We have had a couple of lazy days. Catching our breath before No.2 arrived. The heat is hard on TOH and I must admit sometimes for me too. With the humidity hitting over 100 Fahrenheit (37+ Celsius), the air-conditioning unit in Ellie-Mae is certainly working overtime. It is nice that the temperature does drop at night, so sleeping has not been a problem. BUT, TOH keeps reminding me that as we are heading south, the temperatures are only going to get higher. So we will just have to see how we go.
No. 2 arrived into Philadelphia and we drove in to pick him up. On the trip in we passed a sign to a town called Wayne…. of course, we just had to go home that way to check it out. A cute little town, with a great “American” pub where we had lunch, in the cool, in time to watch the Gauff v Hercog Wimbledon match, so all in all, it was a great little town.
Having No. 2 here gave me a great excuse to spend a day shopping. Across the road and up a bit from the campground we are in, is a large outlet mall. Rest assured, “I” was very restrained, TOH even came and shopped, without too much complaining.
Since everything around Lancaster seems to shut on Sunday, we headed back to Hershey to show No.2. This town really needs 3 or 4 days spent there to ensure you see and do everything. The Theme Park with all its 13 Roller Coasters (including 2 “Woodys”), Zoo, Gardens, Museums and more. No.2 left Hershey loaded down with chocolate and a grin from ear to ear.
Monday dawned with rain, rain, and rain but with the weatherman promising us it will clear by 11 we left nice and early to head back into Philadelphia. Well just like weathermen all over the world, he was wrong. We were determined not to let the rain put us off and so after fun trying to fit into the carpark we had found online. The maximum height of vehicles was meant to be 6ft 10 and we were not sure of the actual height of the truck but knew it must be pretty close, we tried to find another outside entrance. Which we did, only to find no parks outside and having to go into the building to exit. All 3 of us were shrinking down in our seats trying to will Henry to pass through without any damage. The car park attendant who found our predicament sooo funny found us a car park … outside…. and no damage was done to Henry or the building, though I think the aerial may have been shaved down a tad.
Philadelphia is fascinating. The buildings in the center are beautiful, and the wow factor as you turn a corner just didn’t wear off. We thought as it was raining we would start the day at the Reading Terminal Market. What a sensory overload. The sights and sounds and smells were amazing. Aisle and aisle of food stalls, gift stalls, meat vendors, seafood vendors, vegetable vendors, restaurants and bars.
The weather wasn’t playing its part, so we thought, “Oh well, its only water” and we headed out to see the sights. We found ourselves firstly at the Liberty Bell. Such a symbol of freedom. It was originally made in England in 1751 but it cracked when it was first rung, so it was melted down and remade in Philadelphia. It wasn’t until 90 years later that it cracked again, but this time it was tried to be repaired and that is actually what the current crack in the bell is….. a repair that didn’t work, as another crack appeared, so in 1846 (for George Washington’s birthday) it was silenced forever. But it has still become overtime a symbol for abolitionists, women’s rights and civil right throughout the years.
On the way to the Liberty Bell, we passed the house where in 1776 Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. Such a little house, so tall yet so thin. Then just around the corner is Independence Hall where both the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were adopted.
That was enough of history and after LOVE Park (actually John F Kennedy Plaza) we headed for the Philadelphia Mural Mile. This found us in rather “interesting” parts of Philadelphia, certainly a side not a lot of tourists see. But the weather didn’t stop us from seeing the sights. Actually, the rain had a welcoming cooling effect and we dried quickly in the heat each time it stopped.
By the time we arrived back at the campground, the sun was out and the humidity was hitting an all-time high.
Don’t forget to check out more photos at:
https://www.clicker-maniac.com/Renovate-My-Dreams-Blog/Philadelphia
