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Published: September 26th 2010
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The First President's Home
This is the site where Washington and Adams lived before DC became the capitol. As you can see, it is undergoing reconstruction Sometimes History can be rough.
Today (Thursday) we started out early in muggy, foggy, and hot Philadelphia to make our time for a guided tour of Historic Philadelphia. So here we go deep into history and those uneven, brick, and cobblestone streets. I mean deep and SMACK in the face. See Max trying to walk on uneven streets, See Max trip, See Max fall down onto the cobblestones of historic Philadelphia. See the very nice street person try to explain to Max as she rights herself, with the help of her husband and a kind stranger, that the streets are old and "not, you know, flat" and you have to watch your step. It would have been very, very funny except my dignity, knee, arm, shoulder, and neck were starting to throb. Especially my dignity.
But, this is history and tours must be taken--I also know that keeping on my feet and walking will help, so off we go into Historic Philadelphia. (Did you know that Benjamin Franklin invented swim fins? Did you know that he was only 12 when he did so?) We saw many sites from the outside but because we were on a tour we did
Murals
Philadelphia has more than 300 murals. This one depicts the trees in the city. not see them on the inside. Bummer! I missed out from standing in Independence Hall. It turns out that each and every historical site in Phildelphia needs a security check, so, no time. Lots to add from to our Bucket List from Philadelphia. Did I mention how hot and humid it was? So, we rushed...well, hobbled...from the tour and I insisted on a cab because we weren't going to walk a city mile and a half in 15 minutes--that kind of rushing made me meet the cobblestones of Philly at too close proximity. Hailed a cab, packed up, got our car and headed out to Gettysburg.
We made it into Gettysburg in time to go out to the Visitor's Center and Museum. We got tickets for the film (a very good perspective of the Civil War narrated by Morgan Freeman) and the cyclorama. The cyclorama is a huge painting in the round (you view it from a platform in the center of the room...it is 42 feet tall by over 300 feet in length) of the last day of the Battle of Gettysburgh. They use lights and sound effects to bring the battle to life...a little too real for
Where it was written
Thomas Jefferson took two rooms in this house and two weeks to write the Declaration of Independence. His editors changed only a few phrasse, Congress adopted it changing only 2 sentences. Just like today, eh? John and I as it turned out. We toured the museum, but had little heart for it. The soldiers' letters and the photos of the dead brought over us a great cast of sorrow. I guess we are wusses, but we could stomach no more and cancelled our guided trip through the battlefields set for tomorrow. Instead we will tour a home and hear how the civilians of Gettysburg were affected by the war and the battle.
We left the museum and found a faux 1776 Tavern and Restaurant with incredibly good roasted on a spit chicken. Needing simpler things in our lives than war, we returned to our hotel for an evening of laundry, hot baths, and an early bed time.
Well, due to some more technical difficulties here we are adding Day 24 in the morning at Gettysburg and later in the day at Williamsburg to the blog.
Good night to all of you, and we hope that you are safe and well inside snug homes this evening.
Did we mention how hot and muggy it is here?
Love
Max and John
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Atlanta
Don't know how far south your headed, but the cyclarama in Atlanta is pretty awesome... Sorry for your fall...feel better :))