Day 13: July 9, 2009

We went to the Penrose Diner for breakfast. It was near the hotel and on the way into the city. Good place (more to come on that). We drove into the city on the surface streets, which was a good way to get a feel for Philly's neighborhoods and row houses. We passed Geno's Cheese Steak Stand on Passyunk Ave (it didn't work out to eat there while we were in town).

We made it to Independence Hall and thought we weren't going to be able to tour it because all the timed tickets were gone for the day. We saw the copies of the Declaration of Independence (the one read to Philadelphians after it was written), the Articles of Confederation, and The Constitution, all written in Independence Hall.

Next we went to the Congress Building for a guided tour. While we were there, dad came in with tickets to tour Independence Hall. We couldn't finish the upstairs part of the Congress Building Tour, because we had to leave to get to Independence Hall.

This tour was really good. We saw the room where the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and The Constitution were written. The park ranger who gave the tour was very good too.

Next we went across the street to see the Liberty Bell. They've set up an museum for the bell and it was done really well. We drove over to the Philadelphia Art Museum to see the Rocky Steps. Jimmy and I ran the stairs before we had to leave for dinner.

We met Theron, Wyndee, Matt and their kids at the hotel and all went to dinner. We had planned to go to a buffet, but found out it was closed. We decided just to go back to the Penrose Diner since it was close and it had been good for breakfast. We had a good time seeing everyone and it was the first time any of us had seen Joshua.

The hotel we stayed at was in front of the Phillies Baseball Stadium and there was a game. After the game, there were fireworks. I was the only one who got to see any, but it was a good show.