"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
