The morning starts with breakfast at the famous Philadelphia Reading Terminal Market. This market has been around since the 1890s and is a national historic landmark with many produce areas and eating spots. 

There are many places to choose from but I hone in on Profi’s Creperie. We have to wait a bit for a seat and then I am tossed between the savoury seafood crepe or roasted veggie crepe. I choose seafood and John goes for the bacon, eggs and cheese crepe. The crepes are big and I am stuffed.

 

If you remember your Monopoly board properties this is the Reading Railroad that is one of the railway properties in the game. The actual railway terminal was on the floor above the market.

Inside the market we visit a statue of Philbert the Pig and rub his snout for good luck before heading to the Independence National Historic Park.

 

 

The Park is a large area of the original  city of Philadelphia that contains many of the historic sites such as the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.

On the  way I notice that John ups his pace and is practically running through the fashion district. 

 

The architecture in Philadelphia is lovely.

 

Our first visit is to the remains of the President’s House. I never knew that for the first ten years the capital of the United States was Philadelphia. Only some foundations remain under glass with the walls of the house marked out at street level. George Washington and John Adams, presidents #1 and #2 lived in this house. Display panels give the history of the site. Many school groups are here and I eves drop in on some of the tours.

There was a lot of talk about George Washington and his slaves and the fight to abolish slavery.

 

Next to the President’s House is the current home of the Liberty Bell. It is really interesting, not only focusing on the fight to abolish slavery but women’s fight to vote. The Bell is housed in a modern museum but positioned so when you view the Bell, in the background through the floor to ceiling glass window, you see its original home, the bell tower of the Pennsylvania State House (now known as Independence Hall).

 

To visit Independence Hall you need to book online well in advance for a timed ticket. Admission is free but there is a $1 internet booking fee. Our tickets are for 11:20am.

The grounds around the buildings are lovely. I try to get some good shots of the front of the Hall but there are always people posing and when they finish taking their pictures, instead of moving, they stand there and look at their phones.

The National Parks guide gives a great tour of Independence Hall where you see the room where the Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence and later the Constitution. We next move to Congress Hall which housed the first House of Representatives and Senate. 

 

We finish off at the West Wing which houses a copy of the Declaration of Independence. 

 

 

From Independence Hall it’s a short walk to Washington Square where we saw the flame for the Unknown Soldier of the American Revolution.

Our next stop is the Independence Park  Visitor Centre where there are bathrooms (yeah!) But the water fountains are out of commission…however you can buy a small bottle of water for $4.50 US.

 

 

We continue on to the Betsy Ross House where we are to start our walking tour with Free Tours by Foot. Betsy Ross was a close friend of George Washington and a seamstress. 

It is believed, but without any actual proof, that George W got her to sew the first USA flag.

The walking tour takes us to the oldest continually inhabited street in the USA – Elfreth’s Alley. The street consists of 32 Federal and Georgian style homes. A man who owns one of the houses is sitting on his front stairs, enjoying the sunshine. He knows our guide and invites the group in to see his house. He has done an amazing job with it and has managed to keep its historical charm.

Our guide Toni takes us through many of the sites in the historical centre including the Carpenter’s guild, and Benjamin Franklin’s Home/Museum on our 2.5 hour walking tour.

The architecture in this city is stunning…and the history. This is arguably one of the most attractive large cities in North America. I love it.

The tour ends at Christ Church burial ground where Philadelphia’s favourite son, Benjamin Franklin, is buried. People put pennies on his grave and make a wish because he was the person that coined the phrase, “a penny saved is a penny earned”.

 

 

After a brief rest John and I continue walking down Arch Street passing through Chinatown with its cool gates. We come across the stunningly gorgeous City Hall. It truly is a place for the people with splash pads, a shave ice stand and a roller skating rink.

 

 

 

Across the street is the famous Love Park. Of course we have our picture taken at the Love sign.

 

 

My feet are sore but we continue walking to the skyscraper which houses the Four Seasons hotel. The reception and RJ Skyhigh Bar are on the 60th floor. The drinks are expensive but the views are spectacular…worth the price of admission.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Rittenhouse area is trendy and full of restaurants. We were going to go for lobster rolls but we ended up choosing a place called Cleevers which is known for their Philly Cheese Steak sandwiches. They did have a vegetarian version with portobello mushrooms instead of steak. This concoction of steak, onions and cheese whiz in a sub is famous and everyone says when in Philadelphia you have to try it. Well we did and neither the meat or vegetarian version is our thing…and messy….I managed to get half of it all over my outfit.

Between being uncomfortably stuffed and having really sore feet, I could barely walk back to our apartment. I did manage a quick shopping trip into Trader Joe’s.

I just checked my feet, I have a blister under the pads of both my heals and another one on my sole nder the toe joint. My fitbit says that I have walked just under 30,000 steps. We have a big touring day planned for tomorrow. I am concerned how my feet are going to manage. Maybe John can carry me…or not.