Yesterday was the Statue of Liberty.
Today liberty revolved around democracy, religious freedom and bells. We booked a tour to Philadelphia with a side trip to Lancaster County. Philly is the birthplace of the American state. Much of the founding fathers’ busy work happened in Philly: the Continental conferences, the Articles of Confederation, the Declaration of Independence, the drafting of the US Constitution, the temporary capital as Washington D.C. was being constructed. Betsy Ross made the first US flag in Philly, George Washington lived there for many years – the first white house/president’s residence was there, as was Benjamin Franklin’s long-term home.
And we visited a lot of it. The Independence Hall and Congress Hall, the Liberty Bell display, Betsy Ross’ house, Elfreth’s Alley … there’s a lot of history still visible in Philly. A culinary first was had: the consumption of a hoagie. Not quite sure what to expect, it turned out to be a meat and salad roll. Not that adventurous after all.
A detour was made to the steps of the Museum of Art, made ‘famous’ in the Rocky movie. The museum, modelled on a Greek temple, has a flight of stairs that the boxer runs up, for those who have not seen the film. A statue (with the inevitable queue for a photo) is at the top the stairs.
Next stop was Lancaster County and an Amish family farm. More petting zoo than anything else, it was never-the-less interesting to talk with the farmer and learn about his take on Amish culture and avoiding aspects of modernity. His small farm runs some cattle and crops and he has help from his 10 children and several horses and mules. The history of the Amish was interesting; how they came to Pennsylvania for religious liberty.
A stop at a market area for retail therapy turned out to quite educational. We experience wine slushies for the first time! Not a bad idea for summer, it must be said.
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