A small museum with a behemoth art collection, the Yale University Art Gallery is truly the perfectly sized museum, offering something for everyone from Ancient Greece to modern day America.

Founded in 1832, the gallery is steeped in history when patriot-artist John Trumbull gave more than one hundred of his paintings to Yale College. The collection currently boasts over 200,000 objects representing Eastern and Western cultures and ranging in date from ancient times to the present day. Hanging on the walls you're certain to see your favorite European and American artists. For more information regarding their collection, current and upcoming exhibitions, visit their website, http://artgallery.yale.edu/.

It amazes me that after living in Fairfield county for well over 20 years that my first trip to this beautiful museum was just last year. Having grown up on Manhattan's Upper East Side, on Museum Mile, art was as much a part of my childhood as it was in my DNA. I learned to appreciate it at a young age and later went on to study it pretty intensely in high school and in college. I might have an appreciation for all art, but I certainly have a soft spot for certain genres, and the Impressionists will always have a place near and dear to my heart. What I love about art is how reflective it is of an historic era, and offers an insight into the artist's background and surroundings. One doesn't have to have a deep knowledge before visiting museums, but what I like to do, especially with my children, is to pick a genre or an artist and read up on it before-hand. There's so much information available on line, not to mention all the wonderful books as well.

I'm fortunate in that my children have studied quite a few artists in school from Van Gogh to Georgia O'Keefe to Jackson Pollock, so if possible I always try to point out the familiar. But I also make our museum journeys a reason to learn more, in a fun way - of course! Regardless whether it's yourself or your children, use this as an opportunity to teach yourself something new - expand your own personal horizons. As you walk through the various parts of the gallery you'll be struck by the beauty and perfect marriage of the old and new architecture. 

Wander through the various rooms and hallways of The Yale University Art Gallery and you will see such notable favorite artists as:
Goya, Delacroix, Van Gogh, Gaugin, Pissarro, Manet, Monet, Cezanne, Picasso, O'Keefe, Sargent,  Wyeth, Hopper, Mondrian, Warhol, Basquiat, Rothko, and Lichtenstein.

Some might argue that New Haven's greatest asset (other than the University) is the wealth of incredible restaurants, from the iconic, upscale Union League Cafe's elegant brasserie to Zinc, American farm-to-table cuisine with a slight Asian slant in sleek, chic decor with a bar, to Heirloom, Locally sourced New American cuisine in a spare, modern space at the Study at Yale boutique hotel to Olea, Mediterranean fare including Spanish tapas is served in a modern environment with a bar. Barcelona offers great Spanish cuisine as well, and its more casual atmosphere makes it a great family restaurant. Claire's Corner Copia is a vegetarian Campus go-to for kosher vegetarian fare, including Mexican options and a great place to hob-nob with Yalies. But if it's pizza you're after, New Haven's is iconic with it's thin crust - a style all its own. There is no shortage of pizzerias from Pepes, Sally's, and Modern, alway make the Top 10 lists, but my recent discovery of Bar has me wanting to go back for more! At dark a popular nightclub, but by daylight a great family friendly pizza joint with perhaps the largest pie you have ever seen! This may be my current New Haven favorite.  Needless to say, as soon as I mentioned there would be pizza after the art gallery, my 10 year old got very excited! We do what we have to, right?