The osteopathic trek to Philadelphia

This week marked another checkmark in my slowly dwindling things to do before I graduate - I made the trek to Philadelphia to take part in the COMLEX-PE which is offered outside Philadelphia in Conshocken.
Since I have never been out to Philadelphia, I decided rather than spend the night, or nights i n my case, near the testing center that I would spend my time in the city of brotherly love itself.
I ended up staying about 5 blocks away from Independence Hall and very close to Chinatown so I was in the heart of everything.
Even though my test was Tuesday afternoon, I opted to fly in Monday night because I did not want to have to worry about flying in Tuesday morning and getting delayed at either airport or running into extra daytime traffic.
I flew out on Southwest which was a first for me.  Now I had avoided this airline because I was scared of the whole no assigned seats thing given I had never travelled that way before.  But in talking to people who had flown and were more seasoned travelers than I, I found out the insider secret to traveling if one is going to fly Southwest.  The secret, or so I was told, was to do one of two things - 1. opt for the early bird online check in which would automatically check me in or 2. check in myself online 24 hours before my flight.  Since Sunday was Easter and I wanted toe pend as much of it as possible with my family, I opted to do the early bird online check in.  I have to say that despite all my reservations, I was actually quite pleased with who smooth flying Southwest was.  I was fortunate enough to be one the first boarding group both directions so had my virtual pick of seats - I of course decided to sit by the window both ways, even after deciding on the way out that it was not a brilliant idea given the over water takeoff and landing.  I actually find that I prefer the organized boarding of Southwest - everyone has their spot in line and people are very polite about making sure they are in the proper place - versus the usual gang rush to get to the gate to get to the assigned seat on time.
Although I do have to admit one very large flaw in my plan - arriving at night.  I drove by my hotel numerous times before stopping to ask a police officer for help.  Of course I will also say that it did not help that the only sign on said hotel was on top of the 7 story tall billing admits bunch of other equally tall or taller buildings.
For those following behind me - it goes really quick.  The 14 minutes you have fly by and then the 9 minutes to write a note seem like a blink comparatively speaking.  It seems like you have just started and then all of a sudden you are done.
So with an afternoon session, I did not get to se much of Philly Tuesday night so I opted to do my touristy stuff Wednesday morning before my flight left in the afternoon.  I went down to Independence lane and saw the Liberty Bell, toured Independence Hall and visited the tomb of the unknown soldier.  It was a beautiful area and the historic district was absolutely stunning with its cobblestone streets.
So now I wait six to eight weeks to find out if I managed to pass - let the wait begin.