Laurel Hill Cemetary, which seems to be fairly unknown to a lot of people, is far and away the nicest place to be dead in Philadelphia. Basically, in the 1830’s, Philadelphia’s richest families began burying their deceased in this newly established cemetary, set purposely away from the hustle and bustle of the city. The result, now, after almost two centuries, is that the place is absolutely remarkable. Roughly 75 acres, with 33,000 monuments most of which are huge, expensive, and beautiful. This is one of those cases in which the competitively conspicuous consumption of the wealthy has fortunately left everyone else with something to really enjoy. In fact, from the beginning, the cemetary was intended to be a place of enjoyment. Offering very well-kept and winding cement paths as well as a vista onto the Schuylkill, the huge cemetary, which sits atop those cliffs running along Kelly Drive, originally charged admission! Now, it’s free. It’s one of only two cemeteries in the country that have the honor of being named a National Historic Landmark, and it is worth the bike ride to East Falls from anywhere downtown.

In fact, my bike ride through the cemetary was easily the nicest single bike ride I’ve had this autumn. Try it.