In Philly for the 4th

 

Now that we're finally starting to get settled, we decided to take a small trip to Philadelphia for the weekend.  I love that we are so close to so many areas of interest and we can decide last minute to head to a totally different state.

I've always wanted to visit Pennsylvania, so hitting Philly was exciting for me.  I knew there was a lot of US History that I wanted to see.  Clark, on the other hand, was anxious to get back to the temple, so it was a win-win for both of us.

We drove up on Friday afternoon when Clark was finished with work.  Stopped once at a gas station for gas and food.  Addi was extremely excited about the Spiderman popsicle she found.

Even though we hit quite a bit of traffic, the trip only took us a few hours.  When we planned the trip, we hadn't realized that we would be hitting the 4th of July weekend.  As I was studying the historical sites we would visit, that is when it hit me that we'd be spending the birthday of our Nation in the very same city that is considered the birthplace of this Nation.  

We arrived in Philly around 8:30pm and discovered there would be a fireworks show only a short distance from our hotel.  Although it would take 25 minutes, Clark and Hannah decided to walk there and got there just in time for the fireworks show to begin.

On Saturday morning, Hannah and I slept in a bit while Clark and Addi went to the temple to do baptisms.  Addi said it was her favorite part of the trip.

After they finished at the temple, Clark brought Addi back to the hotel and the girls and I took off to see the town.  Clark spent the rest of the day in the temple.

First Stop: The Liberty Bell

We waited in line for about 30-45 minutes in the hot sun to be able to see the Liberty Bell, and it was worth every minute.  There was a Brazilian family standing behind us.  I heard them speaking Portuguese and asked where they were from.  They were from São Paulo, so I got to practice my Portuguese speaking skills with them.

Does anyone know what scripture is written on the Liberty Bell?  Ten points if you know the answer without looking it up!  "Proclaim liberty throughout all the land Unto all the inhabitants thereof."**

The bell itself weighs 2,080 pounds.

The last time the bell rang was in 1846.  It was then it received its fatal crack!  When it did ring, its note was E-flat.

The bell is older than the Revolution.  It was ordered in 1751, then finished and hung in 1753.  It cracked right away and was fixed and hung again.

Next Stop: A Walk around Independence Hall 

and Old City Hall

Unfortunately we weren't able to get tickets to see the inside of Independence Hall, so we walked around the outside and then went inside a small courthouse.

Independence Hall in the background.  It is the birthplace of the United States.  The Declaration of Independence was signed here.  The United States Constitution was also created and signed here.

It was here that George Washington was appointed Commander in Chief of the Continental Army.

Old City Hall is a Supreme Court chamber that features a typical 18th century courtroom.  At the time there were only six Supreme Court Justices.  

Third Stop: The Signer Statue 

and the Museum of the American Revolution

George Clymer was a merchant and statesman from Philadelphia who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.  The statue was modeled after him.

The statue is a symbol of the many people who dedicated their lives to the cause of freedom and the American Revolution.  It stands in Signers Garden near Independence Hall and the Museum of the American Revolution. 

This museum is a recent addition (2017) to the city of Philadelphia and focuses solely on the journey to independence.  

There are many original artifacts and documents to see in the museum.

The fun part about visiting the museum was that both of my girls had just finished up a school year filled with US History.  They both had amazing history teachers, Mr. Back and Mrs. Arnold.

I was impressed with how much Hannah remembered from class.  At nearly every exhibit she would tell me a story or a bit of information she had learned from Mrs. Arnold.  It was typically something that you wouldn't normally find at the museum.  They were like nuggets of knowledge she'd gained throughout the year.

Addi was the same.  She loved being able to see in person what they had learned in class.  It made me so grateful that my children were able to go to a school that truly takes pride in teaching American History.  

I didn't take pictures inside the museum, but you can learn more about the museum here.  

Last Stop: Penn's Landing 

and the Riverlink Ferry

We walked over this bridge to Penn's Landing where we wanted to catch a ferry across the Delaware River.

Waiting for the ferry, enjoying our ice cream- it was SO hot.

Getting ready to take off.

With the city in the background.

When we got to the other side, we had planned on going to the aquarium.  By this point, we were exhausted.  As we went to get tickets, we realized the tickets were ridiculously expensive and we were too tired to enjoy it.  So we found a cute little deli right next to the aquarium.  The lady working there was so nice, especially helping Hannah find a gluten free option.  We took our time eating and visiting, then we headed back to the ferry for our return.

In the background of the pictures, you can see the Battleship New Jersey.  We would have liked to see this, but I knew Clark wanted to see it and he wasn't with us.

So I did the next best thing and took some pictures of it.  Next time we return to Philly, we will definitely visit there.  It was massive!

On our way back we asked Clark to come pick us up.  We felt too tired to walk the 25 minutes back to the hotel.  It was a good thing we did, because when we were five minutes out from the harbor, it started to downpour.  Clark was waiting for us when we landed and we headed back to the hotel for a restful night.  We were going to go to the fireworks, but the weather put a damper on that decision.

On Sunday morning, we headed back to Falls Church.  We loved seeing this on the way back:

Talk about magnificence.  It was beautiful.  The pictures don't do it justice.  We look forward to the dedication of this temple in August.

And that was our Philly on the 4th trip!

**The answer to the scripture question is Leviticus 25:10.  Did anyone get it correct?