Weekend 4 - Philadelphia Day 3

26th May - Monday
Now, before anyone asks me why i'm still in Philadelphia on a Monday, i must say that today is Memorial Day - an American public holiday! :)

Woke up to a lazy Monday morning.. Packed our stuff and had breakfast! =)

Today's plan: to explore the historical bits of Philadelphia!

Now, Philadelphia plays quite an important role in American history! So let me try to summarize such a long and complex history into the crucial bits with reference to Lonely Planet USA.. (i apologize if i got any bits wrong, and if you leave a note, i will edit the post if wrong!)

America was "discovered" by Christopher Columbus amongst many others, which sparked a mass colonialization frenzy of sorts by the Spanish, French, British.. But suffice to say, the British were generally more successful.. The road to independence sort of started in 1770, with the "Boston Massacre", where British soldiers opened fire on a group of 5 drunk men who threw snowballs at them. The incident was played up, and led to the "Boston Tea Party", where some colonists men "disguised as native Americans", boarded British ships and threw all the loads of tea into the sea.

Now, the trade in tea was quite important to the British, and they saw it as a sort of slap in the face. Hence, they started to impose taxes and all, coming down hard on their "colony" in America. In 1774, a group of men gathered together in Philadelphia's Carpenter Hall for the First Continental Congress. This was followed by the Second Continental Congress in 1776, when they declared independence in the Independence Hall in Philadelphia, and drafted the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Articles of Confederation.

And of course, important people who drafted the Declaration, Constitution, included Thomas Jefferson, and signed by people such as Benjamin Franklin,..

Of course, the road to independence is never easy, and fighting with the British continued on for a few years after 1776, before General George Washington, together with his troops and French Allies, managed to defeat the British soundly at the town of York.

(If you read my previous post on Fort McHenry, all these occurred before the battle of Fort McHenry in 1812.)

Ok, that's all the history i'm giving - cos i think you'll do better reading it up on Wikipedia or googling it. The above few paragraphs are just meant as an appetizer of sorts so that you won't be so lost when you look at the photos! =P


So here's the Independence Hall! =) Yeah, it looks less grand than City Hall, but remember that it dates back more than 200 years ago!


Statue of George Washington!


Historic centre of Philadelphia!


Across the road next to the Visitor's Centre, is an open field with tombstones remembering those who have fallen in battle..

So we took the guided tour through the Independence Hall..


The early independence hall also served as a courtroom, that was open to public..

But this is where they signed the Declaration of Independence!



and this is the chair which George Washington sat on.. If you peer hard enough, you can see the carving of a rising sun on the chair, representing the birth of a new nation..


And here's the Syng Inkstand - the inkstand and pen that they signed the Declaration with!


Back view of the Independence Hall!

There was a band playing in the yard behind, for Memorial Day..


Went into the building next door where the Senate used to meet when Philadelphia was the capital up till 1800..



Cool right? =)

Next, went across the road to view the Liberty Bell.. Just infront of the building housing the Liberty Bell, historians have discovered the site of George Washington's house while he was in Philadelphia! So there's some exploration going on now..

The Liberty Bell has quite a tumultous physical history of sorts.. When it first arrived in USA in 1751, it cracked almost immediately! Fortunately, it was repaired by 2 skilled craftsmen.. After which, it gradually became the symbol for liberty and freedom.. Unfortunately, the crack reappeared a few more times, and finally was so severe that it silenced the bell in 1846 after tolling for George Washington's birthday..


Check out the characteristic crack down the side of the bell..

Moved up to look at the National Constitution Centre, but didn't go in was it was too ex, and we were a bit tight on time..


Next stop: Betsy Ross House!
Betsy Ross was the lady who sewed the first American flag! =)


Hhmmm.. no photography allowed inside.. -_-"


First Bank of USA! Apparently the buildings in Philadelphia were mainly built in 3 styles - and the 3rd style was that being after the Greeks.. So a couple of buildings started to look a little bit like the Pantheon.. o_O


2nd Bank of USA..


Anyway, we grabbed a quick bite at this roadside stall selling Philly cheesesteaks!

Strolled by Carpenter's Hall...

.. where they met for the 1st Constitutional Congress in 1774..

and Franklin Court, where Ben Franklin used to stay while in Philadelphia..



Notice the tall white metal frames.. they are thought to have been reminders of the printing factories that Ben Franklin started..

And that sorta wraps up Philadelphia as we headed to the Greyhound Station to wait for our ride back to Baltimore!

Philadelphia.. Its been a colourful and enjoyable 3 days! =)