National Treasure Trip: Monday

We've never gone anywhere for Spring Break, but this year Aaron's co-workers were asking where he was taking his family, so we made a list on our white board and decided Philadelphia was the winner!  We thought we might as well watch National Treasure since it's all about where we were going.  We even stopped at the National Archives on the way out of town and saw the Declaration of Independence with our own eyes.  Admittedly, we also talked openly about how we would steal it (probably not a good idea in such a high security building).  From here on we started handing our $1 coins to the kids as we visited each historic point-really just a bribe to make it a little more fun.  I told them I had visited the Gates family to buy them from their treasure collection:)

We arrived in Philly to find that Dad had reserved a room in the heart of Chinatown.  The kids were a bit scared at first, probably a combination of "the city" and the foriegn-ness.  It quickly grew on us all as we walked ALL over.  First up was the Liberty Bell-very impressive!  Apparently the 10% impurities of metal were it's downfall.

We didn't go through Independence Hall until Tuesday but took a picture since it was supposed to be bad weather the next day.  Then off to the Philadelphia Mint where we saw how coins are made.  Any coin that hits the floor is immediately deemed trash-can you believe it?!?

Next we found Elfreth's Alley-the oldest continuously inhabited street in America.  From there we headed to Ben Franklin Bridge and walked to the half way point.  That's about all the little people's legs could take.

We finished the evening off with dinner at the Dim Sum restaurant where we were introduced to chicken on a stick, later to be claimed as Leo's favorite part of the trip.  Porter ordered duck to get a 'real Chinese experience' he said.

Aaron and the big boys went out to explore a little more of Chinatown and brought us back treasures from the Asian bakery-lovely but tasteless and definitely not sweet treasures. I don't think we finished any of them.  Good to know tho!