When I think of Philadelphia, I think of a sandwich made of thinly sliced beef, melted cheese, and often sauteed onions, all served on a hoagie roll. That beef is usually ribeye! The cheese – oh all American – what else – Cheezwiz! But other Philly (how Philadelphia is called in the US) locals use mozzarella. And yes, you are correct. I am referring to the Philly Steak or, more specifically, the Philly Cheesesteak, the origin of which is debated.

The Philly Museum said the cheesesteak was developed in the early 20th century “by combining frizzled-beef, onions, and cheese in a small loaf of bread.” This is the traditional description of this popular dish in galleries, encyclopedias, compendiums, or the like. Traditionally, the Oliveri couple are credited as the “inventors” of this local pride. According to many accounts, Pat and Harry Olivieri originally owned a hot dog stand. On one occasion, they made a new sandwich using chopped beef and grilled onions. While Pat was eating the sandwich, a cab driver stopped by and was interested in it, so he requested one. After eating it, the cab driver suggested that Olivieri quit making hot dogs and instead focus on the new sandwich. They began selling this variation of the steak sandwiches at their hot dog stand. They became so popular that Pat opened up his own restaurant. I was told it still operates today, but I forgot to visit it when I was there in March 2025.

Before this visit, my New York- er cousin told me I should give myself a day in Philly because “it is a nice city!” That image of the nice was finally made manifest as I walked through history on the streets of Philly. Oh, I almost forgot, a high school classmate and friend is a resident of Philly. My cousin’s push and my friend’s amazing hospitality, my hunger for history was satiated. My friend reminded me as we walked along the city-center that we were walking the very streets the founding fathers of USA walked on in the 1700s. Indeed, it was a walk in time.

The charm of Philadelphia is its heritage, which is actively present in the present. The small city is publicized as the USA’s first World Heritage City, primarily because it is the birthplace of the US, where the so-called Founding Fathers met, discussed, debated, and formed a new country independent from the British Empire. Walking along the historic and waterfront district, I instantly noticed that much of Philadelphia’s history has been preserved. This includes two of the city’s most important historical artifacts: Independence Hall (a World Heritage Site) and the Liberty Bell (now a symbol of the abolitionist movement, or the campaign to end slavery in the 19th century).

While my visit to this heritage city was a visit to most historical sites – Benjamin Franklin’s house, the ruins of the original President’s house, the Carpenter’s Hall (considered a treasure in the city for having hosted the First Continental Congress in 1774), I focus on the the Independence Hall because it was here where the Declaration of Independence (1776) and the Constitution of the US (1787) were both signed. The universal principles of freedom and democracy outlined in these documents are of fundamental importance to American history and have had a profound impact on lawmakers worldwide. This includes the Philippines. The executive branches of the Philippine government are all patterned after the US Constitution: the Executive, the Judiciary, and the Legislative.

The Independence Hall was designed by Andrew Hamilton (called an amateur architect at that time, but he was a well-loved lawyer. I have no idea if he was related to Alexander Hamilton, who was also one of the Founding Fathers of the USA and Lin Manuel-Miranda’s subject in the very popular Hamilton musical), and master building Edmund Woolley to house the colonial Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Constructed in 1753, the Hall is considered a modest brick structure with a steeple intended to hold a 1000kg bell, known today as the Liberty Bell. The Bell has become infamous through time. It cracked twice. According to a legend, it cracked first when it was supposed to toll during the birthday of Washington. A second crack appeared when the Philly people tried to repair the bell. Since then, the bell was kept out of the public until its rediscovery inside the house of Benjamin Franklin (again, this is from the folk legend in Philly, and I am not sure if this is historically accurate). Today, the bell stands silently on the ground in a special shelter opposite Independence Hall.

Below is a copy of the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence, dated 4 July 1776. These words reverberated all over the world and became a preamble to many nations, including the Philippines, declaring independence from Spain (but only to be colonized again, ironically, by the US on the very same day it declared independence from the former colonizer.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.