Marian Anderson, Mario Lanza, John Coltrane and Dizzy Gillespie are just some of the 107 legendary musicians, singers, and entertainers from Philadelphia honored with bronze plaques downtown, on the city’s Avenue of the Arts, on Broad Street between Walnut and Pine.

But not everyone can make it downtown. So now, for folks who are stuck at the airport, there are portraits of 44 Philadelphia-rooted legends on display at Philadelphia International Airport (PHL).

(From the Art & Exhibitions section of the PHL Web site)

Good news for pets and their people traveling to or through Philadelphia International Airport (PHL): there are now seven Pet Port “relief areas” at the airport.

According to a PHL release, each fenced Pet Port is between 250 and 600 square feet and is landscaped with a 4-inch deep mulch surface, a bench, a fake fire hydrant, and a dispenser filled with biodegradable pet waste bags.

Pet relief areas are not only a great amenity for pets passing through the airport, the relief areas make it easier for drug and bomb-sniffing security canines to quickly do their ‘business’ and then get back to business. (In addition to PHL, you’ll find lovely pet relief areas at airports in Phoenix, Austin, and in many other pet-friendly cities.)

The Pet Port areas at PHL are located on the Departures Road between Terminals A-West and A-East; between Terminal B/C ticketing and the Airport Communications Center; and adjacent to Terminal E and Terminal F. On the Arrivals side, the Pet Ports are next to baggage claim areas in Terminals A-East, Terminal B, and Terminal.

Photo courtesy Philadelphia International Airport

I’m a big fan of doing a bit of shopping when I’m at an airport. And a big fan of airports that offer plenty of interesting shopping options and, occasionally, free stuff.

So it’s great news that the Philadelphia Marketplace at Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is celebrating its 10^th anniversary this June with “special events, contests, giveaways and more.”

What’s on tap?

Friday, June 6^th there’ll be a Fashion Show at 2 p.m. in the B/C Connector with food and giveaways. Throughout June, merchants will offer a variety of discounts but one lucky passenger will win a $1,000 shopping spree at the Philadelphia Marketplace.

You don’t even have to go to the airport to enter. Entry forms are on-line until June 30 at: www.philamarketplace.com.

When I’m president there will be free wireless Internet access at every airport. 

In the meantime, we’re making progress: the airports in Denver, Las Vegas, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Pittsburgh, Portland, Oregon and an increasing number of large and small airports around the country currently offer free wireless throughout the terminals. Recently the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport opened the wireless spigot on Concourse C and a few other spots in the airport. 

Then there’s Philadelphia International Airport (PHL). 

Since mid-December, wireless Internet access has been free for college students everyday and free for all passengers on the weekends. 

That’s a step in the right direction.

So why not make it free for everyone all the time?

Have a long layover coming up in Philadelphia? Check out the Philadelphia Flower Show, March 2nd – 9th at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The country’s largest and oldest indoor flower show traces its roots back to 1829. And this year the folks at Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) will have a display there.

The airport has teamed up with the W.B. Saul High School for Agricultural Sciences to create an exhibit that recreates the wetlands that surround the airport.

What will you see? “A re-created tidal marsh where water ebbs and flows as well as 37 species of plants and a variety of wildlife.”

Photo credit: Richard McMullin

Philadelphia International Airport.