<p>Hey, I had heard kind of bad things about the area Penn is in and I was wondering if anybody had further info on that? Is Philly really such a sketchy city? Also, what kinds of things does the city have to offer? I’m used to NYC myself, so I’m sure it would be quite a change.</p>
<p>If you're used to NYC, philly going to seem really small to you. The advantage of it being small though is that you can get places really quickly--short cab rides are cheap; the subway is quick and never as packed as the NYC subways. Philly itself (Center City all the way east to the river) is different from NY though cause its quieter. On any given block at midnight you won't see 50 people walking around. Because of that people have to think more about safety; but I think this is true of EVERY city except NYC. Philly is a great city. Tons of restaurants and places to go, just use your common sense--take cabs home from clubs late at night etc.</p>
<p>As for University City (PENN), there is nothing about it that I consider unsafe. If you're on campus--i.e. Locust Walk, college houses, academic buildings, libraries--you can go out pretty much anytime and feel safe. Problems occur because people don't use their common sense--people will go to parties, get completed intoxicated and then be walking home alone or with other intoxicated friends at 2 am--in any city, you're just asking for trouble; or they'll decide that 2 am is the right time to go to an ATM, Wawa etc--again, they're kind of bringing trouble upon themselves.</p>
<p>What have you been hearing about University City/Penn?</p>
<p>i live in philly, about 25 minutes from downtown near Penn....i felt the campus is pretty safe, you can tell theres alot of new redone businesses for the students down there now, for example a eatery called Cereality which main attraction is customizing breakfast for students. its neat. It's certainly different than new york, but Penn is along the two rivers here which can be very beautiful during all seasons...Penn is west of the city with great views at night...if u just use common sense on campus n not go past about 45th street alone in the dark u'll be ok...theres alot of police i saw on campus and everything is key card access...the city has several museums, and South street which has something for everyone, theres penns landing which is by the Delw. river and near theres ice skating, dave n busters, and other musical entertainment. Theres so many busniesses here and every now n then u'll see someone famous. For example, during the election i volunteered at the Franklin Institute which is a musuem for children and stuff n kerry gave a speech there. And MTV just hosted real world philly, which sent the city a buzz. Also in old city theres cobble stone roads and the rittenhouse area is a little more expensive but has very cool eaterys and concerts ...theres the shopping district around 18th n walnut, stores such as puma, urban, and other lesser known stores that are neat but those stores are on campus too...starbucks is on every corner...i wanted to get out of pennsylvania but i love downtown so i applied to Penn and it's my 1st choice...i love the city, but it is a change from NYC and little less overwhelming ...good luck with ur choice n the best thing is NYC is only about an hour and a half away..</p>