It was another walk in the footsteps of our Founding Fathers. The city of Philadelphia is where the Declaration of Independence was composed and signed. We can trace much of that which makes America great to the heart of this old city.
We started the day by hopping a bus downtown. If I had known how crowded the bus would have been, I think we would have taken a cab.
Anyhow, we arrived downtown and checked in for some lunch. Both Mary and I had to try a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich. It was quite tasty!
Next we went to the site of the Liberty Bell. Since 9/11, security to this bell has been beefed up. We had to wait in line 45 minutes to go through security and enter the site. It was well worth it, though. The building revealed a great deal of detail about the history of the Liberty Bell, but the star of the show was the bell itself. It wasn't as large as I had imagined, but it was still awesome standing before the legendary relic.
We saw Independence Hall from the outside, but it was too late to get free tickets for the day, so we hope to visit there tomorrow.
We walked through the streets of old Philly seeking out interesting sites. We encountered several of them. One such site was the First Bank of the United States, which was indeed the very first bank recognized by the U.S. Government. We also learned about William Penn, the man who founded the state of Pennsylvania and helped lay out the plans for the city of Philadelphia. He was persecuted for his religious beliefs in London and came to America to seek religious freedom. You can read more about William Penn here.
As we walked towards the Delaware River, we ran across the Irish Memorial, a beautifully sculpted piece dedicated to the million men, women and children who perished in the mid-1800's and the millions of immigrants who found a new life in America. The descriptive plaques provided a solid background of the cruelty endured by the Irish, and as a Jew, helped me identify with the persecution they have experienced. I highly recommend visiting the site linked above and reading more.
A few blocks later and we found a Starbucks. Mary had a craving for a White Chocolate Mocha and the rest of us enjoyed a hot chocolate. Just across the street was the Betsy Ross home. As you probably know, Betsy Ross was the woman who sewed the first U.S. flag with thirteen stars and thirteen stripes. Her home was very well preserved and her tomb is in the courtyard.
Finally, we walked a few more blocks to the site where Benjamin Franklin is buried. As luck would have it, the cemetary closed a short time before. However, his tomb was right at an entrance and visible through a gate, so we did get as close as we could just the same. I was surprised to see how ordinary his gravestone was.
Rather than suffer another crowded bus out of the city, I hailed a taxicab and set waypoint for Temple University. It was a very enjoyable ride as our driver, Tony, was a colorful character. We talked about many subjects as we endured rush hour traffic. He came to America from Tunisia six years ago. He learned the english language very quickly. He seemed to take an honest living quite seriously and was not pleased with those living off welfare. He keeps a camera in the cab and enjoys taking photos of people when something interesting catches his eye. He was fascinated by my digital camera. It was an enjoyable encounter.
Back to the hotel room for dinner and downtime. What adventure will tomorrow bring?
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