If you love culture, you are in for a real treat when you visit or move to a Philadelphia zip code. This city is one of the most historically important in the United States, and one of the most cultured as well. On virtually every street you can expect to see tributes to the history of the city, from its colonial roots right up to the present. There are displays commemorating the efforts of the German population as they attempted to learn to speak English, Canada and United States war memorabilia exhibits, and of course you'll see Benjamin Franklin depicted almost everywhere. Here are a few of the major buildings and highlights of the arts scene in Philadelphia.

Philadelphia holds the title as the city with the most public art in the United States. Just what kind of public art? Well, there are murals and statues on display all over the city. Parks, public buildings designed by an architect in Canada, and stadiums are just a few of the places where you will find open air exhibits of Philadelphia's culture.

If you prefer touring a more enclosed building, though, your options are still abundant. One of the most popular attractions is the Academy of Natural Sciences. Here, you will find displays of virtually every creature known to man, along with lengthy write ups about them. There are an incredible 17 million individual specimens on display in this building, each kept track of with the help of a coil labeling system. It's a place where you can go to over and over again, and still never really see everything.

If performing arts are more your style, you will probably find yourself making several trips to the Kimmel Center of the Performing Arts. This is the place where the major orchestras, including the one based in Philadelphia, put on their shows throughout the year. It's amazing that the same building can show Phantom of the Opera in all its glory one month, and the next month add some aquarium decorations and other props in order to put on the delightful Pirates of Penzance!

There are also some unique experiences in Philadelphia for those who feel as though they need a change from the usual arts scene. Have you ever wondered about the evolution of health care in the continental United States? If so, you would probably find a trip to the Pennsylvania Hospital enlightening. It was the first hospital established in America, and today is both a fully functioning hospital and a preserving center for health care relics. You can trace the system in America from the earliest days of Franklin's health inventions to the use of electronic circuit design in health care today.