Stephen Starr got it all wrong.

For those that have never ventured farther west than Qdoba and Allegro's, West Philadelphia has a stigma attached to it that breeds images of desolate paths and constant danger.

With only breakfast and lunch hours and an entrance snugly fit between two larger buildings, La Cigale is easy to overlook.

Behold - the power of cheese.

It's restaurants like Amada that make the trip to Old City worthwhile.

Literally translated as "white flower," Shiroi Hana offers straight-from-the ocean freshness and a tranquil ambience that will make you forget that you're sitting in the heart of Philadelphia's busiest district.

Division of Public Safety initiatives to cut crime on campus may be paying off. Total crime for September in Penn's patrol zone is down 18 percent between 2005 and 2006. While there were 114 incidents of crime around Penn - ranging from assault to bicycle theft - in September last year, there were 93 offenses, all of them considered relatively minor by safety officials, in the same month this year.

My companion to Portofino wanted to order fettuccine alfredo, but the chef, Giuseppe Falconio, wouldn't let him. Sitting at our table, Falconio shook his head at my friend's lack of mealtimes ambition.

As students shuffled into Bodek Lounge yesterday to watch God and Allah Need to Talk, they were handed brochures that posed a single question on their covers. "God is always talking to us," it read. "But are we talking to one another?" Nearly 50 students and community members gathered last night to discuss that question, listening to remarks by student religious groups, University Chaplain William Gipson and journalist Ruth Broyde-Sharone, who produced the film.

If studying for midterms makes you want to go out and splurge on expensive clothing or gadgets, you may be more than simply a procrastinator. A recent study suggests that 5 percent of Americans are compulsive buyers, meaning they frequently purchase items they do not need or want.

It's safe to say that Sunday's win didn't go the way men's soccer coach Rudy Fuller had planned. Penn generally likes to nip a goal early and hold off its opponent's charge late on. In fact, the Quakers haven't trailed for a second in any of their wins. Quality finishing has been a means to that end as Penn's forwards have generally been more opportunistic than their counterparts.

In 1993, George Anastasia says, Philadelphia mob boss John Stanfa ordered his death. The plan was supposedly to throw grenades through the windows of Anastasia's New Jersey home. However, his life was saved when his would-be killers landed behind bars before they had a chance to whack him.

When the fall elections roll around next month, citizens will hold Republicans accountable for the page sex scandal.

The spotlight was on Maria Anisimova yesterday as she defeated a player from North Carolina in the finals of the Flight C singles match at the National Tennis Invitational in New York. The freshman came out of nowhere, defeating players from high-level programs and advancing further than any Penn player.

Abdi Farah is a College sophomore from Owings Mills, Md. His e-mail address is farah@dailypennsylvanian.com.

Some Penn students thrive on cheesesteaks and chili fries, and Penn Dining - let alone the city Health Department - doesn't seem to have any plans to stop them. But some government officials are on a hunt to remove the unhealthiest of fats from their citizens' diets.

Jurors will likely decide the fate of Wharton undergraduate Irina Malinovskaya sometime today, lawyers say.