<p>Does Philly have subway transportation? How isolated is the Penn campus from the city? Does Philly feel just as exciting and busy as NYC does? Is Philly swarming with people (like NYC)? Are there any great food places that Penn students eat at? and lastly, this is a ridiculous question but do they sell NY Pizza that tastes like it does in New York? You are probably going to tell me to just apply to a college in New York, but I don't like how expensive everything is in NYC and the colleges there aren't really my type, so please, help me!</p>
<p>Also, how far away is downtown Philly from Penn? is it a walking distance?</p>
<p>In response t’ya questions:</p>
<p>Q1: UPenn is 'bout 8 minutes 'way from Center City, Philadelphia’s Downtown. They do have subway transp’tation, y’can look at 'em here: <a href=“Lines & Routes | SEPTA”>Lines & Routes | SEPTA;
<p>As for your third’n’fourth questions, I’ve no idea-I never been t’Philadelphia. But the two cities’ planning, culture, demographics, etc, are different, so it’s kinda logical that th’ two cities’d feel different.</p>
<p>And about the pizza…well, I dunno. I guess they wouldn’t, though.</p>
<p>Sorry if I wasn’t much 'elp.</p>
<p>Penn is about 2 miles from the absolute center of Philadelphia’s business district (depending on where you start – Penn covers a lot of territory). In good weather, it’s a perfectly nice walk, although people take public transportation a lot. </p>
<p>To give you a rough sense: Most of Philadelphia is on a pretty regular grid. Broad Street is the north-south street that bisects the city, and City Hall is at Broad and Market. If Broad St. were numbered, it would be 14th St. Parts of Penn’s campus start around 30th St., but the main part starts around 33rd and goes out to 40th, so about 19-26 blocks west of center. The northern edge of the Penn campus is a block south of Market St. Note that the main train station is at 30th St., between Penn and Center City.</p>
<p>Penn is served by 4 trolley lines, a subway, and numerous bus lines. It’s solidly in the public transportation grid.</p>
<p>Philadelphia is nowhere near as teeming with people as New York, but it’s a pretty big city with lots of different types of people. If you are coming from New York, London, Tokyo, or Chicago, it will seem sleepy and provincial; if you are coming from North Dakota it will seem incredibly urban.</p>
<p>One of the best things about Philadelphia is the amount and variety of cheap, great food. There are tons of places on or next to the Penn campus, including a bunch of really high-quality food trucks. There is also a lot of great higher-end food, too. Because it’s a lot easier and cheaper to open a restaurant here than in New York, lots of young chefs come here to show what they can do.</p>
<p>But . . . candidly, pizza here is not so great. It’s OK for the most part, but the best is nowhere near the best in New York. </p>
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<p>According to this source, for what it’s worth, Philly is ranked #4 in the country for pizza, behind only Chicago, Providence, and New York:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-best-cities-for-pizza/1”>http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-best-cities-for-pizza/1</a></p>
<p>Personally, I was never much of a fan of New York-style pizza, based on my three years living there as an adult. To me, New York pizza is typified by thin, sometimes soggy crust, with the most basic cheese and sauce and not much else. I actually think that the best Philly pizza compares well to New York pizza. But it’s obviously a matter of personal preference.</p>
<p>When it comes to sandwiches, however, it’s really hard to beat Philly:</p>
<p><a href=“Philadelphia’s Sandwich Hall Of Fame | Visit Philadelphia”>http://www.visitphilly.com/articles/philadelphia/philadelphias-sandwich-hall-of-fame/</a></p>
<p>Any article about pizza that puts Chicago first because of that Ritz-cracker-crust abomination they call pizza there totally loses my respect. The reason it’s so hard to get true Chicago-style pizza outside Chicago is that no one wants it, or should. Also, as many of the commenters note, an article about great pizza that doesn’t mention New Haven is an article not worth reading. I have eaten pizza in Chicago, New York, Providence, and Philadelphia, and only in Brooklyn have I had pizza that even deserves comparison to New Haven apizza.</p>
<p>I agree with you about garden-variety street pizza in NYC. But, still, in 30+ years, and putting aside gourmet pizzas at fancy restaurants, I have never had a pizza here I thought deserved more than a B. I have no idea why that’s true, because every other variety of Italian food is incredibly good. I actually love pizza, and I rarely eat it here. There really just isn’t a strong pizza tradition in Philadelphia.</p>
<p>Lol at how were debating about who has the better NY pizza.</p>
<p>JHS, I’ve spent my whole life in DC, but I find it boring compared to NYC. I’m really into foodie cities and busy ones, and DC doesn’t have crowds of people walking along the sidewalks, which I would like. How do you think I’ll feel about Philly right outside of Penn?</p>
<p>Here’re a coupla answers t’ya questions:</p>
<p>Q1–> Yeah, I think they do: <a href=“Lines & Routes | SEPTA”>Lines & Routes | SEPTA; </p>
<p>Q2: UPenn is like right across the Schuylkill River from Center City, the downtown bit of Philadelphia, eight minutes away, so it’s pretty close to the city hustle-bustle. I’ve never been to Philadelphia myself.</p>
<p>Q3 & Q4: I have no idea.</p>
<p>Q5: Er…maybe?</p>
<p>Q6: I dunno-the pizza me’n’m’family eat is homemade. Literally. </p>
<p>The demographics of Philadelphia and NYC aren’t the same, and NYC is obviously bigger, so I guess the two cities will have different feels to them. Sorry if I wasn’t much 'elp.</p>
<p>Well, I’m not really into foodie cities myself. My family is too poor to eat outside of the house.</p>
<p>The immediate area around Penn is loaded with people. Penn and Drexel campuses are literally adjacent to each other which make for a bustling atmosphere. Is it NY? NO… But there are tons of people, all college students and it is very close to center city philly which adds the “extra” business people. The Penn students travel to center city for restaurants etc. It is walkable in nice weather and a reasonable cab ride when it is cold or late. You really should visit to see if you like the city feel, it is different from NY and DC but very busy…As for food I cannot speak for DC but there are a ton of restaurants in Philly, nice ones, that students can actually afford. I cannot say the same for NYC. </p>
<p>It’s a nice city. Not close to NYC in size and diversity and numbers of people but its easy to learn, get a handle on things.</p>
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<p>You can still buy cheap but good foods from food trucks on the streets. :)</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.ling.upenn.edu/clubling/2003/trucks.html[/url]”>http://www.ling.upenn.edu/clubling/2003/trucks.html</a></p>
<p><a href=“Uwishunu: The Best Things to Do in Philadelphia | Visit Philadelphia”>Uwishunu: The Best Things to Do in Philadelphia | Visit Philadelphia;