Two Days in Philly.

10-17-15 PHILADELPHIA, PA: We drove to Philly for the weekend with Bill and Lynn, actually Bill drove. We got here after 11AM on a cloudy, breezy, cold day, but not so cold that we couldn’t walk around. Independence Hall is only a mile to the east from the Palomar, our hotel. We walked through the downtown shopping area and saw the Hall, but didn’t tour it because of the long lines. We did see the Liberty Bell, that line moved along pretty well.

After a lunch, I had a Philly cheese-steak, we taxied back to the west for a visit to the Barnes Foundation.

The wealthy Albert C. Barnes, 1872-1951, collected a ton of Impressionist and post-Impressionist art after selling his drug company. He also collected lots of metal hardware and decorative iron work and furniture. The pieces are arranged in ensembles of art, metal work accents and furniture. The artists are Renoir, Van Gogh, Cezanne, Matisse, Picasso, Modigliani and many others, including some old Masters. There are an awful lot of fat, pink nudes by Renoir and Cezanne’s apples show up in many ensembles. The Foundation was established in 1922, and the estimated worth of the collection is $25 billion.

After the walk back to the Palomar, we all had a drink and a nap before dinner at the Oyster Bar—excellent. Twelve oysters, a broiled lobster, an IPA, ice cream and coffee made a great dinner for me. In the room we saw the Mets nip the Cubs. One nice day, good friends, good food, good walks, exciting tours.


William Penn checking out his city from the top of City Hall.

Independence Hall.

Tourists.

Liberty Bell needs repairing.

The Barnes Foundation doesn't allow photography inside.

This pic of an ensemble is from a leaflet, note the metalware accents and furniture.

On the walk back to the hotel, we passed this huge fountain with a nude lady strangling a goose that had attacked her from behind.

While the groomsmen and wedding couple had pix taken in front of the fountain, a gaggle of bridesmaids clustered together and shivered in the wind.

10-18-15 PHILADELPHIA: Today, we got a late start. We were joined by our friends Bob and Christine and Stephen for brunch at the Parc on Rittenhouse Square. The breakfast orders ranged from oatmeal to Eggs Benedict.

After the brunch, we walked to the Franklin Institute for a quick tour. The Institute is a science museum mostly for kids to introduce the sciences. The Institute is like the Montshire Museum in Norwich, VT and Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, NJ—just right for us doddering, old kids. Then we collected the car and luggage and beat it over the Ben Franklin Bridge to NJ.


The Franklin Institue.

Cousin Ben and me.

There's a set of trains in the basement.

See, Philadelphians, no one word about W. C. Fields.