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A CHAP could run out of fingers while counting the advantages in choosing Pennsylvania for his next major golfing holiday. Incongruously, though, the most valid one would become evident only when it was all over. It is this: the sheer novelty aside, the trip would be indelibly etched upon the memory, an utterly unforgettable travel experience.
Heck, you could even give golf a miss (well, for a couple of days) and simply luxuriate in the pleasures that await in Philadelphia or Pittsburgh and you'd return home raving about the place. As tourist attractions the State's two major cities have everything to satisfy the devout hedonist and his Best Beloved. In fact a fellow would win heaps of brownie points simply by turning his lady loose for a spot of tax-free shopping whilst he slopes off for a few holes of golf.
The golf? Thought you'd never ask. There's oodles of it, ranging from good quality daily fee courses to top ranking private clubs such as Oakmont, Merion and Saucon Valley, to name but three. They're exclusive, to be sure, but not inaccessible for those who know the form. In addition, there are several resorts which offer golf, among them one of America's finest, of which more anon.
A golfing holiday in Pennsylvania poses problems similar to those you'd face in Florida, perhaps, or the Carolinas, viz: where on earth do you begin? It's such a vast State that you couldn't go ad hoc, so to speak. Best, perhaps, to select one of the aforementioned resorts or major cities as your base and take it from there. With that in mind, a synopsis of relevant facts is in order.
The State is roughly 340 miles wide and 180 deep with the Allegheny Mountains running diagonally north east to south west. Pittsburgh in the west is about 320 miles from Philadelphia, and the latter (population 1.6 million and the second largest city on the US east coast) is a two hour drive from New York and a short ferry boat ride across the Delaware River from New Jersey.
Philadelphia's attractions are largely historic: it was once the principal city of America. Here in 1776 was adopted the Declaration of Independence, the document that sparked the Revolution against British colonialism, and in 1787 the Constitution of the United States was drafted at the building known as Independence Hall, later the first seat of government.
Thus, Philadelphia is regarded as the nation's birthplace and the cradle of democracy. It was the capital from 1791 to 1800 and for long afterwards was the financial heart of the country, the home of both the first US Mint and the first Stock Exchange, both still extant.
So history buffs will be boggle-eyed as they stroll around this most elegant of cities. There's a well-mapped walking tour that takes in the major attractions and, being on a grid system that became the template for all US cities, it is easily navigable.
The pavements are wide and tree-lined and there's a first class public transportation system which also serves the out-of-town attractions, such as the vast shopping mall that claims to be America's finest -- among its other facilities it has eight department stores and 40 restaurants!
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