Philadelphia: birthplace of American independence

Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence was approved in 1776 and the Constitution drafted in 1787, still preserves the original hall with the delegates' chairs arranged as in the time of the two signings.

The Liberty Bell, the bell symbol of American independence, still shows today the famous crack that prevented its ringing after a few decades of use, displayed in a glass pavilion right in front of Independence Hall.

The seventy-two steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, made famous by Sylvester Stallone's run in Rocky, remain an almost mandatory stop before entering to see the museum's collection of European and American art.

The Reading Terminal Market, a covered market active since 1893, brings together under one roof Amish stalls from Lancaster County and the famous cheesesteak sandwich in dozens of different variations.

Between the original chamber of Independence Hall and the crack in the Liberty Bell, Philadelphia safeguards the physical objects of American founding with almost religious care.

The steps of the art museum, made famous by a film rather than a historical event, show that the city also knows how to laugh at itself without losing its seriousness.