We woke up this morning to Itʻs Alway Sunny in Philadelphia! What a beautiful day in Philly. After getting in pretty late last night we got a chance to sleep in and get some nice solid rest. Quick advertisement that Iʻm not getting paid for. The hotels weʻve stayed in have awesome beds and pillows. So if we have the hours weʻd get amazing sleep. We didnʻt have to be down to the bus until around 8:30. A nice respite from our standard of breakfast at 6:45.
First order of business, Independence Hall. We were there right before it opened at 9:00. Notice a trend of being early and on time? Itʻs awesome. We knocking stuff out with little to no crowds. After a talk outside about what happened here we went on in at the 9:00 opening. The first room we went into was the judicial room. Independence Hall was called the Pennsylvania State House. This was all before the historical aspects happened. After a quick talk about the judicial room we went over into the more well known room.
This room is knows as the signing room. What was signed in there you asked. Why of course the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution! Yay!The whole reason we have Independence Day on July 4th started in this room. Itʻs so cool to be in the actual room these happened. Itʻs not like it burnt down and restored or anything like some places, itʻs the real room. The chair in the back is known as the Sunrise Chair. It is the actual chair George Washington sat in. To me, that is just so cool. To be in that room where all those men put their lives on the line to sign the Declaration of Independence that declared the United States free from England and where the laws of the land that we still use today were conceived and signed. Iʻm a history guy so itʻs way cool to me.
The kids had great questions for the park rangers and the rangers obliged all of their questions. Next year will be the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. I bet that July 4th is going to be bonkers there.
After hitting Independence Hall we went to "brunch." Brunch was had at Reading Terminal. I always look forward to Reading Terminal and wish we had more time. There are so many food choices and local market booths it is hard to choose from. Many of us got crepes and/or croissants. Always a popular one every year. Iʻm still waiting for the year somebody gets the alligator meat for food. Not this year.....
We filled our stomachs and went back near Independence Hall but went to the Liberty Bell. Again we keep lucking out as there werenʻt a ton of people and got to take our time. The Ranger again was helpful and answered all of our kids questions. One question they asked was why did it crack? His response was "Iʻm going to let you go and read the displays and come back and tell me." So off they went. Found out it cracked due to the metals it was originally made of and it was brittle.
Real quick souvenir shopping.
We then went to what is knows as the oldest alley in America, Elfrithʻs Alley. Itʻs a small alley with original homes dating back to the 1700s. Yep people live in them so you have to be respectful as you walk down the cobblestone street. Just a neat alley to walk through.
Now just because we ate not long ago doesnʻt mean we shouldnʻt eat again! Time for the famous Patʻs and Genoʻs Philly Cheesesteak stop! Always a hit. Many wrong people went to Genoʻs. A handful of us correct people went to Patʻs. Hahahahaha. Nah, they both great, I just prefer Patʻs. Now some werenʻt too hungry as we had eaten not too terribly earlier so they saved most of their sandwiches for the train station later in the afternoon. But some of us ate it all. Quote from Kaiani Rae "I loved it so much I canʻt wait to come back to Pennsylvania to have one again." She wolfed it down. As did I. The Patʻs gang grabbed our sandwiches and went to the local park across the street from Genoʻs. The Genoʻs gang enjoyed the cooler air. All was great.
We had to eat earlier than we wanted because we had two more things to do today before we had to catch a train to NY. We went to the American Museum of the Revolution. It is on the newer side of things and this is the third time weʻve been to it. Once we were there I remembered how awesome this museum is. We had our own guide from the museum who escorted us around and told us about each rooms displays.
We started off with a quick ten minute movie that describes George Washington and his relationship with his troops of enduring the same hardships they did and how he helped lead the colonies to victory over the British and ending the Revolutionary War and turning the Colonies into the United States. It concludes with a screen raising and showing George Washingtonʻs actual tent that he used during the Revolutionary War. Itʻs pretty big but it is cool to see his actual tent. They have some effects too that makes it look like somebody is in it.
We then were guided around the museum. The kids did a really great job and sat down in the rooms and paid great attention to our guide.
Off to our final stop in Philly. The famous Rocky Steps. After posing with the Champ Rocky, we lined up to see who would win the race to the top. It was a close race to the top with Mala and Ayanna leading the way. Unfortunatly Mala fell for the false top while Ayanna kept going to be the 2025 Rocky Steps Champion! Great job Ayanna!
After that it was time to head to the "Mokuleleʻ Amtrak station to hitch a ride to New York City. It was also time to say bye bye to our driver, Anthony. Anthony was a superb driver. Got us around safely and efficiently. Great guy and got along with our group. Thanks Anthony!
We are currently on the train as I type and the New York City skyline in coming into view. Kids are getting excited. One saw the One World Trade building and how tall it is from far away. Her quote, "I ainʻt going up that uh uh. No way." Hahahahaha, yes you are Ayanna......
We will head into Times Square later this evening. Probably wonʻt write too much about it but post pics as it will be late.
Only a few pics. We all went to eat but here are just a couple.
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