The Barnes Foundation
Start your exploration with some creative food for thought by visiting this institution founded by Albert C Barnes in 1922 to “promote the advancement of education and the appreciation of the fine arts and horticulture”. This is where you can admire one the finest collections of Post Impressionist and early modern paintings, by such masters as Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cézanne, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso – as well as their American counterparts. Open 10am-6am on most days, until 9pm on Friday and closed on Tuesday. General admission is US$22 per person. Cocktails and live performances on Friday evening. The Barnes is easily accessible via the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority number 7, 32, 38, 48 and 33 bus routes.
Reading Terminal Market
It’s time to eat and what could be better than getting a taste of the local flavour by grabbing a bite at the city’s most historic market, a short cab ride from Barnes. What were once market sheds became an underground trading place when, in 1890, the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company purchased one of the blocks for its new terminal and had to compromise with merchants who refused to relocate. When plans for a convention centre next door were revealed in 1989, Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority bought the market and set up a non-profit management body to ensure that merchants continued to operate. There are 75 stalls selling everything from fresh produce to cooked foods, kitchen appliances to flowers. Lunch counters are convenient places for a quick bite. Walking tours are held every Wednesday and Saturday, from 10am-11.15am, offering stories behind some of the food items and history of the market.
Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and Betsy Ross House
Walk southward to find Market Street and turn left for six blocks and you will reach an historic area of the city. Philadelphia played an important role in US independence and was the country's temporary capital when Washington was being built. On N 6th Street is the Liberty Bell, which was cast at London’s Whitechapel Foundry and inscribed with the Biblical verse from Leviticus: "Proclaim Liberty throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof." It cracked both times it was rung – the second occasion being the first US president George Washington's birthday – so it went into early retirement. In the 18th century, the bell hung across the street at Independence Hall (formerly known as Pennsylvania State House) where the Declaration of Independence was signed. This landmark is open to the public for free from 9am-5pm every day except Thursday. Walk northward from Market Street to Arch Street and turn right to find Betsy Ross House (audio tour US$7) near N 3rd Street. This is purportedly where the eponymous seamstress first made the American flag, and it is now a museum dedicated to this legendary figure and an event venue.
Rittenhouse Square
Take a taxi and head west to this famous green space located in one of the city’s poshest neighbourhoods. Surrounded by brickyards during the late 1700s, this square was named after the astronomer David Rittenhouse in 1825 and emerged as a popular destination by the second half of the 19th century. The current layout is a redesign by Paul Philippe Cret, a French-born architect who also contributed to the Rodin Museum. Classical urns and outdoor sculptures pepper the premises and it is a pleasant way to spend an afternoon – as locals often do. If you are here around lunch or dinnertime, there is a line of restaurants along the east side of the park on 18th Street where you can admire the scenery while enjoying a meal.
10 Arts Lounge
Before heading to the airport, why not get a cocktail to wrap up your day? Find Chestnut Street on the north side of Rittenhouse, walk west for four blocks to find S Broad Street. The Ritz-Carlton is a few blocks to the north, near City Hall. Housed in a neo-classical building that used to be a bank, the interior of this property is marked by grandeur and grace. One of the best outlets to admire the structure’s architectural style, including the impressive, soaring columns, is 10 Arts Lounge, where a cocktail costs about US$15 and a glass of wine starts from US$11. If you can catch the happy hour at 5pm-7pm, though, select wines are offered for just US$5 a glass. Open daily 11am-midnight.
Start your exploration with some creative food for thought by visiting this institution founded by Albert C Barnes in 1922 to “promote the advancement of education and the appreciation of the fine arts and horticulture”. This is where you can admire one the finest collections of Post Impressionist and early modern paintings, by such masters as Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cézanne, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso – as well as their American counterparts. Open 10am-6am on most days, until 9pm on Friday and closed on Tuesday. General admission is US$22 per person. Cocktails and live performances on Friday evening. The Barnes is easily accessible via the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority number 7, 32, 38, 48 and 33 bus routes.
Reading Terminal Market
It’s time to eat and what could be better than getting a taste of the local flavour by grabbing a bite at the city’s most historic market, a short cab ride from Barnes. What were once market sheds became an underground trading place when, in 1890, the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company purchased one of the blocks for its new terminal and had to compromise with merchants who refused to relocate. When plans for a convention centre next door were revealed in 1989, Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority bought the market and set up a non-profit management body to ensure that merchants continued to operate. There are 75 stalls selling everything from fresh produce to cooked foods, kitchen appliances to flowers. Lunch counters are convenient places for a quick bite. Walking tours are held every Wednesday and Saturday, from 10am-11.15am, offering stories behind some of the food items and history of the market.
Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and Betsy Ross House
Walk southward to find Market Street and turn left for six blocks and you will reach an historic area of the city. Philadelphia played an important role in US independence and was the country's temporary capital when Washington was being built. On N 6th Street is the Liberty Bell, which was cast at London’s Whitechapel Foundry and inscribed with the Biblical verse from Leviticus: "Proclaim Liberty throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof." It cracked both times it was rung – the second occasion being the first US president George Washington's birthday – so it went into early retirement. In the 18th century, the bell hung across the street at Independence Hall (formerly known as Pennsylvania State House) where the Declaration of Independence was signed. This landmark is open to the public for free from 9am-5pm every day except Thursday. Walk northward from Market Street to Arch Street and turn right to find Betsy Ross House (audio tour US$7) near N 3rd Street. This is purportedly where the eponymous seamstress first made the American flag, and it is now a museum dedicated to this legendary figure and an event venue.
Rittenhouse Square
Take a taxi and head west to this famous green space located in one of the city’s poshest neighbourhoods. Surrounded by brickyards during the late 1700s, this square was named after the astronomer David Rittenhouse in 1825 and emerged as a popular destination by the second half of the 19th century. The current layout is a redesign by Paul Philippe Cret, a French-born architect who also contributed to the Rodin Museum. Classical urns and outdoor sculptures pepper the premises and it is a pleasant way to spend an afternoon – as locals often do. If you are here around lunch or dinnertime, there is a line of restaurants along the east side of the park on 18th Street where you can admire the scenery while enjoying a meal.
10 Arts Lounge
Before heading to the airport, why not get a cocktail to wrap up your day? Find Chestnut Street on the north side of Rittenhouse, walk west for four blocks to find S Broad Street. The Ritz-Carlton is a few blocks to the north, near City Hall. Housed in a neo-classical building that used to be a bank, the interior of this property is marked by grandeur and grace. One of the best outlets to admire the structure’s architectural style, including the impressive, soaring columns, is 10 Arts Lounge, where a cocktail costs about US$15 and a glass of wine starts from US$11. If you can catch the happy hour at 5pm-7pm, though, select wines are offered for just US$5 a glass. Open daily 11am-midnight. 
