
Our last afternoon was spent at the zoo, the oldest in the country. While we enjoyed the animals and several of the students and my husband took a hot-air balloon ride, I will issue a warning here - if you go, take a lunch. Let's just say that the refreshment stands could use some advice from efficiency experts.
Dinner on our last night was also an accident. We walked from our hotel in the direction of the waterfront, finding a lively area of shops and restaurants and ended up in a restaurant called “Cuba,” mostly because it had room for the 10 of us without waiting. The two-story semi-open courtyard was colorful and full of plants, fans and paintings; it turns out that it was built by a company which designs movie sets and has actually been used for filming and photo shoots. Oh, and the food was great.
The trip was over too quickly and all agreed we could have spent another week there. Pat and I were laughing at another school group in our hotel; the chaperones sat up in the hall all night and then were dragging themselves out the door in the morning. We were rather smug when we told them that with our group that wasn't necessary - we were asleep before the students.
We will definitely be putting Philly on our go-again list and next time will see the art museum as well as several other interesting-sounding museums, the aquarium and more of the riverfront. We definitely recommend Philadelphia if you're looking for a mini vacation close to home.
Barbara Murphy is the school
nurse and does publicity for
Tyburn Academy
My husband and I were fortunate that a last-minute change of plans gave us the opportunity to chaperone the senior class trip, this year to Philadelphia. When asked, we said sure, we've never been there, and we were glad we did. With the price of gas out of sight and people looking for vacation destinations closer to home, we can highly recommend Philly, less than a five hour drive from Auburn.
We, as well as the students, were very impressed by this beautiful city. The city is very green and there are parks everywhere. Several of the students commented on how clean it was, and we noticed that it was probably so because there seemed to be trash cans every few feet. Our hotel was only a block from the well-kept historic district, and we, of course, visited Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell.
Also nearby was the National Constitution Center, less than 10 years old. Since our CityPass included tickets to it, we stopped in and found we could have spent much more time than we had allotted - I hadn't realized there was so much to learn about the Constitution.
We've gotten quite a few raised eyebrows when we mention our most unusual tour. In the middle of Philadelphia sits the Eastern State Penitentiary, billed as America's most historic prison. Opened in 1829, the prison was a model for others around the world for more than a century. Now its crumbling wagon-wheel layout is open for self-guided tours directed by audio tapes through headphones. Al Capone spent a year there, and his cell is preserved with his desk, lamp and comfortable bed.
Being from a “prison town,” not to mention having one student's parent a correction officer, we all found this tour very informative and fun.
When he heard that we were headed to Philly, Father Lioi from St. Mary's said, “Oh, you must see the famous organ in Wanamaker's.” The store, which is now Macy's, contains what is the world's largest operational organ. There is a larger one in Atlantic City, but it is not functional. Wanamaker's is played twice a day. We managed to see it but unfortunately didn't get to hear its 28,000 pipes or see anyone play on its six manual keyboards.
Our CityPass included one of those standard hop-on, hop-off bus tours through a good portion of the city. We were lucky to have very knowledgeable and entertaining guides. We saw the statue of “Rocky” at the base of the 72 steps to the Philadelphia Art Museum. Apparently when the statue was first placed there it caused a great deal of controversy, with art purists insisting that a “movie prop” had no business among the Van Goghs, Rubens and Monets. But when they discovered that after people were finished posing for a picture next to the statue, many of them actually came in and looked at the art work, Rocky prevailed and the statue stands.
The museum itself is on beautiful Benjamin Franklin Parkway, which is modeled after Paris' Champs Elysees and lined on both sides with international flags. We spent a couple of hours at the Franklin Institute, a hands-on science museum. On Saturday evening, we attended a performance of “Les Miserables;” it's my favorite show (and my sixth time).
It's funny how some things work out well without planning. On Sunday morning, we asked at the hotel for a list of nearby churches and chose one simply because it was two blocks away and had a Mass in 10 minutes. St. Augustine's turned out to be one of the most beautiful churches we've ever seen, with art work by Philip Costaggini, who was one of the painters of the frieze on the Capitol Rotunda in Washington. Father Joe turned out to be a dynamic speaker, and parishioners who recognized us as - an obvious Catholic school group - invited us to coffee hour. Teenagers are always cheerful after free doughnuts.
Our last afternoon was spent at the zoo, the oldest in the country. While we enjoyed the animals and several of the students and my husband took a hot-air balloon ride, I will issue a warning here - if you go, take a lunch. Let's just say that the refreshment stands could use some advice from efficiency experts.
Dinner on our last night was also an accident. We walked from our hotel in the direction of the waterfront, finding a lively area of shops and restaurants and ended up in a restaurant called “Cuba,” mostly because it had room for the 10 of us without waiting. The two-story semi-open courtyard was colorful and full of plants, fans and paintings; it turns out that it was built by a company which designs movie sets and has actually been used for filming and photo shoots. Oh, and the food was great.
The trip was over too quickly and all agreed we could have spent another week there. Pat and I were laughing at another school group in our hotel; the chaperones sat up in the hall all night and then were dragging themselves out the door in the morning. We were rather smug when we told them that with our group that wasn't necessary - we were asleep before the students.
We will definitely be putting Philly on our go-again list and next time will see the art museum as well as several other interesting-sounding museums, the aquarium and more of the riverfront. We definitely recommend Philadelphia if you're looking for a mini vacation close to home.
Barbara Murphy is the school
nurse and does publicity for
Tyburn Academy
