<p>We are visiting Penn this Friday while students are still moving in, so no class visit. Info/tour not until 1 pm. Any suggestions for what to see/do with the morning hours that might not be included in a tour? We hope to eat at a dining hall, but that still leaves us a couple hours to wander around. Ideas?
thanks!</p>
<p>The tour will take you to some academic buildings and dorms, so you will see the crucial stuff. I would suggest exploring just off campus: take a walk up Walnut Street from 34th all the way to 40th, and you will see a plethora of different stores and restaurants; turn left on 40th and walk south, and you will see a lot of places students frequent late at night (bars, sandwich shops, etc); go south to Baltimore and go down to around 45th Street or so, and you will see some wonderful mom-and-pop shops mixed in with some excellent restaurants in a quiet neighborhood that no students regret visiting, though very few actually do visit the neighborhood. At the very least, take a walk around the area just west of campus. Nearly half of all students live off campus after freshman year, and nearly all parties are held west of campus, so it is worthwhile to explore an area that you will spend a lot of time in during your four years at school.</p>
<p>If you are interested in performing arts, visit the Platt Student Performing Arts House, located at 37th and Spruce (southwest side, across from the Quad and underneath Stouffer). You will likely see campus groups rehearsing down there, as they work on performances they will use to recruit freshmen.</p>
<p>Since you are from the midwest, I will presume that you have never been to Philadelphia. I would suggest exploring Center City a little bit, as many students go there with friends to take advantage of one of the many BYOB restaurants Philadelphia has to offer.</p>
<p>Thank you so much - great information! I have only been to Philadelphia once before and that was with DS1 four years ago to see Swarthmore. DS2 wants larger school thus this visit. We are staying at Embassy Suites Center City so we will see a bit of that area in the morning too. Looking forward to it! thanks again.</p>
<p>I’d say find a student on CC with similar interests to show you around. The tours are obviously very well rehearsed and only show the side of Penn that the administration wants you to see. A student can give you a much better idea of what the university is really like.</p>
<p>Also, I would recommend you check out the philly orchestra though I’m not sure if their concert season has started yet. Tickets are dirt cheap for students and family members.</p>
<p>Are you thinking of things on campus that you won’t see on a tour or things in the surrounding area for entertainment? If you are thinking off campus, the Reading Terminal Market on North 12th Street is about half a mile from your hotel. Easily walked in about 15 minutes. You could go there for breakfast and walk around before heading over to campus. You could also check out south street, or Penns Landing. If you are thinking of on campus, what type of things are you interested in?</p>
<p>I just realized that you said you would be there during move in. Things will be crazy then and parking will be difficult. Spruce street in front of the Quad will be closed adding to the excitement. You might want to consider leaving your car at the hotel and taking a cab.</p>
<p>There’s also plenty of trolley and subway stops on campus if you don’t mind public transport.</p>
<p>Again, what do you find interesting? Museums? We have them, with exhibits ranging from paintings to mummies and a walk-through human heart.</p>
<p>For about 50 years Philly has had a 1% for art rule. Part of putting up any new building is a rule that the developer must spend 1% of the cost for public art. That’s why we have a huge clothespin across from city hall, a sculpture of a nose at 34th and Market (at the edge of Penn), an oversized paintbrush in front of the academy of fine arts, and so forth. If this sounds interesting, I’d contact the Greater Philadelphia Tourism and Marketing Corporation and ask whether they have a list of public art.</p>
<p>The Greater Philadelphia Culture Alliance has a website full of suggestions. We define culture very broadly, so it includes the zoo, some botanical gardens, some libraries, a storytelling organization, a center devoted to the constitution and another to the history of chemistry, and a number of festivals.</p>
<p>Speaking of festivals, the Live Arts and Fringe Festival will start at the end of the week. The schedule is on the website. There isn’t much in the morning, but performances will increase as the day progresses. Again, schedule is on the website. </p>
<p>Any other interests? We probably can find something for you. This is an amazing city!</p>
<p>Thank you all for your suggestions! I will definately have to return to see more of your city! I love that 1% for art rule. Given the brevity of our visit I think we will stay around campus with our extra morning time - but hey - perhaps the future holds four more years of visits. We’ll see :)</p>
<p>If you want to stay around campus, and this kind of thing interests you, I’d strongly recommend a visit to the Penn Museum:</p>
<p>[Penn</a> Museum - University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology](<a href=“Page Not Found | 404 - Penn Museum”>http://www.penn.museum/)</p>
<p>It’s one of the finest–and one of the most picturesque and architecturally interesting–museums of archaeology and anthropology in the country (if not the world), and it’s right there on campus!</p>
<p>And right now, in addition to its other amazing exhibits (real mummies, a giant crystal ball, a real sphinx, etc.), it’s hosting a special world premier exhibition called “Maya.2012–Lords of Time”:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.penn.museum/sites/2012/[/url]”>http://www.penn.museum/sites/2012/</a></p>