Gehlke Family 2007 East Coast Vacation travelogue -- Day 15

Independence Hall stands proud in Philadelphia's Independence Square. Arriving early in the morning got us tickets to tour the inside. Photo by Glenn.

Our tour guide talks about the original furnishings of the courtroom inside Independence Hall. The door to the right of the photo is a fake, put there to balance the room with the functional door out of the frame on the lefthand side. Photo by Glenn.

Here is the legislative wing of Independence Hall, in which the Declaration of Independence and Constitution were signed. Photo by Glenn.

Ben and Roni wait for Dad at the end of the tour. Time to check the map and see what else there is to see in this historic city. Photo by Glenn.

This is the Syng inkstand that was used in the signing of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. It is on display in a museum located in Independence Hall. Photo by Glenn.

George Washington is everywhere, including on the steps out front of Independence Hall. Philadelphia served at the nation's first seat of government until 1800. Photo by Glenn.

The Liberty Bell is on display in a spacious pavilion that opened in 2003. It is located across the street from Independence Hall, with the bell strategically placed in front of a large window that makes for some striking photos — at least in the postcards we purchased. Photo by Glenn.

As the sign says, this is the place where you go to get info on anything and everything located in Independence Mall. The visitor center includes displays, a refreshment counter, gift shop and tickets to the major attractions. It is a vast improvement over the way things were even a decade ago. Photo by Glenn.

We liked this sign because of the emphasis on "Ben" in Ben Franklin's name. The "Breakfast with Ben" series invites visitors to listen to a Franklin impersonator share stories about Colonial times every Saturday morning. Photo by Glenn.

This cow decorated to look like the Constitution is on display in the visitor center. Can't find any information on this, but we believe this was part of an art project in which several cow sculptures were decorated and placed at various locations around the city. Photo by Glenn.

The visitor center includes some interactive exhibits, including a larger-than-life replica of a $10 bill in which you can take the place of Alexander Hamilton's mug. Don't you think Ben would look good in your wallet? Photo by Glenn.

Docents dress and act the part to share the city's history with visitors. Ben gets his photo taken with the local reverend. Photo by Glenn.

A nobleman and member of the Continental Army encourages Ben to show up next to Independence Hall at 12:30 for a freedom rally. Wonder what that entails? Photo by Glenn.

The Christ Church Burial Ground is located a block away from the visitor center and is the final resting place of Benjamin Franklin. The graves here are hundreds of years old and are in various states of maintenance. In a top view of one of the tombstones you can see how the elements have eaten away the stone. Photo by Glenn.

The plaque neares to Roni is Ben Franklin's grave. Seems odd that his parents in Boston got a huge obelisk and all Ben got was a simple slab. Photo by Glenn.

Huzzah! Ben has been drafted into the Colonial military. At the freedom rally he gets the job of parading this picket sign around the park next to Independence Hall. Photo by Glenn.

As the fife and drum corps plays patriotic music, the youn recruits assemble on the lawn. Click on the image to see a larger picture. Photo by Glenn.

The recruits march through town, signs held high. Photo by Glenn.

The young recruits are instructed in the proper handling of their muskets by the drill sergeant. Photo by Glenn.

This is Ben's "mean face." The key to success when you're in the army is to look like you mean business. Photo by Glenn.

Charge! They're supposed to have bayonettes at the end of their muskets, For obvious reasons, they have to use their imaginations. Photo by Glenn.

Congratulations, Ben, Gen. George Washington says you are now a certified member of the Continental Army. Photo by Glenn.

Elfreth's Alley is the oldest surviving residential neighborhood in America. Every building on this street is on the National Register of Historic Places, and most are still being used as full-time residences by the people who live here. Photo by Glenn.

We got a bit lost on our drive back to the hotel through Philadelphia. This is one of the many murals painted on the downtown buildings. Photo by Roni.

One of the city's most popular tourist attractions is this statue of Rocky Balboa, once again on display at the Philadelphia Art Museum... Photo by Roni.

...And here's the reason why. Everyone who stands next to this statue for a photo strikes this pose. Glenn will never be mistaken for the Italian Stallion. Click on the photo for a larger image. Photo by Roni.

We always enjoy hearing from our visitors. We welcome your comments.

On the road to independence

Tuesday, July 10 (Day 15) — What a time to catch a cold. There's never a good time, but why the day before I've got to spend seven hours on a plane and going through airport check-ins and security screenings? My nose will be running like a faucet in addition to the rest of me being subjected to the displeasures of air travel. I can hardly wait. I don't know how I picked this up or where, but I have to assume it was in Washington, D.C., while standing in lines with dozens of other people. The germs took advantage of my fatigued defense systems and were easily incubated in the stifling heat and humidity we've had the past several days. So I'm coming down with a summer cold, but I didn't let it spoil the last day of our vacation, which was spent touring historic Philadelphia.

I was extremely disappointed last night because I had been waiting to book our tour tickets for Independence Hall. As recently as a few days before our visit I had been checking the Internet to see that there were plenty of tickets left, so I saw no need to reserve them and fork over the handling fee to the parks department. I thought that if supplies dwindled I could always reserve the tickets up to the last day. But when I went onto the reservation website last night, I discovered to my dismay that all the tour times were booked. I went to bed kicking myself for waiting, thinking that I had missed out on my one and only chance to get in to show Ben the Liberty Bell.

But then I remembered that the parks department holds back tickets to distribute on a first-come, first-served basis the day of the tours. They vanish quickly, so if there was any hope of picking up three tickets we'd have to get to Independence Hall around 8:30 in the morning when the ticket window opened. So I set our hotel alarm for 6:45, much to Roni's chagrin. Yes, it was hideously early for us, but no more so than our first-day scramble to get to the Statue of Liberty.

We had no problem with traffic getting into Philadelphia via I-295 to I-76 to I-676. I let Roni off at the curb to grab our spot in line while Ben and I drove into the parking garage at the Independence Hall Visitor Center. We rejoined Roni in line outside the center, which was just getting ready to open at 8:30 a.m. My fears about not getting tickets proved to be unfounded. We secured three spots for the 9 a.m. tour and shortly found ourselves in line outside Independence Hall. But I had been mistaken in thinking that the tickets got us in to see the Liberty Bell as well. Oh no! All that work for the wrong tour?

Turns out that the hall is the only tour requiring tickets. If you want to see the bell, it's free for the bother of a security check. I was feeling pretty silly until the park ranger on our Independence Hall tour commended anyone who got their family up early, saying the tour tickets are usually gone before noon and the best times are all but unavailable if you wait. It really didn't matter, because Ben was thoroughly bored with the history lesson. Still tired from not getting his beauty rest, he yawned his way through the half-hour tour and wound up sitting out the last bit of it in the lobby with Roni. Not what I had hoped for, but perhaps some of the history bits were over his head. Once finished with the hall, we made our way to the Liberty Bell pavilion and had a park ranger take our photo together with the famous bell.

I am floored by how much Philadelphia has changed since I last saw it 30 years ago. The security checks are one thing, but the bell pavilion and the visitor center are brand new since 2001. There is also a Constitution visitor center that is fairly new. We didn't go into the latter because of the high admission charge, but there was still plenty to do that didn't require any extra money.

We had a light breakfast in the visitor center before setting off to tour the historical district after 11 a.m. The visitor center features docents who occasionally show up dressed as colonial figures. Ben got to chatting with one of them and learned that there would be a demonstration at 12:30 of how soldiers were trained for the colonial army. Ben really wanted to check this out. We decided to use the hour beforehand to visit the grave of Benjamin Franklin and others at the Christ Church Burial Ground. We were amazed that Ben Franklin's grave was rather plain. Would have thought that such a historic figure would have received a grander plot, sort of like the one his parents got in Boston.

When 12:30 rolled around, we found ourselves in a park across the street from Independence Hall. A couple of men in costumes were parading picket signs about while two others played a fife and drum. The signs were protesting the killing of five citizens by British soldiers and calling for volunteers to join the colonial military. Ben, by being one of the first to arrive for the show, got "drafted" to carry one of the protest signs. He carried out his duty well, and suddenly seemed to be enjoying himself. The leader of the demonstration took a couple dozen kid volunteers and showed how army volunteers were trained, using wood muskets as props. With a trio of loud huzzahs, Ben and the others learned the basics of what the colonial military was all about. A very entertaining demonstration. Afterward, Ben received a certificate for his participation.

The heat was stifling as the afternoon advanced. With my sore throat I was parched most of the day, so we were stopping often to buy sodas. We learned our lesson from D.C. and decided that rather than walk to all the attractions we'd take the trolley. For $2 per person we could ride the trolley all day to any of the 10 attractions it stops at. It wasn't air conditioned, but it was easier than fighting the traffic on the busy downtown streets.

We rode as far as the U.S. Mint, which I had toured years ago and thought Ben would enjoy. But like everything else, it too had changed. No longer are you allowed to take phots inside. In fact, they won't even allow you to bring cameras in the building. Because of this, one of us had to wait outside in the heat with the cameras while the other two went inside for the tour. I went in with Ben and we made a quick circuit of the self-guided tour, glancing at the pretty mint sets in the gift shop before exiting. Then Roni went through on her own. She had all the money, so she spent a bit longer in the gift shop. When she returned, she came back with a proof set of the 2007 presidential dollar coins and several other items. I was excited we'd gotten some coin souvenirs, but very disappointed in the mint's silly no-camera rule.

We peeked at the Betsy Ross House but didn't go inside because of the admission price. Then we found a deli for lunch and had some of the best hoagies I've ever tasted. After that, it seemed time to catch the trolley to take us down the road, but as we just missed it we had about a 15-minute wait. So we checked out Elfreth's Alley, which was just a block up the street. The alley is the oldest known continuously inhabited residential street in America. Every brick house on it is on the National Register of Historic Places. After another 10-minute wait, the trolley at last showed up and we hopped aboard.

It was late in the afternoon and the thunder clouds were rolling in. Rain seemed a distinct possibility, although it never materialized. We wrapped up our visit to Independence Historic Park and rescued our car from the garage about a quarter to five. We had one last thing we wanted to do, which was to find the famous statue of Rocky Balboa that sits outside the Philadelphia Art Museum.

We got caught in rush hour traffic and went toward the city's south end mistakenly trusting an outdated sign at the visitor center that told us the statue's former temporary location. Once we figured out where the museum was and drove all over the city to get there, it was about 6:30. But we did find it and took the obligatory goofy pose or two in front of it.

Back at the hotel in West Deptford (not Thorofare, as I'd thought) we cleaned out the rest of the car in preparation for returning it to the rental place tomorrow morning. My nose was running like a faucet by the time we went for dinner at the 501 Bar & Grill again. We were the only people in the place when we got there. No one had much of an appetite, so we each ordered a dessert. One last cheesecake treat before I have to resume my proper diet when I get home.

Tonight was spent adding the last of our souvenirs to the suitcase and preparing our bags for the plane. I'm feeling yucky right now at 12:15 a.m. This runny nose is taking a lot out of me. I need to get to bed now so I'll be as good as possible for the flight home tomorrow.