4/10/10

Road Trip Through History


In our quest to follow a part of the US heritage trail, we passed by Baltimore and into what's called the Inner Harbor. This historic city went through two major wars - first during the American Revolution and then during the 1812 war between the US and the British Empire. Francis Scott Key was a witness during these British attacks and got inspired to write the poem "Star-Spangled Banner" which later on became the American national anthem.


On this bright spring day, Baltimore's Inner Harbor is besieged by promenaders. The USS Constellation, a Civil War-era ship still afloat, is at the centerpiece of this historic part of the city.

When the weather gets so good, both locals and visitors enjoy a day out in Baltimore's Inner Harbor. While a couple rests after a probably exhaustive morning on their bikes, a lady on unicycle performs for a crowd.

From Baltimore, we head off to the "city of brotherly love" in Philadelphia to see the mother of all historic American buildings - the Independence Hall. Nicolas Cage may have sneaked himself up the bell tower of this building in the movie "National Treasure" but there's no way ordinary tourists will be able to do that without setting off alarms. The only way to get inside - with an official guide - is to join the free scheduled tours with reserved tickets. Or enjoy the view outside from a leisurely ride on a horse-drawn carriage for a fee.

George Washington figures prominently along with the other "founding fathers" of the nation but it's his statue that stands out at the northern part of the building, as if to say: please do come in.

There were many events that occurred inside this building but nothing that could surpass the two that's considered a foundation of this country's democratic ideals: the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution.

If the Liberty Bell gets stolen, America will have a heart attack. Despite an obvious crack on its side, this is the only bell that sees long lines of people who want to see a very important part of US history. Never mind if it doesn't ring anymore. It remains a solid reminder that freedom rings loud and clear in the United States of America.

20 comments:

  1. the lady on that unicycle must be great at her acts; look how crowd-drawing she was!

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  2. I guess you did not miss their famous blue crabs.

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  3. That is a charming city !

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  4. This is where I envy East Coasters. The states are small enough and close to each other that you can easily go from one state to another, and by train too :D

    I have been convincing my husband to hit Boston, Philly, Baltimore and NYC (again) and maybe a short detour to Maine on one single trip.

    How many states have you visited? Is it in your plans to visit all 50?

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  5. this comment page rarely appears, kaya most of the time Im just spending time here looking for possible ways to drop you a comment. hehe

    btw, those cherry blossoms in your previous entry were postcard worthy. :D

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  6. a bell- a shadow of history!

    nice post pards!

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  7. Nice to go back and check US history again... in the flesh! jijijijijijijij

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  8. the history where the National Treasure movie was based on..

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  9. NOTE: I have reverted back to Blogger's default commenting system due to problems with Disqus.

    Hi Docgelo,
    And that lady made quite some money that day.

    Hi Bert,
    I did not eat crabs. I had fish instead.

    Hi Sidney,
    Which one - Baltimore or Philadelphia?

    Hi Photo Cache,
    I don't know if I will be able to visit all 50 but that will surely take me a long time. My wish is to visit Alaska and Hawaii someday.

    Hi Chyng,
    Tama ka dyan, hirap ako with Disqus kaya nung ng-comment ka along with those others who previously said the same, I had to uninstall it. Salamat!

    Hi Ever,
    Salamat sa dalaw!

    Hi Xprosaic,
    It helps to see these historic places yourself - history becomes so vivid.

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  10. two that's considered a foundation of this country's democratic ideals: the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution.>>> wow! indeed a very significant place.

    i actually wish i can lie down and sleep on some of the lawns of the parks in the philippines. but with the temperature right, i believe i wont.

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  11. Nice pictures as always, and nice weather too! I somehow have the tendency to visit places in gloomy season, I visited Philadelphia in January 2009 and everything was just grey.

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  12. wow a very nice place!!! the harbour reminds me the Pier 17 in NYC =p

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  13. the lady on that unicycle must be great at her acts; look how crowd-drawing she was!

    nice to know that a lot of people still enjoy going to historic places such as this. it's so apparent that it's not only educational and informative but relaxing spot too; sarap ng higa nung dalawang cyclists sa 3rd pic mo, dennis.

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  14. I guess you did not miss their famous blue crabs.

    ReplyDelete
  15. That is a charming city !

    ReplyDelete
  16. This is where I envy East Coasters. The states are small enough and close to each other that you can easily go from one state to another, and by train too :D

    I have been convincing my husband to hit Boston, Philly, Baltimore and NYC (again) and maybe a short detour to Maine on one single trip.

    How many states have you visited? Is it in your plans to visit all 50?

    ReplyDelete
  17. this comment page rarely appears, kaya most of the time Im just spending time here looking for possible ways to drop you a comment. hehe

    btw, those cherry blossoms in your previous entry were postcard worthy. :D

    ReplyDelete
  18. Nice to go back and check US history again... in the flesh! jijijijijijijij

    ReplyDelete
  19. a bell- a shadow of history!

    nice post pards!

    ReplyDelete
  20. the history which the National Treasure movie was based on.. might steal that bell if i go there hehe

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