No pictures for this album coz I’m now aboard the beautiful Norwegian Epic on my 7-days cruise, and the internet is super expensive =(
US$0.75 per minute. One minute! Isnt that crazy?
Maybe. Just maybe I’ll edit in the pictures if the next hotel has complimentary internet. Btw, in case you're wondering, it's now Day 27 :)
Day 14
I woke up at 830am today to check out coz today I’m going to Philadelphia, home of the Liberty Bell, Benjamin Franklin, cheese steak and cream cheese.
The train ride would unfortunately be more than 5 hours =.= coz New York is in between Boston and Philly. The ride from Philly to Washington DC (my next destination) would be much shorter =)
Arriving at the beautiful Amtrak station in Philly, I decided to take a taxi coz the hotel (Windsor Suites) is near but there’s no direct public transport and not walk-able when dragging a luggage.
On the outside, the Windsor Suites is not as pretty as it looks on the website but I really don’t care. I only care bout my room and the location, both of which are awesome to the max. My “room” 1516, on the 15th floor, is actually a suite. It is as big as my basement in Calgary and it has a walk-in closet and a kitchen. The kitchen is fully equipped with pots and pans, utensils, coffee machine, etc. I love it! How I wish my mum was with me.
And the wired high-speed internet is seriously high-speed. I uploaded all my Boston pictures to FB, and then walked randomly. I was amazed by the sight of the gorgeous city hall. It looks like it belongs in Italy, not America.
The Masonic temple was next to it. It looks like a beautiful church on the outside, but I heard that the inside is completely different. I wish I have time to go in.
And then I walked to the LOVE park where they have the famous LOVE sculpture by Robert Indiana, a pretty fountain and the beginning of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. The O in LOVE is tilted because love is not perfect.
Whoever designed the Ben Franklin Parkway is brilliant. There are beautiful architectures, museums, library, statues, fountains. And my hotel is smack right in the middle of the parkway. Like I said, Philly wasn’t in my original plan so I didn’t know much about it and I didn’t do much research. I guess that is why I love it so much.
Day 15
I woke up at 930am today and decided to walk to the historical area, where the Independence Hall is, where the Declaration of Independence was signed. I walked past the city hall, on to market street for around 12 blocks. Yup, a long walk but I enjoyed the walk. I had McD sausage sandwich for breakfast. Yum!
There was a long line to see the Liberty Bell, so I walked to the visitor centre first, the best I’ve ever seen. The air-conditioner is a blessing. Hehe. I went in to get the free ticket into Independence Hall. Btw, the Independence Hall is the image at the back of US$100.
I have to wait for a couple of hours before I can go in. It's a timed guided tour. I walked pass the liberty bell building and seeing no line, I went in. The bell has a long history, a long scar and a long move (from the Independence Hall to its current new personal location).
After that, I still have about an hour to kill so I walked around the area and was attracted by some music about half a block away.
A guy is pretending to be a Private around the time America gained her independence, and he is recruiting new soldiers. It’s so funny! Watch the video on my FB!! The first 2 minutes are mainly music.
The guided tour in Independence hall was kinda boring, but that was where Ben, Riley and Abigail found the specs to see the clue behind the Declaration of Independence. And this is also where the Declaration of Independence was originally signed!
I then took the Trolley tour, which is one of the tickets on my Philadelphia Citypass. The guide is really informative and I totally enjoyed the tour. Highly recommended if you’re not travelling with a local and you want to see everything in a short time. Afterwards, you can choose where to go and where to skip.
Logan Square
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Free Library of Philadelphia
Please Touch Museum (for kids)
Joan of Arc (in gold)
Rodin Museum (with one of "The Thinker" statues and only Rodin works inside. Now you know why I love Philly. All those lovely history and arts. Sigh. If only I have more time)
My dinner was a Philly cheese steak. Yum! It’s a must in Philadelphia.
Day 16
I woke up at 9am and decided to walk to Franklin Institute, which is near my hotel. The Institute itself is a little boring. Good for kids though.
But they do have a Cleopatra exhibit that has to be paid separately so I did. Too bad no photography allowed in there, coz it’s a beautiful exhibit. The light effect and music are excellent, creating a romantic-ish atmosphere. Like we’re underwater. I now know more about Cleopatra than I wanted to.
I then took the Phlash (a trolley bus, $2 per ride, $5 per day) to the National Constitutional Centre, where they have the award-winning show, “Freedom Rising”, about the beginning of the United States. The guy is talented!! I’m not a citizen of the United States but I actually cried. It is that good. The founding fathers had a dream – “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” for everyone. And a country where (I quote) “we, the people” had the power to choose our leader, to shape the nation, and to change the future. In theory anyway. Hehe. I know I’m a pessimist, but I like to think I’m more of a realist.
I then walked to the Terminal Reading Market, famous for their food and fresh vege/fruits. This is where a lady said to Abigail, “If you’re not a steak, you don’t belong here” when she hid from the bad guys. Told you I’m a superfan. I bought a shrimp pad thai. Isnt that crazy? Hehe. I’m buying thai food from a famous market in Philly!
Day 17
I woke up at 930am and took the Phlash to Philadelphia zoo, the first zoo in America. It was ok. The kind of place that’s not super interesting but it’s worth a go.
I like the primates section (as usual) and the rare animals section, but the rest is a bit boring. But the naked mole rats / glabers (the name of my class) are super cute!!
I then went to the Eastern state Penitentiary. The closest Phlash stop is 6 blocks away. 6 blocks are usually nothing. It’s the bright sunlight, the heat and the humidity that sucks. I was light-headed and my vision was going blurry by the time I reached the penitentiary.
But it’s worth it! The exterior looks like a very romantic pretty castle, but the inside was scary. In case you have no idea what a penitentiary is (like me), it’s a jail. They have the self-guided audio tour thing. It’s a handheld phone-like thing. You can press the number you see along the way and listen to the story.
I then took the Phlash to Chinatown for dinner. Like Jocy, I’m super asian. Haha. I love the occasional change of cuisine. Once or twice a week. But most of the time, I’ll revert back to Chinese food. I had roasted duck. Omg. Super super yummy.
For supper, I made use of the awesome kitchen in my suite to boil the string beans I bought yesterday from the Reading Market.
That ends my trip in Philly. I wish I can stay a few more days. There’s a few other places I wanna visit, but tomorrow I’m going to nation’s capital -Washington DC.
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