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| Oh, and don’t lose the kids in the city when you go! |
Working in the school system, I learn many things right along with the students. Just before school ended, I learned that Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, had a new accolade. June is a very busy month for the Lees family, so I wanted to wait until we had some time.
At breakfast one day, I broached a new subject with the kids.
“Guys guess what?” I knew they wouldn’t say anything, so I continued. “Philly just became the first World Heritage City in the United States.
The children yawned. “So what does that mean?”
“The city will be even more crowded when we visit it now,” my husband said.
We’re not crowd people, remember? That’s why we camp in nature.
I glared at my husband. We couldn’t let this great honor go unnoticed so close to home. I tried to entice them with a bit of history.
“Philadelphia was the seat of government at the birth of our new country way back in the 1700’s.”
“We know, Mom.”
This was going to be tough. It looked like I needed to do a bit of research on the internet to get them interested.
When we reconvened for lunch, I told them what I discovered.
“In order to obtain the classification of World Heritage City, among many other things, a city must be important to the history and heritage of a country.”
They rolled their eyes. My husband sat quietly eating his sandwich, smiling to himself.
I sighed. “In other words, guys, the process needed to start with an UNESCO site.”
“An un…what?” our oldest daughter asked.
Good! At least someone heard me. “A site approved by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.”
No reaction. Unperturbed, I continued.
“Philly has Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776.”
They just chewed their sandwiches.
“And later the birth of the country’s government was created and signed there with the Constitution of the United States in 1787.”
The kids were still unimpressed.
“That’s a lot of history rolled up in Philadelphia’s Independence National Historical Park.”
Then I remembered. “It’s the 100thBirthday of the National Park Service. There may be special activities.”
At least that made them look at me instead of their sandwiches. I lost no time.
“They have horse and buggy rides around town.”
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| All families love horse and buggy rides! |
The smiles started.
“And we get to take the train into the city,” I finished.
That did it. Soon we had a daypack stuffed with treats and drinks. I carried the smaller pack with sunscreen and bug spray. A camera around the neck, comfortable walking shoes, and sun hats on the heads and off we went to discover Philadelphia, the new World Heritage City.
If you are visiting the area, here’s a webpage to all the fun in Philadelphia during the 4th of July Independence Celebration. Enjoy!
That sounds like fun. I'm sure it was a change of pace from the forests you normally have adventures in. Great post!
Thank you so much, Michelle, for your kind words. We have visited cities before, but I watch my children like the proverbial hawk. Thanks so much for visiting Camping with Kids.
This blog made me think of my daughter taking her little 4-month old on a camping weekend. I hope all goes well. Yes, and it's good to watch the littlies like the proverbial hawk!
Thank you so much for this, Denise. Kids keep life interesting for sure. And everyone should watch there little ones like hawks. thanks you for visiting Camping with Kids. Please stop by again. Enjoy your weekend!
I also dislike crowds and speaking of Philadelphia, here in the UK we have a Philadelphia cream cheese. I obviously thought it originated in that city and Googled it to check. Here is the answer.
'Philadelphia' was adopted as the brand name, named after the city that was considered at the time to be the home of top quality food. In 1872 The first cream cheese was made in New York by an American dairyman William Lawrence.
No kidding, that's neat, Bill. I always thought it originated in Philly, too. But then I thought the Jersey cow came from my New Jersey and not your Jersey isle. Always a pleasure seeing you here at Camping with Kids. All the best to you!
I'm not a crowd person, either, but I can't do camping. That might have been a great solution! We were in D.C. for the 4th–it was awesome to celebrate the holiday learning about our nation's history!
Hello and welcome to Camping with Kids, Stephanie! Lucky you to be in our nation's capital on Independence Day. I bet that was some trip. We love learning new things as a family. But I would need to mentally prepare myself to take five children into that bustling city. I don't think it could be a day trip. All the best, Stephanie. And thanks again for stopping by Camping with Kids to leave a note. It's greatly appreciated.