There were so many things to look at inside and out. The grounds were just as cool as the inside !read more

VAMPA exceeded our expectations…read more The exhibits are immersive, thought-provoking, and often genuinely eerie, with an impressive collection that explores the line between faith, folklore, and the paranormal. We loved it... VAMPA was my wife's suggestion to check this out, though she was ready to leave before the museum was finished with us. There is an unexpected presence there. Not to be taken lightly. ‍

I take my 2 y. o. granddaughter nearly every week. There are so many wonderful things to explore…read moreand learn from. They have a walking path through the woods with a natural playground and sandbox, a bird house building to watch and interactive displays, a mini zoo inside a house with small animals and activities including a treehouse. They also have weekly activities and seasonal events for elementary school kids. My granddaughter calls Briar Bush "The Animal House" and loves to put a donation in the collection box before we leave.

They were so friendly and it was a great little center to see the local wildlife and learn. We…read moredidn't get to do the whole path with a stroller but it was nice and shaded on the trail so even on a hot day it felt cooler.

We enjoyed the tour. Started off with an interesting video. The docent was good and knowledgeable…read more Took so see many interesting spots in and around the home, including a life size version of a wigwam that would have been in the area at the time.

Why is the Hans Herr House significant and who the hell was Hans Herr?…read more The house itself is significant as it is the last remaining structure that is still standing from the original group of Mennonites who came to the Lancaster County area to escape religious persecution from their native Switzerland. The house is also significant in that it is the oldest structure in Lancaster County and likely the oldest remaining Mennonite meetinghouse in the Western Hemisphere. The original group traveled from Switzerland to Germany to escape religious persecution then after a governmental regime change they were forced from Germany to England where they met with William Penn who allowed them to colonize a portion of what is current day Lancaster County or when they arrived in 1711, the extreme most western frontier of Pennsylvania. One interesting piece of information is that the house did not belong to Hans Herr as it was built by his son Christian which is why his initials are over the doorway along with the inscribing mark of 1719. On the tour you are told why the name remained(s) Hans Herr House versus Christian Herr House but honestly I forget why. Maybe something just deferential from Christian towards his father or because of his father's status with the original group that came to the area or maybe everyone just liked the flow of the name more so it's based on tradition? The tour itself is around 40-45 minutes and it starts in the building which houses the gift shop and you are given a brief overview of the Anabaptist faith, the Mennonites who are direct descendants of the faith and a map which shows the route the initial settlers took from Switzerland to Pennsylvania. After that you are taken over to the house where you see the three rooms which make up the first floor (kitchen, bedroom and all purpose dining room-meeting room-family room) and the second floor which is where the eight children slept and finally the basement which is accessed from a side entrance outside of the house. You learn that the key to the home's design is that they didn't believe in wasting any space so every inch served a purpose such as not having hallways so as soon as you walk in the front door you're right in the kitchen. One thing worth noting, if you are someone who is hardcore hung up on only visiting historical places if they have lots of original items then this place might not be for you. There is not a whole lot original to the house that you can see with the exception of a piece of the ceiling insulation on the first floor (rye straw + manure + ??), the wooden crossbeam over the kitchen fireplace and the steps which go from the second floor to the third floor attic (obviously you can't use them). Past that I think most everything else was changed out in the 19th century when the house was still used as a residence or in the early 70's when the initial renovation occurred to make things into a tourist destination. If you want more original take a look at the bibles on display in the gift shop which are original to Hans and Christian. I wouldn't call the Hans Herr House a must see, but it's interesting enough and the tour is the right length to keep everyone interested along with being located close enough to most of Lancaster County's tourist elements. If you go: The 1719 Hans Herr House is open April 1 through November 30, Monday-Saturday, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM. Forty-five minute Herr House tours are offered at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. This is not the tour information for their reproduction Native American Longhouse. That tour is offered at 10 a.m., 12 noon and 2 p.m and has an entirely different focus. Prices are currently Adults: $8, Children 7-12: $4 and Children 6 and under: free with a slight discount if you choose to tour both structures. There are also several special events that happen throughout the year and that information is available on their website.

I absolutely love the Art Museum in Philadelphia! I've been there a few times, and every visit has…read morebeen such a great experience. The first time I went with my four-year-old, I wasn't sure how interested she would be, but she actually loved exploring the exhibits. Her favorite part was the LEGO Art Museum area - she played there for about 30 minutes and had so much fun. The museum is beautiful, very clean, well organized, and has something enjoyable for both adults and kids. I also love that parking is very convenient - they have a garage nearby that is around $9 per hour, and there is also upstairs parking, which is a little smaller but nice because it's a bit closer to the museum entrance. It's such a fun getaway in the city, and I love that it can be both educational and entertaining for the whole family. Definitely a place we'll keep coming back to!

The Philadelphia Museum of Art sits at the top of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in a neoclassical…read morebuilding that earns its iconic status before I even walked through the door. The famous steps are there, the Rocky statue is at the bottom, and the view back down the parkway from the top is genuinely one of the better urban vistas in the city. I found the collection spanning four floors and covering an extraordinary range of periods, cultures, and mediums in a way that never felt like a forced march through history. The curatorial logic organizes things roughly by time and place, which meant moving through the galleries had a natural progression to it. One room I was standing in a fully reconstructed Japanese teahouse, the next I was looking at French Impressionists. The arms and armor collection on the third floor was one of the more surprising highlights and held its own against the paintings in terms of sheer visual impact. The tapestries, medieval galleries, and decorative arts sections added further depth that a lot of visitors skip by gravitating straight to the name paintings. The Impressionist collection is strong throughout. Van Gogh, Monet, and Picasso are all represented at a level that rewarded my visit even though I have seen major works elsewhere. Seeing them in person rather than in print was a different experience entirely. Starting on the third floor and working my way down was the approach that made the most sense logistically and contextually. The museum is large enough that a single visit will not cover everything, which is actually a mark in its favor. Admission cost is required for most visits, though periodic free days do come around. For a world class art museum that does not feel overwhelming to navigate, the Philadelphia Museum of Art delivers.

Wings of War (WoW) is just starting out as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization. We have…read moreacquired a 1941 WWII Cessna T-50 Bobcat that was a Crane MK1 during WWII with the RCAF. The aircraft is currently portrayed as a U.S. UC-78 and will remain in U.S. colors. We believe this aircraft is the oldest, flying Bamboo Bomber in the world. We are actively pursuing nose art for this plane that will link it back to its Canadian lineage. Please go to our FB PAGE and add your ideas there. Call if you want to schedule an appointment to tour the aircraft.

From the owner: Wings of War (WoW) is just starting out as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization. We have…read moreacquired a 1941 WWII Cessna T-50 Bobcat that was a Crane MK1 during WWII with the RCAF. The aircraft is currently portrayed as a U.S. UC-78 and will remain in U.S. colors. We believe this aircraft is the oldest, flying Bamboo Bomber in the world. We are actively pursuing nose art for this plane that will link it back to its Canadian lineage. Please go to our FB PAGE and add your ideas there. Call if you want to schedule an appointment to tour the aircraft.

What a cool hidden gem in Valley Forge National Park! I took a tour of this museum in November…read more2025. Our tour guide was knowledgeable and intriguing as he guided us around the property and inside the home/studio. Esherick was extremely talented and it was incredible to see his stunning creations. Tips: The tour is inside and outside so dress accordingly. There are steps inside the building. Booking ahead is required and tour group counts are limited.

Visiting the Wharton Esherick Museum in Malvern had been on my to do list for a while, but the…read moretours sell out, and I've missed out on visiting a couple of times! Last week, I planned a last minute day trip to the Philadelphia area and noticed that they had exactly four tickets still open on tours for the rest of the month and they were for the upcoming Saturday at 11am. It was a sign, and I jumped on buying those tickets. How to explain the Wharton Esherick Museum?! Wharton Esherick was an American artist and designer (he's best known for his modernist wood furniture), and - while not a trained architect - he designed this house and studio compound (of four separate buildings) in Malvern to live and work in. By the time he was adding a workshop to the compound in 1955, building codes had made their way into law and Esherick got help from none other than Louis Kahn to help design that building. So what will you see if you visit? Just an incredible home and studio. Esherick was not into straight lines or right angles or wasting perfectly good wood, so the house and studio is an amazing sight: that staircase! the wood floor in the dining room! the concrete extension painted in colors that blend into the natural surroundings! the art and furniture pieces of Esherick's shown throughout the house! It's a hard place to describe, but our tour guide did a marvelous job of teaching us about Esherick and the buildings during our tour, while sharing some woodworking facts and passion, too! Reservations for the tours are required, and they do sell out. Regularly. There's an exhibit on Esherick at the Brandywine right now, and that might be generating more interest than usual in seeing his home and studio - or maybe tours of this amazing place are always this popular?! We did the Experiencing Esherick Tour, which takes you into the home and studio building and lasts about an hour. They offer some specialized tours of more limited days as well - I will definitely be visiting again for the architecture tour which takes you into at least one additional building you don't see on the general tour! The house? Fascinating. Our tour guide? Lovely. The grounds? Beautiful even in December. And a lovely little gift shop in Esherick's old garage where you can do some holiday shopping? Bonus. What's not to love about the Wharton Esherick Museum? I know I'll be returning to bring friends and family to this wonderful place in the future.

Carrie is absolutely amazing. I work at a brand new senior living community, and we have had the…read morepleasure of having Carrie paint several murals in our community. She is truly a wizard of her craft and makes her work look effortless. It is all so realistic--she works wonders.

Promiseland murals did two jobs for me and both of them created so much new traffic for my…read morebusiness. I have gotten nothing but positive feedback from the community and from customers. I am so grateful for their hard work and their creative ideas that helped take my pizzeria to the next level!

This museum has tons to see and is even better because it is more of a local museum (so not super…read moretraffic heavy). Free parking and plenty of interesting things to see. I went for their version of the bodies exhibit and was not disappointed! It may be graphic for younger children, but it's extremely fascinating!!!

This my go to spot in West Reading to entertain the grandkids. The kid friendly exhibits change…read moreseveral times a year and are an excellent way for them to blow off steam. This time they had an exhibit featuring Harley Davidson motorcycles. One on display was the motorcycle ridden by Peter Fonda in Born to be Wild. Past exhibits included Teenage Ninja Turtles and Thomas Trains. There are also plenty of interesting things for adults. They have a seasonal display of Christmas trees decorated with ornaments from around the world. A modern art exhibit is also at the museum for the next couple of months.