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Philadelphia, New York City & Boston

Philadelphia, New York City & Boston

Three big American cities.  Each with its own unique flavor.  Philadelphia: Birthplace of Freedom.  New York City: The Empire City and Boston: The Cradle of Liberty.  Explore historic sites, enjoy good foods, take in talented entertainment, learn about the origins of our nation's freedom and liberty.

  • Program Highlights

    Almost all American Christian Tours Education Programs to Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston will typically include:
    • Liberty Bell Pavilion
    • Independence Hall Tour
    • Congress Hall
    • The Constitution Center - "Freedom Rising."
    • Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
    • Time on Fifth Avenue and at Rockefeller Center
    • Observation Deck of the Empire State Building or the Top of the Rock
    • Broadway Play (additional expense)
    • 9/11 Memorial and Museum
    • Tour of Freedom Trail including a picture stop of Paul Revere's house, The Old North Church, and the USS Constitution.
    • Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall
    • Other select stops along the Freedom Trail
    • Top of the Prudential Building
    • Tour at Harvard University
    • Lexington Green and Concord - The Old North Bridge, Orchard House, and Walden Pond.
    • A visit to Plimoth Plantation and the Mayflower II in Plymouth, Massachusetts
       
    Trips of moderate length will also typically include:
    • Evening Historical Program in Philadelphia
    • Trips of optimal length might also add the following:
    • NBC Studio Tour
    • Madison Square Garden Tour
    • United Nations Tour
    • Visits to various NYC museums and galleries.

  • Climate

    This trip covers about 300 miles heading northeast along the coast.

     

    Fall and spring are mild and the most pleasant seasons along the mid-Atlantic to New England. in summer (June-August) temperatures can exceed 90 degrees Fahrenheit and in winter (December-March) can occasionally fall below 10 degrees Fahrenheit.  Alternating hot and cold spells are common. Expect frequent rain showers in the spring months of April and May, with occasional thunderstorms and spells of humidity in the summer. Windy snow showers and ice storms blow in during the winter months.

     

    The weather in Boston, like much of New England, can change rapidly. It is not uncommon for the city to experience temperature swings of 30°F or more over the course of several days. The city averages 42 inches of rain and also 42 inches of snow a year.

  • Geography

    The city of Philadelphia is situated in Philadelphia County in southeastern Pennsylvania, at the junction of the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers, and covers almost 130 square miles. It lies approximately 100 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean and about halfway between New York City and Washington, D.C.  Philadelphia is located on a narrow strip of the Atlantic Coastal Plain, separated from the Piedmont Plateau by the fall line.

     

    New York City is located on the Eastern Atlantic coast of the United States, at the mouth of the Hudson River.  New York City is made of five boroughs separated by various waterways. Brooklyn and Queens occupy the western portion of Long Island, while Staten Island and Manhattan are completely on their own land mass. Bronx, to the north, remains attached to the New York State mainland.

     

    The island of Manhattan is largely a protrusion of granite, rising a few hundred feet from sea-level. The southern tip and center of the island are virtually solid granite, while areas in Greenwich Village and Chelsea are composed of softer soil. As a result of this geologic arrangement, Manhattan's tallest buildings are located in these two large "rocky" areas.

     

    Manhattan is flanked on its west side by the Hudson River, and on the east side by the Harlem River and the East River.

     

    A "City on a Hill," actually three hills, was one of Boston's early names - taken from the Bible and applied by the early Puritans.  The early city of Boston looked almost more like an island.  Now much of Boston's Back Bay and South End are built on reclaimed land.  Two and a half of Boston's three original hills were used as a source of material for the landfill. Only Beacon Hill, the smallest of the three original hills, remains partially intact.

     

    The Charles River separates Boston from Cambridge and Charlestown. To the east lies Boston Harbor and the Atlantic Ocean.

  • Essentials

    • Seeing the Liberty Bell up-close and personal
    • Standing in the Assembly Room of Independence Hall - (From 1775 to 1783 this was the meeting place for the Second Continental Congress. It was in the Assembly Room of this building that George Washington was appointed commander in chief of the Continental Army in 1775 and the Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776. In the same room the design of the American flag was agreed upon in 1777, the Articles of Confederation were adopted in 1781, and the U. S. Constitution was drafted in 1787.)
    • Getting up close to the Statue of Liberty.  At this time it is difficult to get into the Statue, but just seeing her close is a treat!
    • Going to the top of the Empire State Building or Top of the Rock and seeing the city below.
    • Touring Boston's Freedom Trail.  This 2.5 mile trail from Beacon Hill to Bunker Hill is a red painted or red brick line that takes a person through Boston and along its very historic sites.  The Old North Church, Paul Revere's House, The USS Constitution, and the site of the Boston Massacre are favorites.
    • Seeing the Old North Church and hearing the story of Paul Revere.

  • Get Prepared

    WATCH

    • 1776,  1972, DVD or VHS  Directed by: Peter H. Hunt    Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
    • This is a historical musical comedy about the events of 1776.
    • Here is a link to a virtual reality panoramic photo from the top of the Empire State Building.
    • Johnny Tremain, 1957, Walt Disney (VHS released 2003)
    • Monumental: In Search of America's National Treasure, 2012, Kirk Cameron
       
    READ
    • The Declaration of Independence and The United States Constitution.
    • The New Colossus - a poem by Emma Lazarus about the Statue of Liberty.
    • The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere,  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1860 - a classic American poem.
       
    LISTEN
    • "Gonna Fly Now" - Bill Conti/Carol Connors.  The song, from the Rocky movie, became part of American Popular Culture after main character Rocky Balboa completed his daily training regimen while the song plays. The song finishes as Rocky completes his famous run up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and raises his arms in a victory pose. The song is also often played at sporting events.
    • New York, New York - Fred Ebb/John Kander,  famous song about New York - normally found being sung by Frank Sinatra.
    • Dropping  "R"s after "A"s, like the infamous "Pawhk the Cawh." (park the car)
      The "R"s also can get lost after other vowels as well, especially "ee" sounds, as in "He stee-id the cawh into the ditch." (he steered the car into the ditch)
      These missing "R"s do get used eventually, usually by adding them to places like onto the end of "uh" sounds. A good example of this would be, "I was driving in my cawh when I got a wicked idea-r.
      Also, one-syllable words with long "I" sounds, such as "fine," often turn into two-syllable words like, "I feel f-eye-in today so I think I'll go to the pawhk!"

  • Senses

    EAT
    • A Philly Cheesesteak sandwich, a hoagie or a soft pretzel.
    • Bagels with cream cheese
    • New York-style pizza
    • Hot dog, pretzels, or roasted nuts from a street vendor.
    • Boston has wonderful seafood - try some clam chowder.  Or if seafood is not your thing, try the Yankee Pot Roast.
       
    DRINK
    • If you can find a water ice or Italian ice. Yum!
    • Hires Root Beer - created in Philadelphi in 1876
    • Starbucks. It seems like there is a Starbucks on almost every other corner in New York City.
    • Tea! - in Boston.
    • And, of course, water. Keep hydrated!
     

  • In A Word:

    • Philadelphia - Independence.
    • New York City - Awake!
    • Boston - Freedom!

  • Surprises

    • Independence Hall seems so small compared to the large, tall buildings of the rest of downtown Philadelphia.
    • The the statue of William Penn (Philadelphia's Founder) on the top of Philadelphia's City Hall is 37 feet tall.  It is the tallest statue to stand atop any building in the world.
    • In New York City, over 800 languages are spoken by a significant portion of the population - making it the most linguistically diverse city in the world.
    • How the height of the Statue of Liberty - once the the tallest structure in New York City at 305 feet tall - compares with all of the tall buildings today (many over 1,000 feet tall).
    • Finding out that there over sixty colleges including Harvard University that call Boston home.
    • The tea that was thrown over by the mob at the Boston tea party, could have made over 24 million cups of tea and was worth $1.7 million in today's standards.
    • In the Boston Massacre, 5 Bostonians were killed by British soldiers.
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