Philly

After our day in Valley Forge and our fabulous sleepover in the twin bed, we were down for breakfast at 7:06am and on the bus before 8am on our way to Philadelphia. We took a drive around downtown and initated our day in Philly by going to a live production of "We, The People" at the visitor's center. After we mosied around the museum (spending most of our time watching Supreme Court cases and debating the outcome) until our tour time at 11:45.


I pointed the camera up to take this picture of Independence Hall and Husband said, "I could by a postcard of that, get a person in it." After I called him rude he used his mother as a scapegoat and said, "That's just what my mom says." I think he deserves a swat.

Later we saw a group of Asians crowding around an American baby taking turns getting photographs with her. I wish I would have taken a photo of that. You couldn't get a postcard of that classic scene.


This room was Husband's favorite, not only because of it's extreme hisorical significance in that the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were drafted here, but because of it's simplicity. It reminded both of us that America truly comes from a humble background.


After our tour we were nearly starving so we made our way over to Reading Market, located on 11th and Market St. and nestled in an old train station. The atmosphere was so cool with live market, vendors yelling and selling, bustling patrons . . . I've decided I'm a market junkie and could make a career out of visiting them and writing an opinion column. But only if I was supplied constant cheese samples.

At a stand called, "By George" we got, what the vendors around the corner dubbed, "The Best Philly Cheese Steak in town." We ordered two, not knowing they were made on 18" long baguettes. It was the largest, drippiest sandwhich I had ever consumed. Husband at all of his, I got sort of close.


Mmmm greasy onions and seasoned meat. My idea of a dream meal . . .


We decided that the Liberty Bell looks fake and took an obligatory, touristy picture here because everyone else was doing it. Oh to be touristy. Also take note of our little "bun in the oven." We're expecting next January.


One of our favorite places that afternoon turned out to be Washington Square. We were with our married friends again (of course, we're shunned by the single folk) and simultaneously fell asleep. Except for me, who spent my time fiddling with my video camera and getting some possibly usable footage to incorporate in my grant project.


It wasn't until we were boarding the bus to go to dinner that we found out we were on the Special Bus. No wonder we got so many stares driving through the ghettos of Philadelphia on our way to Marra's Pizza.

We watced National Treasure on the way home and relished in it like never before. Half the movie was filmed in the places we had spent our afternoon and I felt curiously celebrity-like after watching the movie.