Pennsylvania is the most quintessential American state. Philadelphia seems to be overshadowed by New York, but is an awesome city nonetheless. History everywhere, and the best restaurants in the country according to the experts. Pittsburgh is reinventing itself and has some awesome neighborhoods. The smaller cities are so-so, but the countryside is absolutely beautiful. Dutch country has the nicest scenery i've ever experienced. State College is the best-kept secret in the country. Great shops and awesome restaurants in a very quaint, yet bustling town. The unique foods tell the stories of all the different ethnic groups who built the state. Just a great place to go. (and I'm a southerner!)

I have never been to Philly, Lancaster or State College. But Pittsburgh, is nice. Pittsburgh has arrogant and rude residents, however, Pittsburghers have so much more than other cities, who wouldn't be arrogant about a city like that. I mean lets be honest, Pittsburgh has like 30 hospitals for 300,000 people. University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Oakland is a world-class medical center. I also read something that Pittsburgh, is sitting on billions of dollars of endowments from all those big fortune 500 companies they have had over the last 150 years. The Public Transit is the cleanest in America and the houses are cheap. Not to mention, Pittsburgh has the best Italian food in America.

Absolutely beautiful state. The beautiful green hills right past Ohio - boy. Friendly, hard-working people too.

Rating PA Above Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont, A, Mass. or Washington State is dumb. Sure Philly is a decent city- but Boston is far better- and Pittsburgh? It's ok- cheap to live, but other then then kind of backwards. The rest of the state is too conservative and depressed. The scenary is ok, but not as nice a New England- and there is no decent shoreline- save for Lake Erie in the northwest. My parents where both from the Pittsburgh area- and say they would never go back to PA or Pittsburgh. Enough said? Also a 'blue state' barely- because of the Philly burbs- that rescued the rest of the state from the 'reds'..............

PA is an ok state in the northeast- Philly is a very historic city with great diversity and fun without the hassles of NYC. The Poconos offer some nice vacation spots- while Pittsburgh offers a taste of bohemian culture at a bargain price.

The mountains are pretty....the people are not. And there is a terrible smell there.

Pretty nice place, Pittsburgh is a really nice, clean city, with good people. Philly has that big city atmosphere, although crime is a problem there. And the countryside is great. I dont know why, but my favorite city in Pennsylvania is this little city called Williamsport. It kind of reminds me of just the average american town, i know it is where the little league world series is held. A lot of the small towns scattered around have a unique apeal to them (at least for me) as well. All in all i think i could live in most of PA. EDIT: Whoever made this sight must not be too good in georgraphy, THE CAPITAL OF PENNSYLVANIA IS HARRISBURG, NOT PHILADELPHIA!!! EDIT: Also, what is a Pennsylvania accent, i have never noticed one, i mean, i can notice a sort of italian accent going on in Philadelphia, and in some very rural areas in the extreme south of the state, you can even hear a little southern accent, but i have never heard in general of a Pennnsylvania Accent maybe its something you have to really listen for to notice? Also Dr. Entropy is wrong, the population of PA, while not booming, has gone from 11.8 million in the 90's to over 12.3 million now, that isnt a huge increase, but its not a decrease!

Very scenic,good food available at reasonable prices-watch out though,on major highways:there are more huge trucks speeding around than feels safe.

The northwestern corner of the state gets five stars--quaint towns, beautiful mountain vistas, friendly people. Downtown Pittsburgh and Philly are great as well--but the surrounding suburbs are not. Traffic hell. And that Turnpike is THE most stressful highway I've driven in my 15+ years of driving. Trucks--non stop construction--crazy drivers who think it's the Autobahn.

i like penna. i didn't grow up here, but it's where i live now. there are a lot of rednecks, and a lot of road construction, but for the most part the people are friendly. the air is clean, there are lots of farms and forests, and there are numerous historical sites. the winters are honestly a bit cold for my liking, but beside that, it's a pretty nice place.

After reading quite a few comments, I submit mine. Don't let the attitude of a few bias you against any state. As for construction I have never been through any state that didn't have road work being done - (Do you really want to drive on bad roads at 80 miles an hour?) PA is a beautiful state, look at the beauty not the few unfriendly, slovenly, or whatever you beef is. How often we look only at the bad - look for the good first and yo won't think about the bad. (small minds do the later)

I was born and raised in PA. I lived in Lititz, which is 8 miles north of Lancaster. Lancaster County was so beautiful when I lived there (I moved in 1997 to DE). I noticed there is a lot less farmland and more stores now, but that's the way America works I guess. I will ignore the other comments I read about rude people and slums and what-not. You can find rude people and slums everywhere you go. Anyway, a few places in PA I've been to that are beautiful, interesting, and/or fun are: Hershey Park, Dutch Wonderland, Fallingwater (my favorite Frank Lloyd Wright building), Greensburg (at least the drive from DE to the Rolling Rock concert along I-70 and Route 30 was beautiful - awesome view from the mountains), Philadelphia Museum of Art (lots of fun), Fairmount Park (Philly), Olde City/Society Hill/Penn's Landing area (Philly), and of course Lititz (my old hometown) with its Lititz Springs Park, Wilbur Chocolate Factory (they make Wilbur Buds, which beat Hershey's kisses hands-down!), Sturgis Pretzel Bakery, main street, etc. etc... For more info on PA places to visit, try http://www.pennsylvania.com/ or maybe http://www.pavisnet.com/ ... or email me at dave_in_delaware@hotmail.com if you have any questions.

Pennsylvania must have the most unattractive citizens in the entire country. We were there last week. The women dress like lesbians and the little girls and teens dress like hookers, plus the accents sound like fingernails on a chalkboard. The men are little better, but hey, I did see one in a restaurant that was wearing a clean t-shirt. I was really glad to cross the Mason-Dixon Line.

Lancaster is a nice touristy place in PA... the outlets are awesome if you have money to spend. Hershey Park is beautiful during Christmas time... You cannot leave PA without buying apple cider donuts and visiting the pretzel factory... I've stayed with my friend in Doylestown but it isn't too exciting there... and some parts of Philly are VERY sketchy... I definitely reccomend the safer and more known parts of PA.

The About Pennsylvania is INCORRECT! The capital is Harrisburg. The largest city is Philadelphia and it was once the nation's capital. Proof of their intellect they left town.

Boy, Pennsylvania seems to really offend some people. We moved here about three years ago, and although there are some negative things, there are plenty of positives to counterbalance them. Overall, I like Pennsylvania a lot (otherwise I wouldn't have moved here by choice). Negatives: Lots of old people (hey, I'm a senior citizen too) who drive too damn slow on the many two-lane roads around here. They ride around in nice new cars (lots of what I consider old fogey Buicks and Chryslers) but apparently have forgotten what purpose the accelerator serves. Maybe it's just as well, because there are always a lot of deer running out in front of cars around here, so there's something to be said in defense of slow drivers. Some of the roads (not as many as people gripe about) are in need of repair, or seem always to be under reconstruction. Property taxes are way too high. Philly has too many run-down neighborhoods. REading (not all that far from where I live) has a high crime rate and is pretty run down. Minkeydude is right about the PA Turnpike signs - they changed them last year and even I didn't have a clue as a Pennsylvania resident that it was going to happen until it actually did. Pennsylvanians tend to be clannish (especially the Amish and the Mennonites - to them we are The English or The worldly). That said, let's turn to positives: Lots of beautiful scenery; lots of really nice back roads to enjoy driving at a fairly leisurely pace (somewhat of a rarity for me - I like to drive fast). Lots of history (not too many years ago there used to be signs on roads on the southern border of Pennsylvania that said Welcome to Pennsylvania. America starts here. I guess it was offensive to too many people. Some excellent restaurants (not all that many, but the good ones are good. If you ever get to West Chester, try Spence Cafe. Great food at moderate prices). When people aren't being clannish, they can be very friendly and helpful. Dealing with local merchants was a real change from the impersonal service I had been accustomed to in the DC metro area. At least in the area I live in (Chester County), there's still pretty much of a rural America feeling. People seem to care about the environment and each other. Pennsylvanians also seem to be able to make fun of themselves. I wish I could rate PA as a 4.5, because I don't think it quite makes it to a 5. Maybe I'll change my mind after I live her another couple of years.

There's good things about Pennsylvania (aka Philly) but it's a weird state in general. I think the Amish people bias my opinion because I have a phobia of them. But one time I got really pissed off when I was driving through the state to get to a conference in Ohio. I was driving on some major highway looking for exit 54B. When I was an hour past where I was supposed to get off and still only on exit 22, I figured I'd better stop and ask for directions. The girl at the gas station, with her thick Penn accent, said Ohh, you must be lookin for Ode (old) exit 54B. Pennsylvania apparently changed all their exits - who does that? So I went an hour in the other direction to exit 9, and sure enough their was a tiny note in the bottom of the exit sign that said Old exit 54B. I have been bitter at Pennsylvania ever since.

What I have seen of PA, the state is horrible. I have never met such narrow minded, unfriendly, unhappy people anywhere. It has to be the dirtiest state I have ever been to. There is trash everywhere, the streets, the sidewalks - everywhere. No one seems to care nor do anything to improve it or even pick up their own trash. It is a very depressing place - dont bother going there. If you are looking for Amish - go to Ohio and stay away from Lancaster. The traffic is horrible and there are way too many outlet malls, what does an outlet mall have to do with the Amish community? Nothing. The service in restuarants is awful, no one knows the meaning of customer service nor do they care because they are so unhappy.

A very nice state overall; lots of friendly people. My favorite area are around Gettysburg, Hershey, and Lancaster. The Northeast part of the state, the Poconos, is also really nice as well. The northwestern part of the state around Pittsburgh is also interesting as well. I don't think Philadelphia is the best city in the country, but otherwise a great state, lots of natural beauty.

I live here, in the NE part of the state, and I have to say, I don't mind it at all. I think we have a very beautiful state rich in history and culture. The people here are very nice (I'M NICE!!! SO DON'T SAY PENNSYLVANIANS AREN'T NICE!). The biggest problem has to be roadwork. PENNDOT people are dumb...you will have problems driving through, but otherwise enjoy PA!!!

Other then the years I lived in Colorado I've been in this state and it is AWFUL....run from here like your hair is on fire! You know what they say...."whats between Phila and Pitts?.....Mississippi!" Just a dumb redneck state

Another truly beautiful state. It's got a lot of everything- the mountains up near I-80, and the flatter lands around I-70. A state that is beautiful to simply drive through. It is also one of a lot of historical significance, with Valley Forge and Gettysburg just to name a few. In the colonial period, Pennsylvania was the only colony which promoted goodwill and trade with the Indians. However, today, it is quite annoying to drive through Pennsylvania and be distracted from its beautiful nature by all the hideous road construction that goes on and seems to never be completed.

Cheese steaks, Hoagies, Soft Pretzles, Bookbinders Seafood, The Jersey Shore and Atlantic City, The Poconos,The Liberty Bell,Franklin Institute,Vally Forge, Gettysburg.I was raised there...outside of Phila. A GREAT STATE

One of the prettiest, most diverse states to visit. It's got a little bit of everything. One of the nicest trips to take is to follow Route 62 through Allegany State Forest. It hugs the verdant shores of the Allegany River and it takes you through small burgs such as Tidioute and Tionesta. My wife and I traveled this way from New York and we enjoyed it immensely. Ultimately, we'd like to follow the entire Route 62 to the end (El Paso, Texas). I am proud to have the Keystone State as my southern neighbor. Governor Ridge exhorts visitors to "make a Pennsylvania adventure." It's certainly worth it. It's not quite up there with New York, but it sure comes close.

Hey, I'M a Philadelphian! I'm not too closed-minded, I'm pretty smart if I do say so myself, and I appreciate originality despite what gravelswitch says! You all stop ripping on my home, dammit!

pennsylvanians are some of the most closed minded people i've ever come across. no appreciation for education or originality. this is especially prevalent in philadelphia. not everyone is bad, just the general attitude of the people need improving.

constant roadwork!! annoying as anything when you are trying to drive through the state.

The scenery is frequently pleasing, but the minds are even more frequently small. It's an OK place to grow up, as long as you can leave.