Gaglione Bros. 1, Pat's 0

The first thing everyone associates with Philadelphia, so I'm discovering, is the cheeststeak. And, so the locals tell me, the Hatfield-McCoy of cheesteak rivalries is between Geno's and Pat's. So, one of the things I made sure to do while I was visiting Philly in late-May was to sample a 'steak from at least one of those establishments.

Technically, I failed in that quest. But, I did eat from a place at an indoor Farmer's Market that claims to be descended from Pat's (which itself claims to be the originator of the Philly cheesteak sandwich). Now, I've only been eating cheesesteaks for a year or so because I used to not eat red meat. But when a place opened up near me in Ocean Beach called Gaglione Brother's, I decided to leave my steak-less diet in the past and enjoy some variety.

Having enjoyed the Gaglione sandwhich quite a lot, I really was looking foward to an official "Philly" 'steak. Results: Gaglione Brothers 1, Pat's Knock-Off 0. The bread was a little tough, the meat was in big strips (which I know is more traditional) and dripping with greese. And the french fries didn't come close to comparing to Gaglione's (which may be the best french fry around, especially when they get overcooked just slightly and are all crunchy and ).

Aside from that, the trip was great. I lounged a little, but also saw a fair bit of the city. I've heard Philadelphia described as having a relatively small feeling given the fact it's one of the largest cities in the US. I trained at Donovan Waite Sensei's dojo in Center City, visited UPenn and met several of my fellow TFAers, too. I came out here ostensibly for a "hiring faire" which was neither a faire nor a hiring event. But, I did interview with a couple schools which may lead to something down the road. The placement process requires an advanced degree in theoretical mathematics and a minor in theology to understand, so I'll just wait until they tell me where to go.

I stayed with my friends Scott and Kristin (and their ginormous dog) who live very close to UPenn. They're renovating their house, following the script from "The Money Pit" as closely as possible. I'll spare them both and won't post the pics of them painting!