Funny moments and other stuff...
During the tour of Independence Hall, our guide, an informative and enthusiastic National Park Service ranger, pointed out that in that place in 1776, with the Declaration of Independence, and in 1787, with the Constitution, men from different backgrounds who had little previous experience with one another, found ways to compromise and iron things out to form and perfect a nation. A man called out from the crowd, "Do you think that we could get those guys back here today?"
During a bus tour of the city, we passed an anti-war demonstration. One protester, hat firmly pushed down overhead, bandanna tied to conceal face, held a sign that asked, "I want Congress to bail me out of my student loans."
There was a mix-up on the charge for our room at the hotel where we stayed. The clerk on duty took care of things. I noticed that he had a Phillies shirt, reflecting the excitement we saw in everyone there about the National League playoff series beginning the night of our arrival. I told him that, as a fan of the Cincinnati Reds, which hasn't won a World Series since 1990 and has pretty much lived in the cellar for the past two decades, I envied his excitement. It was pointed out to me that though the guy had worked miracles with our bill, he could do nothing about the Reds!
Philadelphia has one of the most vibrant central cities I've ever seen. On Friday, we were baffled to see so many cars leaving downtown as we breezed along on the Interstate to Independence Park at the center of town. We later found out that more people commute from the central city to the 'burbs in Philly than in any other town in the country. As we walked around the central city exploring, we saw tons of downtown area housing, something that's virtually non-existent in other big US cities. We also met people who live downtown and work downtown, enabling them to walk and bike to work each day.
Of course, it isn't all nirvana, either. We decided to take a surface road, Ridge Avenue, from downtown to our hotel in Plymouth Meeting, a suburb. Poverty is much in evidence. Jesus did say that the poor would always be with us. But He didn't say that to excuse inaction or indifference in the face of poverty. Widespread poverty in places like Philadelphia, the birthplace of the American experiment, should always be unacceptable to us, whatever our party. We can do better!
One bright spot of this part of our tour: There was a gas war happening in Roxbourough, initiated by the owner of a newly-reopened filling station. We found gas for $3.05 a gallon! (Today somewhere in Pennsylvania, we found it for $2.99 a gallon, all of which is reflective of the recent decrease in gas prices generally.)
A bright spot of the entire trip: In spite of the recent financial crisis, all the restaurants we visited were packed and travel on the Interstate and state routes was brisk. A major freight carrier had a huge banner in front of its corporate offices so that travelers on the Interstate could see. The banner announced that the company's employees had just received the largest pay increase in company history.
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