Philadelphia, Melrose Diner neighborhood

On our way out of Philadelphia - a city of real US history - we stopped at Melrose Diner, a diner like only in the movies.

Open 24 hours a day, Pulp Fiction-style sofas, takeaway pies and what not, menu and Heinz ketchup waiting for us on the tables.

Those in the photo are the surroundings: flat, contemporary and laid-back, in stark contrast to the city centre, thick with skyscrapers and Victorian houses, remnants and reconstructions of when the United States was invented here.