We are so glad we decided to take the train down to Philadelphia. The train station is about a block away from where we live, and we didn't have to worry about traffic, or parking, or driving through scary parts of Philly. What a relief.
Ezra and Suzanne waiting for the train. Ezra was pretty excited to ride the train - he seems to like anything new.
Our first stop was the Independence Hall visitors center. All the people who worked there were very nice and helpful. When I asked about the cost to the exhibits, the worker pointed out all of the "free" things. "If you paid your taxes, then you've already paid your admission," he kindly pointed out to us. Believe me - we did pay our taxes this year. At the visitors center, we saw a couple of videos that put the historical facts into perspective, and got us in the right mind set. We also saw this "colonial" person playing an old fashioned harp with small mallets. It was pretty cool to see.
After this, we stopped for a quick bite to eat. I had to have the infamous philly cheesesteak. You can't say that you have truly been to Philadelphia unless you dive into an authentic philly cheesesteak. Yes, it was packed full of calories, and probably doubled my cholesterol, but it was good!! YUM! YUM!!
Then we stood in line to see the great Liberty Bell. I never really realized that the large crack happened because the best iron casters were trying to repair a small crack.
We took a bus down to Penn's landing and stopped off at Elfreth's alley - the oldest city block in Philadelphia. The houses that existed during the colonial time period are the same houses that stand there today. I wouldn't want to live on that city block - too many tourists would constantly be walking around your place. Talk about a breach of privacy.
We stopped off at Betsy Ross' house. We only saw the outside and the garden area, because we were too cheap to pay for admission to the inside tour.
We finished the day at Independence Hall - the place where the Declaration of Independence was announced on July 4, 1776.
The actual signing of the declaration didn't happen until August, but Independence day refers to the day we declared our Independence from Britain. The stories are amazing. For seven more years, our country fought to actually gain that independence.
This is a picture of the court room in the original Philadelphia court house (Independence Hall). When Pennsylvania was under British rule, the citizens had a right to a trial by jury. Later the British crown took that right away. The colonists had taxation without representation and very few rights. This is one of the things that sparked the declaration for independence.
This is a picture of the congressional room where they actually signed the Declaration of Independence. Many of them signed believing they would be hung for treason. They understood that their lives were worth the cost of freedom for the rest of the American citizens.
I appreciate that the founding fathers enabled the Constitution to be revised and adapted to meet the needs of the people in the world today. Although politics can get a little messy, and our country isn't perfect, I'm grateful for the sacrifices that were made to support a government for the people and by the people. Happy Fourth of July!!
Ezra on the train home eating my sunglasses (his new favorite toy).
This is Bruce waiting for the fireworks to start on Monday night. We watched the fireworks in a small township called Southampton. We celebrated our freedom by paying for a firework show. $2.00 parking, $3.00 per person for admission. Pennsylvania might be free, but the fireworks aren't.
We played Skip-Bo while we waited as our activity for family night. Bruce won! FYI!
Happy Birthday America!
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