Time goes by so fast, and our Bucket list keeps getting longer. Fortunately, 08/07 saw us tick an item off the bucket list and that was our trip to Philadelphia – the birthplace of America’s independence.
After weeks of meticulous planning and researching by our darling Emily, she came up with a long list of places we could visit during a one-day visit to Philadelphia from nearby Newark, Delaware.
August 07, 2021
It’s a beautiful Saturday morning!
Our trip started with all four of us – Manoj, Emily, Gopika, and I -, converging at the bus station in Newark. Our itinerary started with us taking a bus to Wilmington, DE, and a train from Wilmington to Philadelphia. The train ticket was surprisingly cheap at $7:00 from Wilmington to Philadelphia.
We arrived at 30th Street Station in Philadelphia early enough and our tour around the city started from there. The train station itself bore the marks of the pre to post-colonial era with impressive works of art on the interior walls of the station. We proceeded into the city and stopped by any and every place that caught our fancy. It didn’t take long before we realized that if we continued that way, we would end up not visiting the major places before it would be time to return home. The whole idea was to experience the vibe of this beautiful city and bask in the knowledge of its rich past. Eventually, we were able to cover places such as the Liberty Bell Center, the Signer, Independence Hall, Franklin Square, Carpenters’ hall, a quick detour to the Museum of the American Revolution’s entrance, and a couple of other places.
Of all the places we visited, Capenters’ Hall stood out the most for me. Carpenters’ hall, dubbed the birthplace of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was a pivotal meeting place for freedom strategists in the push for independence from the British colony in the late 18th century. The detailed inscriptions and artifacts in every corner of the building took us down memory lane, of heroes’ past, of sacrifices, of blood and sweat. I was particularly marveled by the fact that the societal change and liberation needed at the time came from private citizens, skilled men, and women who deployed their services for the common good of the society. The house was a regular meeting place for the various strategic meetings which also contributed to the gaining of Independence in 1776.
What is a Philly trip without its famed Cheesesteaks? We also took time to enjoy the steaks on one of the famous streets.
Finally, we found our way to the Philadelphia Museum of Art where the Rocky steps and statue are located. It was quite fun recreating the famous scene of Rocky Balboa running up the 72 steps in the Rocky III movie.
If there is a major lesson from this trip, it would be that a day does not suffice to explore all that Philadelphia has to offer. We couldn’t cover a quarter of the destinations in our itinerary. We will definitely make a couple more trips to this city. By the time we were leaving for our trip back to Newark DE, our only regret was we wished we had more time. Our exhausted limbs said otherwise though. After all, there was only so much we could do in one day. One thing is certain though. Philly! We will be back!!!
EXPANDING YOUR SCOPE 