We took the #17 bus to town. It came only two blocks from the hotel. After the bus dropped us off we had about a 7 block walk to the Barnes foundation building.
We had purchased tickets on line for the Barnes Foundation art collection. The first image is Ann and me outside the relatively new (opened about a year before we came) building. The grounds of the new building are far more spacious than at the old site and there is more space in the building to circulate (although the display rooms are about the same size).
The second image gives a view of the general layout of the building that houses the art collection.
The third image, which of the north and west walls of room 18, give an idea of the way the art collection is displayed.
Dr. Barnes called his walls 'ensembles'. He had various organizing ideas that he used to decide which picture goes where and what other items should go on the wall. He is not constrained by the usual conventions and portraits and still life go next to each other as to impressionist, post impressionist and other art. The foundation holds 180 Renoir paintings (the largest such collection in the world) as well as dozens of Cezanne, Matisse and other impressionists.
In the pm we took a short walk (abut 3 blocks) from the Barnes Foundation to the Franklin Institute (image number one has Ann and I at the Ben Franklin statue).
We had a coupon for a few dollars off this museum.
We both went to the giant heart (second image) and the planetarium (most of the presentation there was a 'we love space' piece of propaganda but with great graphics).
Then we went to the 'train factory' exhibit. This included the the Baldwin 60000 steam locomotive. This train (thirst image) was built in 1926 and was the 60000th train built by the Baldwin company. Unfortunately, the locomotive was too heavy for the rails then in use and by 1933, diesel electric locomotives were displacing the steam ones. The Franklin institute purchased it for $1 and, with a great deal of trouble, moved it to it's current site (yes the ground floor). Then Ann wanted to go to the special spy exhibit. I went to the other exhibits (many of which had displays that were out of order).
After the Franklin Institute we had a meal at Burger.Org (a kosher place about 5 blocks from the Franklin Institute. It was on the #17 bus line so after supper we boarded the bus and went back to the motel. The outbound #17 had a problem at one point. The street (19th) was one way, three lanes but with the left and right lanes used for parking. At one point a U-Haul truck was on the left and a large SUV on the right. The bus driver slowed to about 0.5mph to get by with only a few inches to spare on each side. When we got clear, the passengers gave the driver a round of applause.
When we got to the hotel, the WIFI signal wasn't very strong so we complained. They gave us another room where the WIFI was good but the air conditioner didn't work so we complained again and moved again. After we got back I called Orbitz (with whom we had made the reservation) and they gave us $30 credit.
Once again we took the #17 bus. It went north from where we got it (about 2 blocks from our hotel) to Market street (the main E-W street in the historic district) and then the bus went down Market street and we got off just a few feet from the entrance of the National Museum of American Jewish History (first image). The part of the building that is clad in glass is the part that has stairs between the floors. The part faced in brick has the exhibits.
One of the exhibits had the original of a letter from George Washington which has the famous declaration of religious tolerance (its at the end of the 3rd paragraph- see 2nd image).
This declaration reads in part as follows,
"...All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of
citizenship. It is now no more that toleration is spoken of, as if it was by the
indulgence of one class of people, that another enjoyed the exercise of their
inherent natural rights. For happily the Government of the United States, which
gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance requires only that
they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in
giving it on all occasions their effectual support...."
This was in response to a letter to George Washington from Moses Sexias (caligraphy by someone else - 3rd image) which said in part,
"...Deprived as we heretofore have been of the invaluable rights of free
Citizens, we now with a deep sense of gratitude to the Almighty disposer
of all events behold a Government, erected by the Majesty of the People
-- a Government, which to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no
assistance -- but generously affording to all Liberty of conscience, and
immunities of Citizenship: deeming every one, of whatever Nation,
tongue, or language equal parts of the great governmental Machine..."
Washington's response is notably more expansive than Sexias's request in that Sexias uses the phrase "...generously affording to all..." implying liberty as a gift while Washington's language makes liberty an "inherent natural right".
There is also a lot of judaica of historic importance. I was particularly struck by the size of an 18th century etrog box (4th image). It was really small - about a third or half the size of contemporary etrog boxes.
We had lunch in the museum cafe - nothing special.
After we left the NMAJH, we went to the Philadelphia Museum. It was only a few blocks away.
There were a lot of exhibits of famous Philadelphians (from the colonial to the contemporary sports personalities), special places (beloved taverns, stores, factories), etc. (see first image which is one of about 4 rooms which contained these types of displays).
The museum wasn't anything special but it did have a recently opened (about 3 weeks before we came) exhibit on the 1987 march on Washington D.C. of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender association of Phildelphia. The exhibit had a major oral history component with participants in the event being interviewed and thus recording their memories of the event (I think the interviews were taken from 1997 to about 2000).
I had tried to get something like this done for the interstate system for the 50th anniversary but management, after first being enthusiastic later lost interest.
After the museum, we walked to near the Delaware River to visit a brewpub but it was closed and consoled ourselves with a pitcher or so of Yuengling lager at a place called Rotten Ralph's. It was only a few more blocks to a stop on the #17 bus and it went through town and then south to near the hotel.
After we left the hotel (by car since we were going home after the museum), we stopped at a local grocery to buy some fruit. It was an ACME store so Wily posed outside it (first image- note that they proudly have a sale on Coke)
Our final museum in Philadelphia was the National Liberty Museum (second image)
It is a new museum also (like the NMAJH).
It has an eclectic variety of exhibits, some of which have essentially nothing to do with liberty (e.g., there is a historic collection of stoneware used at the White House).
They do have a tribute to the firemen, police and other security and public safety officials who lost their lives in the 9-11 atrocity.
They also have a display of numerous medal of honor recipients and people who have battled tyranny.
Finally, they have their own Liberty Bell which actually works. The ticket official took a picture of Ann and me in front of the liberty bell but managed to block the bell (third image).
After the museum we drove through the University City on the other side of town and then home.
On the way, along I-95 in Pennsylvania south of Philadelphia, there are a number of "I hate Steven Singer" billboards (see image). I had been on this interstate section before a few years ago and had seen the same signs. Apparently, Steven Singer is a jeweler and the sign grew out of an incident that resulted in a please wife, a new child and a husband exhausted from the care of the new child.
We went on and at the Fort McHenry tunnel toll plaza I got in the EZ pass lane by mistake, couldn't pay and thus went through without paying. I'll get a bill in the mail for the toll plus and administrative charge.
spring or catapult to escape but actual prisoners used ladders or dug tunnels (not many escaped and the ones that did were usually apprehended fairly quickly.
