Philadelphia Free-Day

[Edited 9/23 to fix glaringly bad (yet funny) typo.]

Knitting Thuja in front of a soldier hut at Valley Forge

Yesterday we toured Valley Forge and the Brandywine Battlefield. I made good progress on Thuja--most of the heel flap is done. I'm thinking that I just might come close to finishing the 1st sock before this trip is done.

Today, however, there wasn't any knitting to speak of. Jim and I had a relatively free day here in Philadelphia. This morning we brought the group over to Independence Hall for a 9:30 tour, but after that everyone went their separate ways.

Last year we tried to hit as many historic sites as we could. This year we decided to give ourselves a break and focused on the National Constitution Center and the gift shop at the Independence Visitor Center.

I think that a visit to the National Constitution Center should be mandatory for all visitors to Philadelphia. Your visit starts with a multimedia presentation which--unless you have ice water running through your veins--will bring a tear to your eye and a lump to your throat. After that your able to wander the interactive galleries that illustrate the role of our constitution throughout history. The final gallery we visited was the Signers' Hall exhibit, which is filled with life-sized bronze statues of the delegates who signed the Constitution (as well as the three who didn't). These statues aren't placed behind ropes--you're actually able to walk up to them and touch them or pose with them. Really very eerie how lifelike they are.

Here's Jim with George Washington:

And who knew that Ben Franklin was a sock knitter?

After spending sufficient time at the gift shops, we had lunch and then went our separate ways for a little individual freetime of our own. Jim went back to the hotel to make some calls and take a nap. I did what any traveling knitter would do--discovered a yarn store!

It turns out Rosie's Yarn Cellar was located not too far from my hotel. Although the store is in a small space, it is packed with an unbelievable amount of yarn! Just look at all this sock yarn.

Koigu, Regia, Fortissima, Trekking and more! Talk about being in a candy store!!!

This store has a really nice selection of all kinds of yarn--an amazing variety at good prices. Ed, who was working in the store this afternoon, was friendly and helpful. What more can you ask for in a yarn store! And will you look at my "souvenirs"?

The Fortissima's for Jim (socks), the Regia Silk's for me (socks), and the Rowan Tapestry is destined to be a hat... or maybe some wrist warmers. We'll see what it tells me it wants to be.

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And so marks the end of my visit to Philadelphia. Tomorrow, it's on to Virginia.