by Alex Lloyd Gross
Great news! The World Portal is going to stay in Philadelphia. This device is a camera and there are several others like it, placed in different cities across the world. People stand in front and their image is projected in real time to folks 4000 miles away.
People make hand gestures, in the hopes that the people on the other end will mimic them. It’s a lot of fun. The original location was at LOVE Park, but in early 2025 some copper thieves cut the wires and the portal was out of service for months.
When it returned it had a new location in city hall courtyard. People like it and there is extra security. Last year, some people made a connection to someone over 4000 away and they held up their cell phones and supplied each other with their numbers. A few hours later, after a trans-Atlantic flight, they had met in person.
“Philadelphia hosted the Portal as a guest for America’s 250th birthday, and Philadelphia turned a guest into family,” said Mayor Cherelle L. Parker. “So I’m proud to announce the Portal is not leaving Philadelphia.”
The portal is free and is open as long as the courtyard is open.