Philly and Jersey and U2 and Back Home

We took the scenic route back to my mom's instead of fighting our way through Allentown again (we got lost the first time). Although most of the drive was spent in the countryside, we ended up in Philadelphia before crossing over to Jersey.


Philly sights





Crossing the Walt Whitman Bridge to the Jersey side (please sing "Jersey Girl" here)


Back at Mom's, we picked up the laptop from the repair shop, had a bite to eat, hung out for awhile, and then headed back to Philly for the U2 concert that night. What a great way to end our vacation!

Tailgaters in the stadium parking lot

So you can tell I live in remote Alaska and have not been to a concert in a long time. In my experience, no cameras were ever allowed in concerts. In fact, I have a distinct memory of Randy Allen and I having to walk what seemed like MILES back to his car to put my camera away when a group of us went to an outdoor music fest in Memphis one time. A long, frustrating walk! So I decided to leave my camera in the car, along with my phone. At the gate, sure enough, my bag was searched. We got inside and found our seats and the young couple in front of us asked if we'd take their photo. I said, "You got your camera in?" The woman replied that she'd had it in her pocket and they didn't look there. I said, "Good thinking." As time went by, I realized that everyone and their dog had a camera and/or a smart phone with them. As the concert began, the people in front of us were taking photos left and right and posting them on Facebook. It finally dawned on me that it's a new day and no one cares any more if you bring in a camera...or at least they've decided it's not worth fighting. I was so bummed! Rich was laughing that if I'd had a fancy phone, he knew I'd be live blogging or something.

Despite having no photos to document my joy at seeing one of my favorite bands again, let me just say that Bono and Company were in fine form and put on another fabulous show. We even had Rep. Gabby Giffords' husband Mark sending us a hello from the space shuttle (and reciting a verse of "Beautiful Day") and we all got to sing "Happy Birthday" to Nelson Mandela at the end of the concert. It was so much fun. I will always be a rock and roll gal at heart.

Later I looked on U2's website and everyone was encouraged to "post your photos and reviews of the show." LOL Next time I will be better informed and prepared.

They also had a "FanCam" which took a huge photo of the whole crowd. Wouldn't you know it, I found us in the photo and we are barely visible because a woman is standing up right in front of us!

We got home after midnight and chatted with my mom for a little while--she was still up. The next morning, we went out for breakfast, repacked our suitcases and said our goodbyes. Another vacation ended, but what a good one it was! We had to drive back to Newark, turn in our car and catch a plane to Seattle. Overnighted at the Hilton ($55 at priceline...yes!) and off to Anchorage and Unalaska the next day. We came home to some sunny, warm weather--nice! And now we're just back to work and the daily routine. :)