Philadelphia and Hershey, PA

Philadelphia, PA around 6:30AM, walking to the Temple

Last year we went to Washington D.C. over Thanksgiving.

Supreme Court of the United States

The Courtroom

The Capitol Building

This year, we went to Philadelphia and Hershey, PA. 

Excited for a big day exploring a new city!

Philadelphia was pretty neat. We had to pick and choose what we saw since we only had a day.

The front of Independence Hall

The back of Independence Hall 

Chantelle always does different faces in family pictures. 

One of the most important rooms in the USA 

The green and white room inside Independence Hall is where the Declaration of Independence was read and signed, and where the Constitution was debated and eventually signed. 

Benjamin Franklin's Office

 It wouldn't be a true representation of Colonial America without the armory, right?

We also saw the Liberty Bell, which was stationed just across the street from Independence Hall

And yes, we should have knelt so you can actually see the bell, but there were fifty other people trying to take pictures too and we had about ten seconds

Joe and Chantelle

We also got a hot dog from a stand while waiting to see the Liberty Bell. Chantelle was excited (and so was I!) to buy a hot dog just like the Little Critter does with his Mom.

Next we went to the Mint. They asked that we not take any pictures. We had to race through since everyone was exhausted and hungry (one hot dog between four people made hearts happier than stomachs), but they had long series of windows where you could look down and actually watch the machines making coins. At the end, there were HUGE crates full of coins. 

We also passed the graves of Benjamin and Deborah Franklin.

Joe found a really cool market close to our hotel and requested that we stop there for lunch. Our girls were asleep by this point, which was good, because this turned out to be one of the craziest parts of our trip. 

We went to the Reading Terminal Market

It looked exactly like this, but imagine another two thousand people. It was wall-to-wall people. It was CRAZY but SO COOL!! If we lived in Philadelphia, I would make it a goal to come here for Friday nights and try EVERYTHING!

Joe found multiple websites promising that the Best Sandwich Ever comes from Di Nic's Roast Pork and Beef. We fought our way there and got into the huge, huge line. 

Joe got pork and I got beef, and they were FABULOUS. 

We didn't bother taking pictures of our food, but I found other pictures online. 

Oh goodness, those sandwiches were tear-inspiring. 

We also got apple dumplings from another place which were fabulous as well. 

We all went back to our hotel to rest and feed the hungry girls before setting off again. 

Chinatown!

 We walked to the Temple so the girls could see it. Oh my goodness, it's beautiful. 

We found that the Visitor's Center next door is really just a huge, fancy parking garage for the patrons. We came out and explored the balcony. 

Next, we walked to a different area of downtown to see City Hall and the 'Santa's Village'.

Chantelle wanted so badly to ice skate. "When you're a little older," is probably the hardest thing for a little girl to keep hearing.

We went back to the hotel. The girls and I ate sandwiches, went swimming, and played while Joe went and served at the Temple. 

I got up early the next morning and walked (by myself...eek) to the Temple to take a turn serving. 

There were a LOT of homeless people in Philadelphia. Lots of cardboard sleeping mats and people bundled up in blankets. 

I did have a random man stop me and ask for a cigarette and for the time. I denied the first, told him the second, and then he stepped back to get a good look at me. 

I was wearing church clothes and carrying a big bag. 

"Where are you going?" he asked, clearly confused. 
I pointed. "To the LDS Temple to worship."
"Oh. What do you worship?"
"We worship Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ."
"Oh," he said again. "Well, have a blessed day."

And we both kept going. 

 I took a few pictures of the city on my walk back.

Our beautiful LDS Temple.

 City Hall again.

We went back and got all packed up and went out to fulfill one of Joe's wishes, to get a real-deal Philly Cheesesteak. 

...Which we found at this small, out-of-the way place. They were GOOD, but two beef sandwiches in two days was a little too much for me. 

Then, in the car and off we went!

We stopped at Valley Forge for a few minutes, then off we went toward Hershey, PA.

We were driving through Lancaster, when Joe said, "Isn't Lancaster a large Amish community?"

I didn't know, but just then we saw a horse pulling a buggy with a little Amish family inside, and that answered our question!

I'm sorry for treating these people like a landmark, but I think it's so cool to see different cultures, so yes, I was a tourist and took pictures. 

 Horse and buggy driving behind us. 

Working in the field. 

I did feel a little bad that these people have to drive on the shoulder of the highway, smelling exhaust and dealing with cars. 

We reached Hershey after about two hours of driving. 

I immediately rolled down my window and can now report that Hershey, PA does NOT smell like chocolate, and the buildings are made out of regular old brick. 

So much for that dream!

But we did drive around and eventually find our way to Hersheypark. 

 Chantelle really, really wanted to hold the Kiss's hand! 

They use these character candies to measure youngsters, then they label the ride so you can tell at a glance if your children are tall enough. Actually, I think they were a little liberal. They let Piper on rides that I thought would have been too intense for an 18 month old!

"Look, Mom! I'm feeding it!"

We had to do the carousal first, and the seventy-year-old carousal at the zoo had me unprepared for this one! We almost went flying. 

Then I begged to do the Dumbo-esque airplane ride. Chantelle was NOT happy about waiting in the twenty-minute line, but as soon as the ride started, she was screaming and laughing. 

Piper wasn't quite sure about this, but she's a good sport. 

 A Buzz-Lightyear-esque shooting ride.

 A little Monorail that took us around the park. This was a GREAT idea, because we saw some places to go and rides that Chantelle would enjoy.

One of Chantelle's favorite movies is Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and she was over-the-moon when she saw that we could ride in a Chitty Chitty car.

 Chantelle is behind the wheel! (This ride is similar to Eutopia for you Disney Fans, or whatever they are calling the Tomorrowland ride where you steer your car along a track)

 Just look at that blurry smile

 I think Piper has the proper reaction to seeing her sister driving us. 

Chantelle is asking us here if we can go again, but it was late and cold and time to do one more ride before getting these girls some dinner and a nap. 

 Joe asked to do the Observation Tower which would be warm and we could all ride together, so that's what we did. 

Lastly, we stopped into the main building where Hershey offers chocolate tasting, the factory tour, and souvenirs galore. 

Fun fact: the Hershey bathrooms all smell like vanilla frosting. 

The main building also smelled like chocolate, but it was synthetic, which was disappointing. Trust me, I know what chocolate smells like, and it is very different from chocolate-scented perfume. 

Goodbye, Hershey! Until we meet again.
------

-Jenna 

(P.S. We all needed a vacation after our vacation, but oh it was so much fun!)