Declaration of American Independence, 1st public reading 8th July 1776.
So what day did I arrive on? Yep, 8th July 2006 - the 230th anniversary. 
Had a full re-enactment laid on at lunchtime. Like DC, Philly is a place where the guides say you need to get out of bed early to get into the main attractions without having to queue for hours. so was at the visitor centre before 9 to pick up a ticket for a tour of Independence Hall. For those of you not clued up on US history, the Hall is where the Declaration of Independence was debated, written & agreed upon (4th July), 1st read (8th July), and signed (2nd August). Come on then, how many of you knew that the Declaration of Independence wasn't signed on 4th July. No, I didn't either until yesterday (also George Washington wasn't one of the signatories!!). US Constitution was also debated and agreed upon in the same room 11 years later. And Congress Hall next door was where Congress and the Senate both met whilst DC was built as the new US capital city. Wow, l0ts of learning done in one morning.
Saw the reason why the guides said get up early when I came back out of Independence Hall - the queue for the Liberty Bell stretched to the end of the street and beyond. Spent the rest of the day strolling around the city from INHP up to Fairmount Park, via City Hall and various other historic buidlings. Found a place that did the best lunch I have had so far in the US: Amazon Cafe served up a wonderfully healthy veggie sandwich and smoothie. Set me up nicely for the afternoon. One of the best thigns about DC and Philadelphia is that almost everything is free which as helped the budget a bit after the excesses of New York (and the purchase of a new camera - I just couldn't cope without being able to take photos!). Did spend a bit of cash on the Philadelphia Lights of Liberty show. This is a sort of Son et Lumiere depicting key events in the lead up to the War of Independence by projecting images onto the actual buidlings where the events took place 230 years ago and more. Did finally manage to get to see the Liberty Bell this morning. Meant another early start but I was almost at the front of the queue when the Centre opened at 9am. Not much too see really - spent less than 20 minutes in the exhibition but it is another thing ticked off the list. Wierdest moment was moving into a section of the display related to all sorts of stuff based on the Libery Bell. Music being piped through the speakers was Souza's Liberty Bell March. Will let you work out if you know the tune, but as a clue the hostel I stayed in had shown the Meaning of Life the evening before. And so on to Boston.
Had a full re-enactment laid on at lunchtime. Like DC, Philly is a place where the guides say you need to get out of bed early to get into the main attractions without having to queue for hours. so was at the visitor centre before 9 to pick up a ticket for a tour of Independence Hall. For those of you not clued up on US history, the Hall is where the Declaration of Independence was debated, written & agreed upon (4th July), 1st read (8th July), and signed (2nd August). Come on then, how many of you knew that the Declaration of Independence wasn't signed on 4th July. No, I didn't either until yesterday (also George Washington wasn't one of the signatories!!). US Constitution was also debated and agreed upon in the same room 11 years later. And Congress Hall next door was where Congress and the Senate both met whilst DC was built as the new US capital city. Wow, l0ts of learning done in one morning.
Saw the reason why the guides said get up early when I came back out of Independence Hall - the queue for the Liberty Bell stretched to the end of the street and beyond. Spent the rest of the day strolling around the city from INHP up to Fairmount Park, via City Hall and various other historic buidlings. Found a place that did the best lunch I have had so far in the US: Amazon Cafe served up a wonderfully healthy veggie sandwich and smoothie. Set me up nicely for the afternoon. One of the best thigns about DC and Philadelphia is that almost everything is free which as helped the budget a bit after the excesses of New York (and the purchase of a new camera - I just couldn't cope without being able to take photos!). Did spend a bit of cash on the Philadelphia Lights of Liberty show. This is a sort of Son et Lumiere depicting key events in the lead up to the War of Independence by projecting images onto the actual buidlings where the events took place 230 years ago and more. Did finally manage to get to see the Liberty Bell this morning. Meant another early start but I was almost at the front of the queue when the Centre opened at 9am. Not much too see really - spent less than 20 minutes in the exhibition but it is another thing ticked off the list. Wierdest moment was moving into a section of the display related to all sorts of stuff based on the Libery Bell. Music being piped through the speakers was Souza's Liberty Bell March. Will let you work out if you know the tune, but as a clue the hostel I stayed in had shown the Meaning of Life the evening before. And so on to Boston.
posted by Alan at 2:25 am
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