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| Too cool for school. (AP Photo / Clarence House, Pool-File) |
This week, sorority cheers and a cappella melodies are quite passe. While usually it’s so 1775 to sing “God Save the Queen” this week, it’s the “in” song in Philadelphia. The upcoming days will be all about polish and poise as we humbly await the arrival of the British monarchy.
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Prince Charles of Wales will be visiting our city this upcoming weekend, and “Mummers, Tastykakes and soft pretzels will be available should he and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, choose to indulge.” While here, Prince Charles plans to meet with philanthropist Leonore Annenberg, partake in local charity efforts and visit the nearby International House on Saturday afternoon.
Royalty does not often grace our city with its presence, and as Philly residents, we should be very excited to welcome the heir to the British throne. As Philadelphia’s British consul Oliver Franklin stressed to The Inquirer, this weekend will allow Philly to prove its status as an “international city,” a la New York or London. While this may be a lofty goal, the city certainly embraces cultural diversity and attracts travelers from all over the world.
I can’t help but wonder why Prince Charles will be visiting so many major areas of the city, yet he seems to be skirting by the University of Pennsylvania. Although the prince will meet with Leonore Annenberg, one of Penn’s great benefactors, he does not plan to see the Annenberg family’s token contribution to West Philly–our Annenberg Center of the Performing Arts. Likewise, he will lead a discussion with International House residents on 3701 Chestnut Street, but he will safely remain a two blocks away from Penn’s campus. While many Penn students are residents of the International House, the building is in no way affiliated with the University.
“As far as I know, we weren’t approached by his people to get on his schedule,” Penn spokeswoman Phyllis Holtzman said. When I asked her if the University made an effort to be included in the prince’s agenda, Holtzman replied that she was unaware of any such endeavors.
A locus of scholarship and culture, Penn faculty and students would have been ecstatic to welcome this British icon. And if Philly is trying to prove itself to the world, the weekend’s events coordinators should not have skipped such a prominent institution of research and progress, of charm and diversity. Some of today’s most brilliant minds and future international leaders currently call the University of Pennsylvania their home. Philadelphia is certainly cutting itself short by excluding Penn from the prince’s itinerary.
Surely, any visit to Boston would include a stop at Harvard.
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January 22nd, 2007 at 7:42 pm
I just have to say that I agree with your point, but more importantly, Harvard sucks.
Don’t worry about it, anyway. The royal family means absolutely nothing and their existence is a waste of taxpayer dollars in England.
January 22nd, 2007 at 8:30 pm
The English royal family is probably the most famous monarchical hereditary line in the world. With the Prince of Wales coming to Philadelphia, it is a huge snub that he’s not visiting our very own Ivy university.
January 23rd, 2007 at 9:40 am
hey, what about MIT?
January 24th, 2007 at 2:02 am
Hey Brian Gionta, I’m used to seeing comments from Zach Parise. What happened? Did you eat him and start taking his spot? Probably a good idea. It looks like you could use a healthy meal or two. And probably some steroids.
January 24th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
I think my size is fine, considering I was good enough to score 48 goals last season. And I’m the leading scorer on the second place team in the eastern conference right now. We’ll pass Buffalo in a few weeks anyway.
By the way, Jay, screw BU.
January 27th, 2007 at 8:28 pm
And any visit to Washington a stop at Georgetown, as we saw last year.