Philadelphia

Since it is Saturday, we decided to drive into Philadelphia. It's almost always easier to tackle the big cities without the commuter traffic. We were on the road bright and early and arrived at the Independence Hall Visitors Center just before they opened. To tour Independence Hall, free timed tickets are required ,so we stood in line and secured our tickets for mid-morning. Since the tickets for the entire day were gone before noon, it turned out to be a good strategy!

Our first stop was to see the Liberty Bell. It is nicely housed in a glass pavilion that has Independence Hall as a background. Since it is such an important American symbol, security has increased since Sept. 11th. In fact, we has to go through metal detectors and remove all belts. watches, wallets, etc. The security seemed a little stricter than the airport! More than one person was heard to comment that they hoped their pants (without belts) did not fall down!
When Karen saw the Liberty Bell in 1989, visitors were allowed to touch it. Apparently that stopped in 2000 when some idiot hit it with a hammer!! We enjoyed our visit with this symbol of freedom.

Next we went to our Independence Hall tour. Of course, this is another important American symbol--so off came the belts and all the pockets emptied again!! It's too bad they could not combine the screenings!

Our first stop was the Assembly Room. This is where the constitutional Delegates met to draft the Constitution. The desk and chair in the center front is where George Washington presided. The chair is the actual chair that Washington used.

We also visited the other parts of the Hall. For the first 10 years of our country's history, Philadelphia was our nation's capital. The House of Representatives met in this room. During those 10 years the number of Representatives nearly doubled as several new states were added to to the Union and the first census revealed a growth in population.
John Adams was sworn in as our 2nd President in this room.

Next we visited the Senate chamber. Here George Washington took his oath for his 2nd term. The Senators got the fancier room!-maybe 'cause there were fewer of them!

After we finished our tour we walked around the building, looking at the numerous statues and plaques in the area. On our way back to the car, we stopped by ChristChurch cemetery and saw Benjamin Franklin's grave. He and five signers of the Declaration of Independence are all buried just down the street from where all their important work took place.

After a busy morning of touring, we were starved! Since Philadelphia is such an old and historic city, we looked for something unusual. We found McGillan's Ale House. This pub has been in continuous operation at this location since 1860! Of course, we had to try it. Armed with a detailed map, we only had to circle the block a few times to find it and park. The food was delicious and the decor spanned 140 years of Philadelphia history. They had all 140 liquor licenses on the wall, photos from years ago as well as the original sign that hung outside now presiding over the bar.
It was a fun way to rest up from the morning.


Next we were off to visit the Edgar Allen Poe National Historic Site. Poe lived in Philadephia for 6 years. This house is the only one that Poe lived in that is still standing so it has been designated as the National Shrine to this famous American author. During the time he lived here, he penned "The Raven" and "The Tell-Tale Heart" among other works. The Ranger who led the tour ws quite knowledgeable and we learned lots about Poe and his rather unhappy life.

We saw lots of Philadelphia today and we thought that on the way "home" we would stop by Washington's Crossing, PA. Just North of the Poe house,this is the site on the Delaware River where George Washington made his famous crossing on Christmas Day in 1775 to take part in the Battle of Trenton.
As you can see, we did reach the river. This was after we made a wrong turn that took us on a loooong drive through some of the New Jersey countryside. Eventually we returned to Pennsylvania ! There is a marker showing the site of the crossing and the town has a few Pre-Revolutionary buildings. What an adventure!