Chapter Two: Taking baby steps toward a new beginning

Philadelphia is a beautiful city. Complete with innumerous gardens, museums, zoos and art centers, this is a city which is known for its historical importance. Philadelphia's history dates from 1681 when the Quaker William Penn received some land near the Delaware River from King Charles II of England. Charles, as a tribute to Penn's father-who had honorably served the king as an admiral-called the parcel of land "Penn and with a nod to the woodsy beauty of the setting, the younger Penn added the suffix that made his new acquisition "Pennsylvania." Soon after, William Penn chose Philadelphia as the capital of this place that he hoped would be a center of religious and political freedom and tolerance.

Philadelphia gained a reputation as a center of trade and manufacture, which led to its becoming an important pre-revolutionary port. Penn also made sure that his city was physically well planned and organized, and laid it out in a grid system between the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers that allowed space for population growth and for public squares and a town square. Penn's planning design would become a pattern for many other American urban centers.
Philadelphia retains it’s past-not only in the form of important historical buildings, but in the richness of its neighborhoods and diverse ethnic populations. Center City the heart of modern Philadelphia is now where you'll find most of the historic sites. Other important places are the Independence National Historical Park, home of Independence Hall, with its beautiful Georgian architecture, and the Liberty Bell Pavilion. Important as the history of Philadelphia is, the rest of the city is also vibrant.

Construction of the Pennsylvania State House, which came to be known as Independence Hall, began in 1732.Independence Hall is, by every estimate, the birthplace of the United States. It was within its walls that the Declaration of Independence was adopted. It was here that the Constitution of the United States was debated, drafted and signed. That document is the oldest federal constitution in existence and was framed by a convention of delegates from 12 of the original 13 colonies. Rhode Island did not send a delegate. George Washington presided over the debate which ran from May to September 1787. The draft comprising a preamble and seven Articles was submitted to all thirteen states and was to take effect when ratified by nine states. On June 21, 1788, New Hampshire, the ninth state, approved it and it became effective in March 1789.
Tradition tells of a chime that changed the world on July 8, 1776, with the Liberty Bell ringing out from the tower of Independence Hall summoning citizens to hear the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence by Colonel John Nixon. The Pennsylvania Assembly ordered the Bell in 1751 to commemorate the 50-year anniversary of William Penn's 1701 Charter of Privileges. The Academy of Music, opened in 1857, is home to the Pennsylvania Ballet and the Opera Company of Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Orchestra is renowned for its fine artistry. One can hear them at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. The Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts offers programs in classical music, jazz, and international music.


I was very impressed by the history of the city. I particularly liked the slopes and greenery which were all around. The pine trees, wood and stone houses reminded me of my native place. I belong to a hilly region in India and I could immediately relate to the vegetation, terrain and climate of the suburbs of Philadelphia where I was putting up. Fortunately for me, I found an apartment to live for while. A friend offered help and let me stay in a flat which they had vacated. This apartment complex was located amidst tall pine trees and was built on a slope. Coming down from that slope one could see a golf course. I fell in love with the beautiful surroundings. But I was more occupied with my worldly possessions rather the lack of it. I was busy gaining all materialistic objects that one needs to survive here in the city.

The only thing I could do easily was getting a bank account opened. They just needed my passport for identification. So I became a proud owner of a checking account. The important thing about checking account is that you can write checks from that account but you do not get any interest on the amount that you have in that account. Also, the checkbook is free only the first time. Next time onwards one pays to get a checkbook. But this is no big deal as I got about five hundred checks the first time sufficient to last more than a year. Next I wanted to apply for credit card. That was a big issue. I did not have a credit history. In this country you need some sort of credit history to get a credit card, cell phone and other things. Credit history builds up for any person when one pays their electricity telephone bills and credit card bills. I was living in a common friend’s apartment so I did not get the electricity bill on my name. It was the case for telephone too. So this is a catch twenty-two situation. I was facing these problems, as my employer did not help me getting a credit card. Normally businesses have relations with some banks or financial institutions so that their employees can easily get a credit card. Finally I found out that if I can get a secured credit card if I opened an account with one of the credit unions. Luckily I found a fellow Indian who had an account in such a credit union and he helped to open an account with a credit union. Secured credit card implies that I deposit a certain amount say $500 in that account, then I can get credit card which has a limit for the same amount. So after about three months I could get a credit card. I was also looking for an apartment of my own. As I mentioned earlier, I had been staying in an apartment, which belonged to a common friend. That friend had let me stay in that apartment as they moved to their house and did not want to break the lease of the rented apartment. Breaking a house lease reflects badly on your credit history. When I found an apartment, which I could afford the question of credit history, came into play. Since I had no credit history, the apartment management asked for a letter from my employer that I would be earning a decent sum. They want to find out if I can actually pay the rent each month on time. I got such a letter and then had to additionally pay a month’s rent as deposit to the apartment complex before I could sign the lease. So there I was in a new apartment and was very happy about it. This apartment was not located among woods. But the advantage of this place was that, it was near a shopping mall and a bus stop. I could even walk to the grocery store. An Indian store was also very close by.


I had applied for a social security number on the second day of my stay here. According to my understanding I would get the same in about 45-60 days. So I was eagerly waiting for my SSN. Meanwhile my employer could not pay me by check; SSN is required when you pay a check. But this is what my employer told me. But he did lend me enough money to carry for a month or so in cash. This was my first weekend by me in a new country. There was lots of snow all around. I decided to go shopping in a nearby grocery store. This store was called “Genaurdis” I could walk to this place as this was very close to my place. Inside that store I found that the store was so big and had many aisles for different things. You need milk go to the dairy aisle. You need salt go to the baking aisle. The whole experience was over whelming to me. The very fact that just to get some salt and milk, one need to go to such a huge store surprised me a lot. Back in India, I could have picked this from a very tiny shop. For first few months, I converted all prices in rupees and was amused that every thing was so expensive here. As soon I walked in the store, the warm air was welcome. I can really appreciate that all such stores are air conditioned, warm in winter and cool in summer. I walked past each aisle gazing at the stuff lined up neatly. There were tons and tons of food and fruits, cleaning stuff, vegetables, stationery and I can go on and on with the things in the store. I was not familiar with any of these brands. So I was very confused about the choices I make. But you guessed right I would see the price tags and then decide which was better for me. I saw other people filling cartloads of stuff and buying like there was a strike or holiday at the store the next day. But this is how Americans shop. They buy and consume in huge quantity. The remarkable thing that I noticed in the store was that the staff was friendly and helpful. At the end of my small shopping spree, I paid in cash as and the prices pinched me a lot. It took me a while not to convert each price tag in rupees.