PD Primer - PennDesign - University of Pennsylvania

having fun
oUtinGS
in front of traffic with the right of way. Ironically,
the City has responded to vehicular delinquency
not by enforcing traffic laws (if there were any to
begin with) but by marking in miles upon miles of
bike lanes so that now cyclists, too, can share the
road with killers. We need the protection of jersey
barriers not thin stripes of paint! Fortunately the
Parks Department has heard the cyclist’s plea. West
River Drive, one of the more scenic stretches of
Philly blacktop, is now closed to autos from 7am
to 5pm on weekends from April through October.
West River Drive runs along the west bank of the
Schuylkill River and you can pick it up just north
of Powelton Village from Spring Garden Street.
Also beautiful is the dedicated trail for biking, jogging
and rollerblading that parallels Kelly Drive on
the Schuylkill’s east bank. The Kelly Drive trail is
always car-free and runs past Boathouse Row—the
home of Philly’s rowing clubs—and the art museum.
I recommend biking up West River to the
Falls Bridge and returning on Kelly or visa versa.
You may still want to sport a helmet, but definitely
shed the body armor you wore while riding there.
cavort among WOODLANDS CEMETERY
quadrupeds!
4000 Woodland avenue/ www.uchs.net/Woodlands/
woodlandshome.html
To be planted there will cost you, but to walk
in is free at this swank cemetery-cum-parkgoer’s
paradise with one caveat: no dogs please! The final
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address of choice for Philadelphia’s historic elite,
Woodlands is also a beautifully landscaped (and very
close) respite from the pressures of the studio. A
straight shot down Woodland Walk on a sunny day
will land you at the very impressive cemetery gates
designed by the School of Design’s own forebear, Paul
Philipe Cret. Beyond those gates you won’t find the
names Keats, Yeats or Wilde, but many—like Drexel—are
instantly familiar. Pondering the lives of the
less recognizable denizens while strolling or jogging
the park’s meandering tree-lined lanes is an addictive
pastime. Researching those inhabitants can yield
odd biographical tidbits. For example Rufus Welch
(1800-1855) whose monument lies just east of “Vault
Avenue” dared to be the first American importer
of giraffes. While no giraffes currently frolic in the
vicinity, the cemetery is wildly popular with Philly’s
hip urban deer. The idyllic appeal of Woodlands is cemented
by the late afternoon grazing of these peaceful
ruminators who seem quite unconcerned by the
proximity of bipeds—below ground or above.
get your film on at the TLA VIDEO
1520 locust Street/ www.tlavideo.com
Anyone who has resided in a less populated American
locale knows that Netflix has made ours a more livable
country. When it comes right down to it though,
nothing beats browsing titles at a video store with
an expansive collection. Fortunately TLA Video is
still around and tends to offer the esoteric selections
Netflix streaming sorely lacks.
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