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The oldest multi-breed horse show in the United States, the Devon Horse Show is an annual event held on a small fair grounds near Bryn Mawr. The main feature is, of course, the horses and riders. But there is also a ferris wheel and other entertainments. And lots of ladies in hats. Lots of fancy hats.
PNB Letters Leaving Philly
by Monica
Shouldering City Hall, One South Broad is a massive 28 story art deco tower built by the Wanamaker family in 1932 to house a men's department store.
Ever since the Philadelphia National Bank took up residence and converted the building to office space in the 1950s, it's also been known as the PNB building, for the block style letters crowning the bell tower.
The eponymous building is going to need a new name soon, as the iconic sign is in the process of being dismantled. Maybe the British National Party would be interested in acquiring some gently used signage?
A former plumbing warehouse, the Crane Co. building in Philadelphia's Kensington section is now home to many studios and arts organizations.
The Journey of La Pucelle on a Pony
One of the finest ornaments of Kelly Drive stands on a tiny traffic island off to the side of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Assertive as a brooch, a statue of Joan of Arc astride her warhorse regales streams of traffic passing by.
In 1874, Paris unveiled the original casting by sculptor Emmanuel Fremuet at the Place des Pyramides. The artist subsequently revised his work, vexed upon perceiving that the proportions between the maiden and the animal were unbalanced. The recast went to the French town of Nancy, and ten years later a copy of the new horse now carried the maiden in Paris.
In this form, a replica of France's patron saint came to Philadelphia in 1890, a gift to the city purchased with the help of the Fairmount Park Association to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution, where it lingered on the Girard Avenue Bridge until 1959.
A year later, the relocated statue emerged ensconced in a blaze of gilded bronze at its current location. Draped in a paper-thin layer of gold-leaf, eventually the monument went into repairs and was re-gilded in 2009.
Joan of Arc is a durable figure. She remains the only leader of a nation's military forces at the age of seventeen. A warrior clad in medieval armament today cinches a tangle of cross streets, as worthy of commanding notice as the underdog boxing champion who once jogged his way up the museum steps.
text by Monica Zaleski
Hidden away off of Bethlehem Pike, behind one of the many lovely homes along West Mill Road, lies a secret wonderland of nature. The result of four years of constant efforts by Lisa McCurdy and Laurie Jenkins, Shady Apple Goats is an urban farm replete with flowers, vegetables, bees, pigs, chickens, and the stars of the show: goats.
A handful of well-maintained barns and land separated with fencing is the home to the various animals. In addition to breeding the goats and raising the crops, Lisa and Laurie also run a Community Supported Agriculture program providing fruits, vegetables, cheese, eggs, and milk to local families. They also make soaps, jams and jellies, and—with all the leftover time!—birdhouses.
Always warm and welcoming, on August 9, 2014, Lisa and Laurie participated in "Behind the Fence: Homegrown Food Festival," and opened their farm to the public. It was a great chance to see how vibrant a small plot of land can be, if you're willing to put in the work.
Make it a point to follow along with Lisa and Laurie on their Facebook page. And if you're ever in the area, Shady Apple Goats is an inspiration that will make you run home to till up your own yard!
Founded in 1682, Philadelphia has evolved from a muddy gleam in William Penn's eye to the fifth largest city in the United States.
The pedestrian and horse-drawn movement of goods from the shipping outposts along the Delaware River were the cause of the rutted pathways which would become Old City's streets. The streets for some time remained rivers of mud as industry and residences grew into the area, but by 1830 most of the city streets had been laid with cobblestones.
In 1876, the Centennial International Exhibition was held in Philadelphia. It was the first World's Fair in the United States, timed to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. A major event, the Centennial Exhibition brought participants from around the world, including Belgium.
The Belgians built a pavilion devoted to advertising the city of Spa and its hot mineral springs. They built a courtyard for the Exhibition and paved it with blue-glazed granite. Once the Exhibition was over, Belgium gave the City the blocks of granite as a gift.
Some of these rare blocks still remain, but only in nine places around Philadelphia. Pay attention next time you stumble on the small streets, because you might be tripping over a bit of history.
Hidden on an acre behind the grand Memorial Hall is Shofuso: a Japanese House and Garden. Built in Nagoya Japan in 1953 and exhibited at the New York Museum of Modern Art, it was moved to Philadelphia in 1958.
Containing three types of traditional Japanese gardens (a hill and pond garden, a courtyard, and a tea garden), Shofuso also has the only hinoki bark roof outside of Japan.
Shofuso is open from May through October.
Inside a Victorian house sandwiched between two greek fraternity houses is one of the best bookstores in Philadelphia. Remarkably well curated, A House of Our Own is stuffed with volumes of excellent quality and content at very reasonable prices.
Spread over two full floors, the bookstore has some new volumes, but features a stunning selection of used books on a wide range of topics. On a recent visit I walked away with a four volume set of books for which I'd been searching more than a year. Bookstores from D.C. to Baltimore, Boston to New York (and even Baldwin's Book Barn) had let me down, but A House of Our Own came through with a pristine set at a great price.
I highly recommend several hours at this fantastic bookstore. A House of Our Own is located at 3902 Spruce Street, on the edge of the University of Pennsylvania's campus.
A motorbike is a solitary experience. More than any other form of transportation, a bike is an expression of the rider, and riding a motorbike is about maximizing that personal experience.
Riding is meditative because it simultaneously isolates the rider, and also puts that rider in touch with sounds, smells, and sights impossible to achieve any other way. That heightened awareness—reinforced by a freshly oxygenated supply of blood flowing into the brain at high speed—is transformative.
Riding changes the way you view the world, but that view isn't selfish: the perspective is a global one that wants to be shared. Two up—it's called—if you elect to sling a passenger along. Because it's experiential, though, it's easier to share that experience with those who already know what it is and don't need to say it.
That's the feeling I got spending a chilly Thursday evening in early May with a group of bikers who get together once a week for a ride around the city. The attendees and the size of the group change from week to week, but each individual I met had the correct approach: understanding it's about the experience and not about the bike; understanding that the bike is the vehicle (both literally and figuratively) for the experience; respecting the experience of other riders while appreciating the effect caused by a gathering of such like-minded others. They were welcoming, inclusive, and endeavored to make the experience congenial. With the inherent logic of a pack, the role of each rider fit obviously and seamlessly into the whole from the start of the 1.5 hour ride until its end. The group adapted without communication to the individuals, and each individual adjusted without effort to make the group work. The ride through Fairmount Park was well planned and led, winding us from a starting point at 25th and Poplar to Northern Liberties' El Camino Real. Filled with twisties and straight-aways, it a was brisk ride that kept everyone engaged, but wasn't threatening.
It's a challenge to positively share an individual experience with another, much less many others. Chin on the Tank achieved this, which is a credit to the type of bikers who seek out a nighttime ride with strangers.
Quaker City Motor Works is a vintage motorcycle dealer and restorer located in Glenside. On April 19, 2014, QCMW hosted its "Swap Thing & Vintage Moto Show." I took the Enfield over to see the show and enjoy the company of like-minded bikers.
The event attracted riders from all over, with beautifully maintained and restored bikes. Triumphs, Harleys, Guzzis, Vincents and Nortons were all well represented, along with a handful of Enfields.
If you need a part, or just like old bikes, QCMW should be on your must-visit list. They're located at 141 E Glenside Avenue in Glenside, Pennsylvania. The shop is open to the public Fridays and Saturdays, and otherwise by appointment.
City bike/Country bike
Day rides from a big city are always a challenge. Urban sprawl means riding for many miles before the city even starts to fade. A ride from Center City Philadelphia to New Hope is the answer, and will expose you to a different side of the Commonwealth while still getting you home in time for dinner.
This ride takes an hour and a half of road time each way, and will give you decent stretches of twisty roads and vistas without taking you too far from civilization. Although there are decent stretches of open asphalt, there are enough villages and stop signs to make this a non-technical ride that is comfortable for beginners who want to rack up some miles, or those who just want a leisurely pace without the stress of highway traffic.
Start the ride by picking up Kelly Drive at the Art Museum. Kelly is a well-known enjoyable ride, and its twists along the Schuylkill never disappoint. The views of Boathouse Row and the public art displays set a great tone for any ride.
At the end of Kelly, pick up Lincoln Drive. Lincoln is the most technical part of the ride, and requires attention. The first 1/8th of a mile is grooved concrete which will wake up any complacent rider. The turns come quickly, are sharp, and there is usually a fair bit of car traffic with which to share two lanes. Concrete jersey barriers separate oncoming traffic, but they were simply placed in what was previously a four lane road. The result is that the inner lane is a bit tighter than normal. Because the road runs along the Wissahickon Creek, it tends to flood. To keep the roads drained, the outer lane has large drains. So the choice is to watch for the drains, or watch for the concrete. Even though it's a bit of a challenge, it's a beautifully tree lined, fun ride.
Follow Lincoln until it dead ends at West Allen's Lane. Hang a right, and then a quick left onto Cresheim Road. Another right takes you onto Cresheim Valley Drive for some more twists along Cresheim Creek.
Cresheim Valley Drive crosses Germantown Avenue. Take a left here and you'll be at the lower end of Chestnut Hill. A charming street lined with shops, cafes, and bakeries, it's worth a stop for coffee if the traffic on Lincoln got your legs shaking.
If you don't stop in Chestnut Hill, continue on Cresheim Valley and take a left onto Stenton Avenue. If you do go to Chestnut Hill, make your way back down the hill. From either direction you're looking to head east on Willow Grove Avenue.
Another of Pennsylvania's pleasant tree-lined two laned roads, follow Willow Grove Avenu— uninterrupted except for a stray stop sign—for a couple of miles. It will intersect with Edge Hill Road. Stay on Edge Hill Road for about 10 miles until you find PA-63 (East Welsh Road). PA-63 will let you twist your wrist and cool the radiator with rolling hills and open country.
Once you take a left onto PA-232 North, there will be a few towns to slow things down. The first will be Bryn Athyn. The Bryn Athyn Cathedral is an historic landmark worth a stop.
The cathedral was built in 1919, and is the home of the General Church of the New Jerusalem, an offshoot of the Swedenborgian teachings. Religion aside, the building is magnificent. Immaculate grounds, impressive stonework, a high tolerance for visitors, and excellent bathrooms make this an almost required visit. There is ample parking.
PA-232 is dotted with small towns which will exercise the brakes, but is otherwise a rolling road with plenty of agriculture and horse farms to entertain a city rider. The roads are two lane, but any farm vehicles courteously allow traffic to pass, ensuring you'll make quick work of the 26 miles to New Hope.
PA-232 ends at the Delaware River (and an aptly named River Road). A left turn reveals the main street of New Hope. Situated at the confluence of the Delaware River and the Aquetong Creek in Bucks County, New Hope is home to quaint shops and pub-ish restaurants. A frequent destination for New York and New Jersey riders, there are plenty of bikes present in New Hope on any given day.
There are two places claiming the "Best Burgers in Town." I picked one of them based upon their outdoor seating. The atmosphere was pleasant, and was more reminiscent of Florida than Pennsylvania. They may very well have the best burger in town, but it wasn't the best burger I've had. However, the tater tots were crispy and hot, and the cheese whiz flowed over them like lava.
The main strip of New Hope along South Main Street is several blocks long. Two hours on the parking meter is enough time to stroll the length, get something to eat, and to walk across the 100+ year old New Hope-Lambertville Bridge into Lambertville, New Jersey. If you plan on shopping, though, bring more quarters: parking times are enforced, and there are no motorcycle-specific parking spots.
New Hope is a great destination. Two lanes of good blacktop all the way, this route will get you away from the city and into the country with plenty of sightseeing. No matter the skill level, it's a ride worth taking.
A peculiar little alley off of Walnut between 12th and 13th is neatly paved with square-cut wooden blocks that would have softened the clop of horse hooves more than a hundred years ago.
Today a stroll south on Camac Street takes you into a toy box version of Philadelphia. The narrow byways and cross streets of the vicinity, laid in brick and cobblestone, still preserve Philadelphia's ancient and human-scaled dimensions.
Leave the din behind and wend your way through this tucked away hamlet in the heart of center city.
Text by: Monica.
See more at: fjamesconley.com
Hidden inside the Mt. Airy Regional Rail stop is another of the area's brilliant bookstores. Charming, curious, and well-curated, Walk A Crooked Mile Books has over 80,000 books which wind through two stories of shelves, across window sills, spread out on floors and even throughout the bathroom.
I have been to most of the best bookstores in the Philadelphia area, and I delightedly walked out of WACM with twelve books I hadn't found elsewhere.
Well worth a visit, plan on spending an appreciable amount of time at this bookstore. And be sure to bring something in which to carry all your finds. You can walk the walk at 7423 Devon Street in Mt. Airy. It's open every day except Wednesday.
Text by: Monica Zaleski
Stirred from a forest of iron, glass, and steel by an almost imperceptible current of air, a mechanical butterfly pursued a course toward the river's edge. A near perfect emulation--with wings plushed in iridescent powder and an armature of springs and joints and hinges so fine and delicate--only a faint ticking sound and curious aura distinguished the improbable creature from his earth born brothers.
Flouncing about, unhurried, it was as unaware of its fragile condition as those thousands looking for blossoms and chased on sunlit afternoons by little boys in parks. Known to be elusive, possibly a myth, to capture the minutest flying machine ever created, even with the slightest, slowest press of a finger would almost certainly ensure its destruction. But prototypes are made to be tested, broken, perhaps fail, and then surpassed.
To the one who clutched and pressed and released the shutter and tested the robotic glowing insect by the river, here are the remnants, like the heap of glimmering fragments left in your palm that night.
Heart-shaped trees frame l'heure bleue. The blue hour occurs twice a day: at twilight and dusk, when the sun is obscured by the earth but still lights up the sky.