We celebrated the new year by spending the day in Philadelphia. As it turned out, we misread or somehow got confused on a possible tour of the organ in Verizon Hall for which we made it a point to arrive by 10:00 AM. We took the SEPTA Rail from Lansdale in Montgomery County down to Suburban Station in Center City, eliminating parking and driving hassles. We at least got to get relatively close to the movable on-stage organ console and view the Verizon Hall performance space without the seats full. (We have attended a performance or two there in the past.)

We learned there would be organ demonstration recitals on the hour, starting at noon. So we hung around enjoying some of the family activities that were being conducted in the Kimmel Center, had some coffee, then went outside and watched the Mummers Parade, the 116th, starting off. The parade is a Mardi Gras like event, but has never been a big deal for Ye Olde Photographer as January 1st in Philadelphia can be a rather brutal weather experience, and the parade goes on for hours. This particular day, the temperatures were above freezing with some hazy sun and no precipitation, so it was an opportunity to at least take in a sampling of some colorful costumes. Later in the day there would be some of the lengendary string bands (which somehow manage to include saxophones and accordions), as well as the fancy divisions that have some monstrous costumes that are quite amazing to see. Some of the parade participants spend most of the rest of the year making costumes and preparing for the next year's parade.

At noon we returned to verizon Hall and heard about a twenty minute recital on the Fred J. Cooper Memorial Organ, played by Michael Stairs, the organist with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Later in the afternoon there were appearances by other organists. The organ was built by the Dobson Company, in Iowa, and is a feast for the eyes as well as the ears.

After the recital we wandered a few blocks to Rittenhouse Square and had a very tasty lunch at Devon, our main meal for the day. From there we zig-zagged north and west to the Ben Franklin Parkway and walked up to the Philadelphia Museum of Art to check out a major exhibition that was nearing an end. Following that we trekked down the Parkway to the train station and returned to the suburbs. So we saw lots of neat stuff and walked a couple of miles, a good day!