Philter

Part of the Fill in the Coffee Map Series

Subject: Philter
Location: Kennett Square, PA
WiFi?: yes
Rating: 6+ [see key]

The Philadelphia area possesses quite a few great holiday attractions. Yet if I had to distill them down, the two must-see stops are definitely the Christmas Light Show in Philadelphia's Old Wanamaker Building and nearby Longwood Gardens. Both have been a long-standing fixture in my life and if the mobs are any indication, their popularity has done nothing but grow over the years.

Strange Matter Coffee

Part of the Fill in the Coffee Map Series

Subject: Strange Matter Coffee
Location: Lansing, MI
WiFi?: yes
Rating: 6+ [see key]

A lot of capital cities have interesting histories, but not many possess one as strange as Lansing, Michigan. Originally settled by an assortment of families scammed into buying marshland in a nonexistent Biddle City, these swindled New Yorkers ended up settling a mile north of the marsh, naming their new town after their home village of Lansing. Some years later, when Michigan sought to move the state capital from Detroit, there was such furious competition by the other cities that it was thrown to little Lansing out of frustration. Today, the city has grown to house some great institutions, such as Michigan State University and a coffeehouse fittingly-named for the city, Strange Matter Coffee.