Dr. Mike Kim, Philadelphia Tour Guide

Mother's Day in Philadelphia at the Barnes Foundation museum. A few of the favorites were by Matisse and Modigliani (I only know that because our artist daughter Lauren was along on the trip).

Great milestone for the city of Philadelphia http://mobile.philly.com/news/?wss=/philly/news&id=341897281

The Chinese Lantern Festival is currently ongoing in Franklin Square Park in Old City Philadelphia; quite the colorful event. Franklin Square is one of the parks included into William Penn's original design of Philadelphia as a "green country town." It was named something else at the time, of course. Franklin would first show up in Philly around four decades later.

Enjoyed Mother's Day dinner at an old favorite, White Dog Cafe in Philadelphia's University City, on the edge of University of Pennsylvania campus. White dog was "farm-to-table" long before it was a chic trend. A walk across the U Penn campus after dinner found us at the Love statue (another one is by City Hall). And, of course, a walk across the U Penn campus is not complete without seeing the statue of Ben Franklin, its founder.

Mother's Day in Philadelphia at the Barnes Foundation museum. A few of the favorites were by Matisse and Modigliani (I only know that because our artist daughter Lauren was along on the trip).

Enjoying Mother's Day in Philadelphia, found this plaque in front of City Hall, tracing the history of the day to Philadelphia in 1908. One more bit of history from the City of Brotherly Love.

Seven sites in Historic Philadelphia will be closing because of a hiring freeze instituted by the new administration in Washington. This includes Franklin Printing Office (one of my favorites) and the rest rooms by Independence Hall. That one will really impact a number of the guests that I escort through the historical district. http://www.foxnews.com//philadelphias-national-historic-si

Great milestone for the city of Philadelphia http://mobile.philly.com/news/?wss=/philly/news&id=341897281

At the Constitution Center today with Nancy to see an exhibit of JFK private, personal photos. Great exhibit. But also saw an original version of the US Bill of Rights that had not been displayed publicly for 100 years. Wow. And, and a hand-edited version of an earlier draft. Amazing. Here's me and Ben Franklin discussing the exhibit. He liked it too.

Walking around Society Hill in Old City Philadelphia with Nancy today, came upon the grave of Commodore John Barry, founder of the US Navy. Born in Ireland, served in the Revolution and beyond; found his final resting place in St. Mary's graveyard on 4th St. in Philly.

It's always great taking visitors from outside the US around Philly's sites. This great German couple, a student of American Studies and a journalist. Where else but in front of Ben Franklin's print shop, the source of frequent sedition against the crown and many rebellion-inspiring publications.

Let's check out Ben Franklin's incredible resume, and throw a penny on his grave. How do you think this crazy tradition got started? C'mon to Philadelphia and let's find out.

Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence and US Constitution were both debated and signed. We will definitely discuss these on our tour, but there is so much more about our history to learn and enjoy here; things that they never taught in school........

This building was part of the deal that sent our national capital to Northern Virginia, where it sits today. How did that happen? Let's do a tour together and discuss it.

Who is THIS guy? Probably one of three people without whom the Americans would not have beaten the British. But most people have never heard his name. Let's walk through Old City together and find out why.

So what happened here? What was the First Continental Congress and why do we care? Let's do a tour and find out.