We left D.C. bright and early and crossed the river back into Virginia for a stop at Arlington National Cemetery. This was another re-visit for us but Liam was keen as his memory of the 2008 trip is a bit sketchy. There were many mor epeopl there than we remebered from our last trip, mostly made up of big tour groups from Germany and Italy. After passing through a bag check we walked up the hill to the sight of the Kennedy Graves. I’d forgotten just how huge Arlington is.
From Arlington we set off across country, passing through Maryland and later in the morning we arrived at Gettysburg National Military Park. I had expected it to be fairly quiet but it was very busy at the visitor center. There is an outstanding movie explaining the causes of the Civil War and the events that occured at the battle of Gettysburg and President Lincoln’s visit and very famous speech. We also saw the amazing Gettysburg Cyclorama. Cycloramas were a very popular form of entertainment in the late 1800’s, both in America and Europe. These massive, oilpaintings were displayed in special auditoriums and enhanced with landscaped foregrounds sometimes featuring trees, grasses, fences etc. The Gettysburg Cyclorama is in a huge room with a full 360 degree display which surrounded us, it displays the final Confederate assault on July 3, 1863 , known as “Pickett’s Charge” and along with a spoken commentary, sound effect and lighting effects it really brought the events to life. It was painted by French artist Paul Philippoteaux and was first displayed to the public in 1883. It suffered over the next 80 years, being cut up to fit in smaller auditoriums and was allowed to decay but in the 1960’s the National Park Service aquired it and began a massive rehabilitation.
After the show we drove though part of the huge battlefield and stopped for a picnic lunch as well as to see the location where Lincoln gave his famous speech.
Our visits to Arlington and Gettysburg took longer than I had expected so it was already late afternoon by the time we arrived in Amish County. We drove through the towns of Intercourse and Bird-In-Hand and, I have to say, Amish County was not really what I had expected. Instead of quaint little shops and wide fields and barns there were miles of chain restaurants and hotels, lots of fairly tacky looking fun-park styles places intersperes here and there with big antique malls, quilt shops and “country” stores. We did see some some Amish buggies carrying tourists around for joy rides and just a few Amish people using a surprisingly modern selection of equipment. One chap was using a leaf blower to clean his driveway and another older chap was riding down the road on an electric ride-on skooter! Some of the signs and shops simply advertsied that you could buy “Amish stuff” there!
However, these atrractions are clearly popular as the area was absolutely packed with visitors. The traffic was heavy and when we went out to have dinner we went to three restaurants only to be told at all three that we would have an hour wait for a table! So we sat on the veranda of the Lancaster Brewery Taphouse & Grill for a long wait for our dinner. Luckily it was worth the wait, they had a special Fall Oktoberfest menu and my Pork Schnitzel with sourkraut was delicious.
This morning we found the breakfast room packed when we got downstairs, so we collected a tray full of food and took it back to our room. Then we hit the road again, heading for Philadelphia. Google Maps lead us astray a bit on entering the city but eventually after unexpectedly crossing the river to new Jersey and back we pulled into a parking garage in the Historical center of the town. First stop was a visit to the Liberty Bell center. We had to go through airport style security and we are finding that this is common in several of the places we’ve been visiting. However, there was a good information exhibit and we were able to see the badly cracked massive bell up close.
We then stopped in to the Independence Visitor Center, mainly to use the toilet and to take a look at the shop! It’s an odd fact that one of the most popular sights in Philadelphia are the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, but not for the art. People visit to run up the steps and imitate Sylvester Stalone’s character “Rocky” doing a victory leap at the end of the first of the Rocky Movies. They even sell Rocky memorabilia in the Independence Visitor Center shop!
WE walked a block up the street to take a look at Benjamin Franklin’s Grave in the Old Burying ground. They charge $5 to enter the graveyard but you can see his grave through an iron fence, so we took the cheapo option!
WE had a little while to wait before the time of our Independence Hall tour so we stopped in at a city food court and tucked in to some Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches for our lunch. You simply can’t come to Philly and NOT eat a cheese steak!
At Independence Hall we went through more security and sat down to wait for our tour. Independence Hall is venerated as the birthplace of the United States. In 1776, the Second Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence here. Eleven years later, in the same room, delegates to the Constitutional Convention created and signed an enduring framework of government – the United States Constitution. We had a short tour and an excellent national park Service guide talked about the events of that time and also about how the Hall itself had fared after that time.
Now early afternoon we went backto the car and drove the short distance downtown to check into our hotel. We went out for another walk, this time to ‘Love Park” where the famous “Love” statue is located – a tribute to Philadelphia’s nickname as the “City of Brotherly Love”. We also saw the gorgeous City Hall building with the massive statue of William Penn on the top. The statue is over 36 feet tall and commemorates the man who was the founder and namesake for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
WE saw a few more statues as we walked back, inlcuding this one of Ben Franklin and George Washington.
Our last stop was a visit to the reading Terminal Market, a 128 year old Market with over 70 stalls , it was voted Best Public Market in America in 2021. There was a great array of cooked and fresh food stalls. We were still full from our lunch but we did buy a couple of cappucinos, the BEST coffee I’ve had ever since we left Australia.
Tonight I’d booked us a table at the nearby Iron Hill Brewery Restaurant. We had a great meal but we were seated at a window table which gave us a great view of the many homeless people wandering the streets. I’ve seen more homeless in Philadelphia than I can recall anywhere else. We’ve also come across more angry drivers ( lots of horns) as well as random weirdos walking the streets and shouting. When we checked in they said they lock the doors between 10pm and 10am and I would definitly not feel safe walking the streets late at night. Philly does have an interesting historical heart and some lovely architecture but as Liam said, it’s got the feel of a rather “rough and tumble” city. I’m glad we visited and have seen some very iconic historical sights but it’s definitely not a city that I feel like I’d want to return to.
Tomorrow we head to New York and our big night out to see the Dallas Cowboys play the New York Giants.