road trips
Bruce’s Spiritual Home
Asbury Park, N.J.
There are so many Asbury Parks — the one that Bruce Springsteen sang in, the one the gays discovered and made hip. But there’s also a diverse, compelling, good-eats-here city with an independent bookstore and plenty of coffee shops. A new-ish hotel, The Asbury, has become a focal point, but some of the Jersey magic was there all along, waiting to be discovered. A great place to walk and rest and see the tide roll in.
Good(speed) TimesThe Goodspeed in East Haddam, ConnecticutTickets: $29 and up
A theater-lover in need of a getaway? Try lovely East Haddam, Connecticut, home to the famous Goodspeed Opera House. Through June 20, the musical-theater proving ground features “The Music Man,” a legendary musical on its way back to Broadway next year with Hugh Jackman. You can see it without Jackman here, but you’ll have cute, romantic bed-and-breakfasts within a short distance of the Goodspeed’s two different stages. “Because of Winn Dixie,” a new musical about a stray dog’s impact on a small town, opens June 28.
Philadelphia City Hall1400 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, PhiladelphiaTower tour: adults, $8
Interior tour: adults, $15
https://www.visitphilly.com/things-to-do/attractions/city-hall/
You can look outside from this historic structure, or take an interior tour. Or both. Why bother? Well, it’s a stunner. And Wikipedia says that Philadelphia’s City Hall was the “tallest habitable building in the world until 1908.” (Would Wikipedia lie?) Your visit here is a perfect excuse to wander Center City Philadelphia.