Eye of the Philadelphian Tiger

Philadelphia; home of the Philli cheese steak, Fresh Price and Rocky Balboa. Of the three, only two featured in my childhood, although I’m pretty certain that had an authentic version of the sandwich been readily available, at least three of my siblings would have been habitual consumers. In fact, had Flat Iron not opened, perhaps my parents would have been tempted too? Lucan almost caved, but managed to quell his fast food predilection with bricks of Amish cheese. I can’t tell you how thrilled he was to find a maple-bacon variety; with enough luck they’ll break a few religious codes, ship some to Canada, and I’ll finally have the perfect bargaining chip. A couple of kilos in the fridge and I'll be relieved of all Cinderella duties for at least a month.

After a couple of hours in the market, a walk around the city and a cruise through the quaint backstreets, it was time for the Rocky steps. For over a decade, the memory of watching the films with my dad, has remained one of my favourites. It offered reassurance that great things are possible if your work hard, and a chance to spend time with someone that epitomises that. There's no need to listen to the Rocky themetune when you've got parents like mine, they motivate and inspire better than anyone else I know.

The unassuming view that inspired a generation