Day 6

The Liberty Bell
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Great day!

We began by revisiting The Liberty Bell.  Our first visit was hurried and crowded.  We got so much more out of this trip.  The kids spent a lot of time inspecting the bell up close and was able to ask the Ranger all their questions.  Later that day we visited the Philadelphia Mint.  Cool to see the coins in production- really lame information posted along the way. Example- charts on safety and accidents dating back three decades.  Who cares...  I want to know how much money is produced daily for circulation-or how long it takes between the time a coin is made and when it reaches circulation. The kids enjoyed seeing all the shiny coins from about 5 stories up through tempered glass,and are now looking for the P on their coins to see if they came from the Philadelphia Mint.  Outside of having to go all the way back to the hotel to drop off my camera before being allowed in the mint, it was a worthwhile tour.  I'm glad it was self guided.  After lunch we revisited Independence Hall.  Again- much better experience than the first time.  We had a later tour time(3:45) and this time we were amongst a young high school class that was really interested in showing off their knowledge of US history.  The Ranger did a phenomenal job.  Since this was the kids second time through they chimed in there answers along with the students and were very proud of themselves.  I'm grateful we were able to visit again.  We ended our day with another story from Once Upon a Nation, and an ice cream cone from The Reading.