February 16, 2012

"Where we go to drink"...

"Manayunk" -  neighborhood in N.W. Philly, former textile village,
watering hole for both the Lenni Lenape Indians AND current thirst-mongers.



Being the "born again" Philadelphian that I am, and in the spirit of indoctrinating the Better Half into the faith, I've been on a mission.  To show him all Philly has to offer.  Poor guy.  He needs to be brought up to speed and to wean himself off his GPS every time he has to venture to Wawa.  It's not his fault.  He is not a native, and his work/commute since we  moved here eats up a lot of his time.  Granted, he does know how to get to Citizen Bank Park for a Phillies game (and that IS important!)...but what about  Manayunk?




It was sunny, the temps were mild...time to introduce the Better Half to this section of northwest Philly that sits on the banks of the Schuylkill River. 




Gotta love those Lenni Lenapes.  If you grew up in this area, you've learned to embrace them and their language.  If not, then that whole second grade school year was a complete waste of time learning their history and culture.  Not to mention all the tongue twisters for town names they've left us with...




...Conshohocken (pleasant valley), Neshaminy (2 streams), Perkiomen (where the cranberries are???), Skippack (wet land), Wissahickon (catfish stream)...to name a few.  And "Manayunk" (where we go to drink).  I'm pretty sure those wild and crazy Lenapes weren't referring to the restaurants/bars that dot every block on Main Street, but to the Schuylkill River (disclaimer:  do NOT drink out of the Schuylkill).




Manayunk was once a thriving textile village.  And it boasts the FIRST canal in the United States to be begun.  However, not the first one to be finished, due to budget problems.  I can TOTALLY relate.




Running parallel to the canal and the Schuylkill is the Manayunk Towpath.  It is part of a 20-mile trail from Valley Forge to the Philadelphia Art Museum.  It's great for biking, jogging, walking and photographing.





Over the years, Manayunk morphed from thriving to decaying.  It was common to see rows of abandoned storefronts along Main Street.  But in the 1990's it underwent a revitalization program and Main Street is now one hopping place.  Many upscale shops, restaurants and bars now line the avenue and the town has been named a National Historic District.




And if I were in my 20's and 30's...this is where I'd go not only to drink and eat, but to permanently unpack my shoes too.  But as it is, I'm not.  As I was too quickly reminded,  I'm a mom who locked Thing #3 out of the house when she got home from school.  Dang!  So many photo-ops left unsnapped!




I'm pretty sure it was the Lenni Lenape who said "I Shall Return...Kimo Sabe".




And when I do...it will be without the Better Half having to use his GPS, and a spare house key permanently attached to Thing #3.


--Kathy

29 comments:

  1. What gorgeous cityscapes you captured here! I've never been to Philadelphia but it certainly does look interesting and you have reminded me that I need to get out more . . .

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  2. I've never been to Philly, but it looks very interesting. Great shots and the downtown area looks like a lot of fun. Love areas like that.

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  3. What a fabulous history lesson. Checking out the towpath is now a must-do on my to-do-list...thanks so much for sharing! I had no idea and I live here and have been to all those places. Mostly, I just love the way you let your beautiful photos guide us through your stories.

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  4. WOW!! Such fabulous photos this morning. I just love the reflections in the water.. Looks like a wonderful place to have a drink!! Or Two!!!

    Hugs, Linda

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  5. I love the Reflections in the water. This would be a nice place for the girls to stroll and have lunch. In the warmer weather!

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  6. Mornin' Kathy, thanks for the tour. Have not visited that section of Philly before. Great shots and commentary. You should work for the Chamber of Commerce.

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  7. What a fabulous collection of images! Looks like you had a lot of fun with your camera. You have such a good eye. I especially love the reflections in the water.

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  8. Excellent photographs.

    Regards and best wishes

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  9. Before writing this comment I had to scroll back to the top and go through all your images again as I enjoyed them so much the first time. I can't choose a favourite today although I will say those reflection shots are spectacular. So very interesting to read the information also. It's lovely when towns/cities refurbish areas that have become run down rather than just leave them to get worse - and it adds character too when the history of the place is mixed in. Wonderful post.

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  10. You photos are AMAZING and I can't wait to see your city. I promise I won't complain as much as your GPS man. LOL

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  11. What a gorgeous area to shop and drink. Love the river and reflection captures! Fun!

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  12. LOVE this! I think I've told you I grew up in Radnor - my dad worked in Center City most of his working life. These photos are magnificent! I will have to visit Manyunk my next trip back...cause when I was living there (pre 1980) it just wasn't the place to go!

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  13. thanks for the information - great photos!

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  14. Oh I do like this post because it has a happy ending. My heart is happy when I see a once crumbling and quite deserted place come alive and be vital again. The b&w's are fantastic...love them all.

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  15. What a charming place. My hubs would love to spend an afternoon there. I wish we had a little downtown area that we could stroll around in. Nothing like that here- not even a main street in our town. Just a highway running through the center- nothing charming about that.

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  16. Beautiful photos! I've never been to Philly before, but I feel an itch to go visit now. This area looks beautiful!

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  17. WOW. Kathy, these are such gorgeous shots! It gives me hope knowing that even you, took a bit of time understanding your slr! LOVE the b&w shots of the city.

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  18. Love these photos! My dad used to work in Philadelphia way back when I was in 3rd grade, and I still remember going to a Phillies game. Although it was Veteran's Stadium back then.

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  19. Hol...d on.....I'm trying to get back on my chair! Kathy, Kathy, Kathy - Loving EVERY single photo here! You got some really gorgeous reflections, and I love the black and white, so crisp. Gonna have to come back and visit these again!

    I had to give my thing a key a long time ago, forgetful in my old age that I am...ha ha!

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  20. Incredibly beautiful pictures! I've always wanted to visit Philadelphia.

    OK, when you mentioned WaWa, I decided I need to share this with you! I'm a voice-over artist who records a lot of phone surveys. Sometimes I don't pre-read them before I start recording...and that's what happened this particular time. I defy you not to laugh! :)

    Cindy Totally Losing It

    Hope you like that. By the way, after I shared this with some friends of mine who are from Philly, the next time they went home they brought me back a WaWa coffee mug! :)

    Cindy at Notes in the Key of Life

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  21. great Post Kathy! Love your tour of this area and the photos are wonderful! YOur composition and processing are both wonderful! Makes me think I need to make a trip there!

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  22. Great photos and I learned something!

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  23. Thanks for introducing me to your town! I was in Bethlehem a couple years ago, and it doesn't look half as much fun as NW Philly! :)

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  24. Thank you so much for the visual and historic tour, Kathy. I'm always happy to see old parts of town refurbished and enjoying a second new life. :)

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  25. New to the bucket list - drinking in the city of brotherly love. Popping the top off of a cold one in such a pretty place - priceless!

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  26. wonderful photos of your around town and watering hole, giggle. Hugs P.S. thank you for linking to Thursday Favorite Things linky party

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  27. I recently went to Phila. for the first time in years and immediately remembered all the things I love about it

    your photos are wonderful!!

    tell hubby that when I first moved from NYC to NJ I would not go anywhere that was off of Rt. 35 or if I had to use a jughangle!! ;)

    now I'm queen of the back roads

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  28. great photos and wonderful places too.

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