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Day one of the trip east with David.  I will not count the flight and the car renting fiasco as day one.  That experience will go down as day none.  It is enough to say that we did not get to our motel until after one o'clock.  Up at six and on the road to Philly a half hour later.
     Independence Hall is where both the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution were written.  The park ranger who gave us the tour was a wise acre.  Very funny and yet informative.  He reminded me of Sammy Davis Jr.  I half expected him to break out into "Bo Jangles."  He said he did not want any questions concerning religion, politics, or "National Treasure."
     There is always a lot of hype over the Liberty Bell.  It has a good sized building all to itself.  I would not stand in along line to see it.  We waited ten minutes.  It is still cracked.
     The person most associated with Philly is Ben Franklin.  He made his fortune as a printer here.  His print shop is gone but you can see where it stood.  He is recognized as a genius.  David was wondering why, if he was so smart, he had his out house right next to the well he drew his drinking water from.  His grave is covered with coins.  David added a dime.  I was too cheap to co tribute anything.
     We could not leave Philly without having a Philly cheese steak.  We bought ours from a street vendor who has been selling on the same corner for 27 years.  He last took a vacation four years ago.  He said he could hardly wait until next year when the Pope comes to visit.  I am not sure if it was because he was eager to see the Pope or if he thought the Pope's visit would be good for business.
     When we left town, David asked if we were going to see Valley Forge.  I told him we did not have time.  Twenty minutes later I took a wrong turn, got lost, and ended up, you guessed it, in Valley Forge National Historical Park.

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