From VA to PA: John and Dor make the trek to the big city

This past weekend, my parents came up for a trip to see the new place and spend some time with us in the city. We did a walking tour of the neighborhood and showed them some of our favorite places. They were amazed how close everything was to us, and thought it was a really "cool" place :) After a brief happy hour at home, we went to Pietro's on South Street for dinner. Michael and his cousins used to go there a lot when he lived up here before, and we've been several times when visiting. The food is delicious and I love the relaxed atmosphere. The only downfall? I had forgotten how LARGE the food portions were! We left with three to-go boxes! That said, we had a fantastic dinner of leftovers Sunday night :) Apparently, there is a Rita's a few miles from where they live in Virginia but they had never been, so we introduced them to water ice as well. On Sunday, after Michael made breakfast for everyone (thanks MBT!), we took a 2-mile walk along Kelly Drive. They got to see lots of statues (Dad had to stop to read EVERY inscription...those who know him should not be surprised by this!), Historic Boathouse Row, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the famous Rocky statue! Not only is this area one of (if not my absolute) favorites in the city, my Mom always asks "Where are you in relation to Rocky?? Are you near Rocky??" The funny part is, she had never seen Rocky anyway (the statue, not the movie), so the question was moot. That said, I wanted her to see this iconic statue she asks about and I think they had a nice time. It was a gorgeous day with a light breeze, and people were out on the Schuylkill River in their kayaks and dragon boats...very picturesque.

After Kelly Drive, we took them to Rustica for a slice of pizza. Although I know we all liked it, I'm pretty sure it's safe to say my Mom would have married the pizza if she could have! She couldn't stop raving about it and even talked about it that night when she called to let us know they got home safely! I'm glad we introduced them to it, and they've already said it needs to be a stop anytime they come up again in the future. Done and done!