Phenomenal Philadelphia: our fifth largest city, hailed as the cradle of America's freedom, is enjoying a radiant rebirth - City Of The Month

Travel America, Jan-Feb, 2004 by Randy Mink

Quill pens and three-cornered hats, Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross, the Liberty Bell and Independence Mention Philadelphia and these symbols flash across your mind.

Though strongly rooted to the past, Quaker William Penn's "City of Brotherly Love" is certainly not stuck in the past. No longer viewed as a stodgy relic with a bunch of old buildings, Philadelphia is on the move and more tourist-friendly than ever. Its slogan: "The Place That Loves You Back."

Adjectives like "high-tech" "state-of-the-art," and "cutting-edge" describe many of today's visitor experiences. City promoters like to use the word "hipstoric," pointing out the heady mix of 21st century buzz and traditional charm east in red brick.

Whether it's your first visit or ninth, now is an exciting time to be in born-again Philadelphia. Even the Liberty Bell has a new home, as do the Philadelphia Phillies baseball team and pro football's Philadelphia Eagles.

Being a history hound, I've always liked communing with Philadelphia's past. Unlike Colonial Williamsburg, it's a living, breathing city--not a museum piece--and claims more 18th and 19th century buildings than anywhere else in the country. This is the real thing.

Philadelphia, the American colonies' largest and most sophisticated city, served as the capital of the United States between 1790 and 1800. Thanks to the current revival of patriotism, historical attractions here in our nation's birthplace have taken on renewed relevance.

Last October the 2,080-pound Liberty Bell was moved from the glass pavilion built for the U.S. bicentennial in 1976 to a site a few hundred feet closer to Independence Hall, its home for more than 200 years. The opening of the new Liberty Bell Center, a major milestone in the redevelopment of the three-block expanse known as Independence Mall, allows visitors for the first time to view exhibits related to this icon of freedom, which rang in the rower of Independence Hall (the Pennsylvania State House) for 75 years.

Liberty Bell Center exhibits challenge visitors to consider the justices--and injustices--associated with liberty in the United States, particularly during the time of slavery. There's a film produced by the History Channel liar the National Park Service, and park rangers give interpretive talks. The visit culminates in a shrine-like room where viewers are encouraged to observe the cracked Bell in silence. A glass wall affords good sight lines between the Bell and Independence Hall, and the new location frees up the sweeping vista between the Hall and gleaming new National Constitution Center at the opposite end of the Mall.

The Mall's renaissance began with the 2001 opening of the spacious Independence Visitor Center, the logical place for first-time visitors to chart a course through Philadelphia. Besides free maps and brochures, there are touch-screen displays and videos about U.S. history and points of interest in the historic district and elsewhere Park rangers answer questions and give out free, timed-entry tickets to Independence Hall. A 28-minute film, Independence, is shoran in the theater. At the center you can buy tickets to sporting events and theater performances, make dinner reservations, or just relax in the coffee shop Between May and October, you might even meet up with Ben Franklin and other colonial re-enactors heir or in the immediate neighborhood.

The glass walled National Constitution Center opened its doors last Fourth of July. Inscribed on the outside with "We the People" and the rest of the preamble. the first museum ever devoted to the U.S. Constitution brings to life the world's most revered blueprint for democracy in a multimedia extravaganza designed to engage even the most civics-challenged tourist.

The Constitution Center not only chronicles the document's origins but shows how it affects every American today, using film, music, live actors and interpreters, and computerized, interactive exhibits. Visitors can cast their vote for their favorite president of all time (results are continually updated) or watch themselves on video taking the presidential oath of office (and buy a photo of their big moment on the Capitol steps). They can sit behind a reproduction of a senator's desk or convene court on a replica of a Supreme Court bench. The Family Theater provides a humorous look at the Bill of Rights through a mix of videos, animated objects, jokes, and special effects.

Other videos show naturalized citizens taking the oath of citizenship, instances of racial discrimination, and soldiers who gave their lives in war. Artifacts include Watergate break-in tools and the infamous butterfly ballot used in Palm Beach County in the Bush/Gore election.

The visitor experience culminates in Signers' Hall, where guests are invited to walk among 42 life-sized bronze statues of the men who signed the Constitution in Independence Hall in 1787. Guests may affirm their constitutional beliefs by signing their name in a leather-bound volume or, alternatively, register a dissenting opinion. Finally, in a big cafe, they can register to vote, e-mail members of Congress. watch Constitution-related news on large TV screens, and enjoy stunning views of Independence Hall through the glass facade.