I live in Philadelphia. For Art Museums I would recommend the Barnes Foundation http://www.barnesfoundation.org and the Fine Arts (PAFA) Academy of Penn. http://www.pafa.org.

The Barnes Foundation is not in the city but very close by. Public transportation is available to the museum but inconvenient. The Barnes Foundation has a superb collection of Impressionist paintings. It is richest in Cezanne, Matisse and Renoir paintings. The museum also has paintings by other artists like Picasso, Barque, Horace Pippin, Greco, Titian etc. It also has PA Dutch fixtures (door knobs, hinges, etc.) and some African sculptures. If you go you should reserve tickets and possibly parking space way in advance.

The PAFA museum is a beautiful building both outside and inside though I like the interior the best. The museum has a good collection of American Art from colonial to modern times. I like the Colonial collection the best. The museum is easily reached by public transportation. Free admission is offered but only during certain times during one of the weekend days.

The Brandywine River Valley Area is about a 1 hour drive west of Philadelphia. It offers some nice attractions if you are willing to go there. Winterthur Gardens has a great display of Azaleas during the spring in this area.

Philadelphia has just opened a new building for the performing arts called the Kimmel Center. I recently visited the building last week. I was most impressed with the concert hall called Verizon Hall. The hall is beautiful inside with much stained wood. The inside is shaped like a Cello. The acoustics are great. The center is easily reached by public transportation.

Ed Wickham