What did you do on your summer vacation? We went to Philadelphia on the day after the 2016 Democratic Convention. The mood was upbeat, the streets luminous with a red, white and blue afterglow and a palpable sense of history in the making. We were #WithHer and we weren’t worried as we set out as a family to retrace the streets of my husband’s boyhood. We bought a collectible campaign button featuring a porcelain throne (for our friend Cole), and posed in front of the bunting.
We weren’t on a political mission, but it wasn’t a totally tourist-y trip either. We visited the Liberty Bell, walked the boardwalk along Front Street and toured the Ben Franklin Museum. But we were more interested in grittier things like Girard College, the orphanage where Dave spent kindergarten through 8th grade, and the Eastern State Penitentiary (which he managed to avoid!), now offering historical tours. Our two city girls loved the cobblestoned back streets, freedom to wander, the Italian food and friendly Uber drivers. Looking back now, I wish we had knocked on doors, argued Her case, taught our girls to take action. We didn’t. Lesson learned. But here’s what we saw….
