Okay, and I'll chime in now with some actual city pimpage. I am sure Sox and Amy will also add any bits they know, but I need to get this done now because I want to get out of my hotel room and go see some sights.

So, I am going to list my personal favorite things in Philly:

The Reading Terminal Market. It's an indoor, awesome market with everything from beeswax candles made by Amish to dozens of food counters, flowers, you name it. It's old and it's fun and it's perfectly Philly. Free

The Rodin Museum. Home to the largest public collection of works by the celebrated late nineteenth-century French sculptor Auguste Rodin outside of Paris. With extraordinary works of art and spectacular gardens, the Museum offers a calm retreat from the hustle and bustle of the city. $5 contribution

Philadelphia Museum of Art. A great museum with the bonus that it's hosting: Late Renoir June 17, 2010 - September 6, 2010 Late Renoir follows the renowned painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir through the final—and most fertile and innovative—decades of his career. At the height of his creative powers and looking toward posterity, Renoir created art that was timeless, enticing, and worthy of comparison to the greatest of the old masters, such as Raphael, Titian, and Rubens. Price of admission is $16. Acting ridiculous in front of the Rocky Statue: free

Independence Hall and The Liberty Bell. Even if you're not a history geek, it's cool. Trust me. Free.

A little out of town, but worth the effort: The Barnes Foundation. The story behind the second largest collection of Impressionist works is awesome: in a nutshell, poor guy gets good education, gets rich, is still shut out of Philadelphia's High Society, so builds a giant "F-you" to the wealthy by acquiring a huge collection of renowned paintings and only showing them to his fellow working-class citizens. Or, at least, that's the story I've been told. $15, reservations necessary.

Elfreth's Alley Elfreth's Alley — popularly known as "Our nation’s oldest residential street" – dates back to the first days of the eighteenth century. Twenty years after William Penn founded Pennsylvania and established Philadelphia as its capital, the town had grown into a thriving, prosperous mercantile center on the banks of the Delaware River. Free to visit. There's a little museum, too, for $5 admit.

I'll do favorite night life things in another post.

FWIW, the Best Western is pretty poorly reviewed on Google Maps, and the Crowne Plaza is nowhere near public transportation. A lot of east coasters (like me) will be coming in on train, rather than driving.

Okay, stuff to do in the Dark in Philly:

McGillin's Old Ale House A Philly staple since 1860, McGillin's has remained true to its heart over the years, serving great eats and cold beer to everybody from Ed Bradley and Ethel Merman to Robin Williams and Will Ferrell. Inside, the place has the timeless look of a neighborhood tavern – dark-stained wood, plaster walls, red floor tiles and tall windows. Adding a certain kitschy sense of tradition to the place is the unique display of Pennsylvania tavern licenses that hang on the wall behind the bar, one for each year the place has served alcohol. Keep your eyes peeled to the calendar and plan to stop in when McGillin's hosts a karaoke night – they're a blast (Fridays). Occasional live music as well.

Monk's Cafe Located on the corner of 16th and Spruce, Monk's has been collecting award after award for its outstanding beer selection since the Clinton administration. The front bar normally features an American microbrew or two as well as single malt scotches, small batch bourbons and top shelf tequilas. At the back bar, meanwhile, several hard-to-find Belgian ales like Chouffe Houblon, Augustijn Blonde and Flemish Sour Red Ale are on tap. In case you were wondering, the grub – including daily specials like Rodenbach lamb stew – has been specifically chosen because it complements the international brews.

North 3rd Bar & Restaurant This cozy corner watering hole, located at 3rd and Brown, has emerged as a true haven for the more sophisticated palates that live and play in the Northern Liberties. Works by local artists adorn the place's exposed bricks walls, and the selection of poisons is as diverse as any place in town (from Rothbury Estate Shiraz to minty Mojito Martinis). Adding to the spot's wide appeal is a calendar of events that slates weekly Indy film screenings. As for eats, try your hand at their tasty potato pierogies, gazpacho or steamed mussels. Weekend brunch at North 3rd – a lineup that includes challah French toast, breakfast quesadilla eggs and arugula and beet salad – is also a must.

Standard Tap: On the corner of 2nd and Poplar stands the Standard Tap, a neighborhood pub that boasts some of the city's most innovative cookery. Yes the Standard's beer selection is impressive – very impressive, in fact – and includes a number of micro-brewed products that you'd be hard-pressed to find anywhere else. But, honestly, what gets this joint the high marks is the fact that, like the good gastro-pubs in Europe, their kitchen staff strives to keep things fresh and new, resulting in tasty dishes like roasted lamb shanks, steamed clams, octopus and smelts.

Live Music: Tin Angel Acoustic Cafe Tin Angel is a unique musical venue featuring a wide variety of top flight national and local attractions in an intimate cafe style setting. In addition to excellent acoustic and other "unplugged" entertainment, Tin Angel offers candlelit table seating, great coffees, cappuccinos, and teas, as well as a complete selection of liquors, wines, beers and mineral waters. Fine dining is also only a flight of stairs away at Serrano, renowned for its "International Home Cooking."

Ortlieb's Jazzhaus Live jazz Tue-Sun. Cajun and American food served. A spicy entertainment and food combination!! In addition, legendary Mickey Roker, who played with Dizzy Gillespie, hangs around and sometimes performs at the Jazzhaus.

FWIW, the Best Western is pretty poorly reviewed on Google Maps, and the Crowne Plaza is nowhere near public transportation. A lot of east coasters (like me) will be coming in on train, rather than driving.

I don't recall how we choose the hotel when the time comes, but I am sure people can Google each place and find out if the costs/locations/perks etc all add up. I want to respect the various budgets of the Buffistas, so I am posting a variety of options.

And with that, I am heading out to SoHo. Hope the info on hotels and sights has helped.

Does anyone have easy access to the number of rooms we booked per night last year?

So here's my thinking for the next vote, if it sounds okay for everyone. It sounds like July 10-11 is the better option overall, but I feel weird eliminating June 26-27 since it technically won the last vote. Would this work?

Choice between:

June 26-27 (Providence or Philly; NYC not available)

July 10-11 (NYC, Providence, or Philly)

And then we can have a run off vote between the cities in question?

Alternatively, we can just do a bullshit consensus to go with July 10-11 and then vote for one of the cities from there.

Yes, no, maybe? Preferences?

Pix, maybe you can do a 2 question poll. The first question being when to have it if it is in Philly or Providence with the top two choices being the option and a second question for if it is in NY with the two most popular dates that are available for there being the options?

sj, that's a good idea, but I only have data on overall date preference, not for individual cities. I would have to do another poll just for NYC before I could do that.

It's a slow day at work so I'm transferring old VHS tapes onto DVD. Currently in the recorder? F2F 2003!

Once the DVD is burned I run off extra copies or post the whole thing online for people to download. Whee!

Currently in the recorder? F2F 2003!

That was LA, right?