Philadelphia during Pope Francis’s visit was also amazing from the perspective of returning Center City to her people. The ability to walk freely through the streets—from the Pine Streets to the avenues—was something I consciously stored in my mind in order to return to it in the future.

John Gruber shared Cory Popp’s short time-lapse film (in 4K, no less) of the city during this special time. Inga Saffron, meanwhile, wrote that “closing the streets opened up the town: “While no one would advocate making the traffic box a permanent feature of the city, this carless weekend has opened our eyes to the possibilities of closing streets and limiting traffic. We’ve seen that closing Center City streets, far from paralyzing the town, can make it a more joyful place.”