When I travel, I love to explore old churches. While walking around Philadelphia I stumbled upon…read moreCity Church and saw that it was not in service and some people were walking through it. This is a smaller church but still worth exploring inside. There are a lot of plaque to read along the walls and you can walk around between the pews. Looks like it was renovated not too long ago.

This church rocks - OK, not literally, but it has a great choir. Also known for great post-service…read morecoffee hour. Make sure to attend on All Saint's Day, best Italian dinner pot-luck this side of the Brandywine Creek.

Saint Raphaela Center is a wonderful SPIRITUAL RETREAT CENTER in a gorgeous parklike setting just…read moreoutside of city center Philadelphia. It's an interfaith "resort" for the soul and spirit, run by progressive Roman Catholic nuns who are are kind, welcoming, and very encouraging of people of all faiths converging on their peaceful, beautiful RESIDENTIAL facility in order to meditate, or pray, for the purpose of refreshing one's spirit and calming one's mind. In May 2013 I attended a 2-night silent "Insight/Vipassana" meditation retreat idirected by Matthew Daniell (of the Cambridge Insight Meditation Society) who had in turn been invited to Haverford, PA by the Phildelphia Meditation Center. Note that non-Catholic retreats are not likely to be listed directly on St. Raphaela's retreat calendar - I suggest you google "meditation retreat + Saint Raphaela" to find a Buddhist-/meditation-oriented retreat scheduled at St. Raphaela . Depending on the retreat program you choose to attend you may be able to get a single room or a shared room. Accomodations are clean, bright and simple - NO frills, but cheerful, quiet and very comfortable. The nuns who run the retreat center are good cooks but don't expect the Four Seasons (the retreat I attended was lacto-ovo vegetarian). Desserts were REALLY yummy. ; )) The grounds are lovely and provide ample personal space for "retreatants" and lots of room for walking meditation. In short, you can experience a truly serene and "life-resetting" retreat experience here that is far less expensive that what you would pay at high price-tag "trendy" places like OMEGA or KRIPALU. Easy to get to from 'center city" Philadelphia by a quick commuter train ride plus a short taxi jaunt, or you can take a cab from the Philly city center all the way for about $45.

The food here at the Greek festival is amazing. Especially the dessert platter!…read more We went for lunch and sadly the gyro store front was not opened yet. I ordered and lamb sandwich thinking: "how different can it be?" What I received was very similar to a roast pork sandwich. Don't get me wrong, it was good but not what I was looking for They take cash or card

Went for the best authentic Greek food we've had since last trip to Crete…read more green beans bring tears to your eyes The only thing we didn't have was the fish but it looked good Deserts as always a labor of love by wonderful ladies of a wonderful church Efaristo

Reverent liturgies. The community is active, caring and very generous with their time, talent and…read moretreasure. The priest are approachable and always willing to listen and help.

Modern style, round Catholic Church architecture circa 1990 on massive grounds in the greener parts…read moreof the county. Modem and spacious facilities. The pastor fashions himself a philosopher and comedian but falls short of both in his homily. He knows his parishioners though but did not go to the cemetery for a burial on a recent funeral, sending a Eucharistic minister instead. This church is easy to "miss" as the original structure is on the same piece of land on the north side of the current structure. If you are following your GPS, go past the cemetery on the left and the new church is the next set of driveways.

My sisters graduation mass and ceremony were held here and as usual for a Catholic Church, it was…read morebeautiful. I couldn't find the bathroom but I didn't want to explore during the ceremony.

This Ballroom in S. Philly is a large space & can be used for multiple types of events. I visited…read morethis space for a 'Clean Comedy Show' That was sponsored by a church. I heard the space was recently renovated and OK--if that is true--it could possibly use a few more upgrades--New Stage/Lighting & Sound System. Overall, it is a good space for an event--if they upgrade on the aesthetics--it may go to 4-5 stars.

This is place where the community comes together and worship..This house of God helps everyone who…read moreis of need of help in every area of they life..Thank you all for being here for us

Are you Swedish? It seemed initially like a rather odd first thing to say to someone but that's…read moreexactly how our experience began during our visit to Holy Trinity (Old Swedes) Church . To answer the question, I'm about as Swedish as a certain famous chef (Bork! Bork!) but seeing as this church was founded by people of Swedish descent it's not really all that odd of a question. This church my friends is indeed the oldest continuously operating church in our fine republic. * Are there older church buildings? Yes * Are there older congregations? Yes But, all the rest are either no longer actively used as a church or they are on their second, third or fourth building. The building here was finished in 1698, was dedicated on July 4th, 1699 and is still an active church to this day. The church and it's location are thanks to Erik Bjork who was the pastor at Holy Trinity from 1697 until 1713. This church was not the first in the area for the congregation but Bjork knew that they had to move away from wood and use stone for a new building just like they had to move to higher ground away from the Christina River. A few fun facts about the building: * Early parishioners donated the planks and logs for the black-walnut pulpit that is considered the oldest pulpit known pulpit in the United States which still stands in its original location. * The altar is also from black walnut with paneling that echoes the design of the pulpit. It is at least the third altar at Old Swedes. * The pews are reproductions of the originals and were built in 1899 using patterns and descriptions from early church records. The pews could be closed to keep out drafts in winter; worshippers often brought heated rocks or pans of hot coals into their pews to keep themselves warm. * The bell tower was a more "modern" addition to the church as it was added on in 1802. * Stained glass from Tiffany was added in the 19th century. * The original church chest from 1713 is also in the church and can be seen on the tour. If you go: Admission prices are adults $5.00, children 6 through 12: $2.00 and children 5 & under: Free Tour times are January & February by appointment only and the rest of the year there are times from Wednesday-Saturday ranging from 10am-4pm based on when you come with the last tour starting at 3:30pm. The tour starts in the Hendrickson House which is a 1 1/2 story field stone farmhouse was built in 1690 by Andrew Hendrickson along the banks of the Delaware River in Chester Pennsylvania. It was scheduled to be demolished but was disassembled, moved and the reassembled in its current location in 1958. The church's archives/research library are located in a climate controlled basement below the house and can be seen by appointment Wednesday-Friday or during regular tour hours on Saturday. During the tour you are also shown parts of the Hendrickson House, then the burial grounds outside which predates the current church with the first burials occurring in 1638 and the oldest currently legible burial stone being from 1712. The one neat thing is that on the tour they very eagerly let you ring the bell in their 1802 bell tower. I think the guide said the bell is from the same foundry in London that the Liberty Bell came from but I could be wrong. Parking is limited as they have a very small cobblestone parking lot next to Hendrickson House that holds a few cars then it's on street parking. As an FYI, the area around the church is F-ing sketch. But don't let the ghetto aspect of the church's location deter you as the volunteers are great and the building and grounds are oozing with so much history and authenticity that it truly is a must visit.

Fascinating tour of the church, the home on site and the cemetery. The guide shared not only facts…read moreabout the church and home, but about the people who built the church, were members and were buried there. AND the history of the faiths that were practiced there. Both the church and the cemetery are beautiful and peaceful. The addition of the home as the visitor entry is genius - preserving a piece of history and sharing it too.