I'm no expert on the East Coast, only being in NYC once, I at least have an idea, but when it comes to Newark, I don't know nutin' about nutin' :p I guess I depend on those on the East Coast to pick a good/safe area.

As far as where, I assume the choices are NYC/Philly, and last I checked Philly is in the lead. I'm glad to hear it's close to NYC.

Also, FWIW, I was able to "clear" my commitments and I should be able to make the weekend of 8/18 providing it's approved at work, which if put in early enough (say by the first of the year), shouldn't have a problem.

TIS

"Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind. War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today." JFK

"War is over, if you want it" - John Lennon