8/1/15 - Hatfield, PA

We got up early this morning and then drove to the train station in Lansdale.  The train left at 8:30 for Philadelphia.  It took about 50 minutes to get into town.  We went to a McDonald’s for breakfast and then walked to Independence Visitors Center.  The first thing we did was get free tickets to tour Independence Hall.  This is where the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were debated and adopted.  We walked over to see the Liberty Bell.  It was another hour before our tour time so we walked around town.  We went by the First Bank of the United States (founded by Alexander Hamilton) and Thaddeus Koscuiszko’s house.

We walked over to Washington Square to see the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier of the Revolution.  We went to Christ Church graveyard and saw Benjamin Franklin’s grave.  Then back to Independence Hall for our tour. It included a tour of the original House of Representatives and Senate.  The next stop was for cheese steaks at Sonny’s.  We still needed to see Edgar Allen Poe’s house so we started walking there.  On the way we went by Christ Church.  This was the first Episcopal Church in the U.S. -- George Washington and Benjamin Franklin both were members.  When it was built it was one of the largest buildings in the western hemisphere.  We also went to Betsy Ross’ house and the U.S. Mint.  We took a self-guided tour of the mint (no pictures allowed) and saw quarters and pennies being minted.  We went through Edgar Allen Poe’s house (the only one of 5 Philadelphia houses he lived in that still stands).  The house was empty and pretty spartan,  but there was a neat mural of Poe on a house nearby.  We walked to Yards Brewing Company and then to City Tavern for beers.  Making a full circle we went back to the train station and rode back to Lansdale.  Today we walked 25,000 steps (over 11 miles).