South Street

Has anyone ever heard that old song about where all the people meet? South Street! South Street!

Now we're getting close to my home territory. When I walk my daughter to school in the morning, I like to weave around the small side streets and cozy alleys of my neighborhood, but on the way back home, I like to walk down South Street to see the business there "wake up" and get ready for the day.

South Street used to be famous as a kind of "counter culture" scene, and also a place of "shocking" shops-- tattoo parlors next to erotic stores next to piercing places next to bars next to cheeseteak joints. Its feel is changing a bit, though, and while these places are still there, you also see Starbucks, Adidas, and The Gap, arts and crafts galleries, and restaurants with cuisine from all over the world. Turn any corner and you may find record shops (and I mean vinyl), vintage and boutique clothing stores, natural food groceries, bookshops, fabric stores, and my apartment! You could really walk around there all day, but as no one has that much time to spend, I suggest at least one stroll down South Street in the area of 2nd to 8th street.

If you're up for a longer walk, I would challenge you to come all the way down to where I live and see the "Magic Garden" on South between 10th and 11th streets. Created by local mosaic artist Isaiah Zagar, the "garden" is a point of pride for our neighborhood (called Bella Vista), and there's been a real effort to save this wonderland of recycled materials from falling under a wrecking ball to make way for "development" (South Street is prime real estate for expensive condos these days). If you can't make it down there, though, you'll probably see Mr. Zagar's swirling mirror and tile mosaics peeking out at you from alleys and houses all over the place-- lots of people and businesses on around South St. have asked him to put his sparkling touch on their walls.

Just one little warning: like I said, South Street still retains its racey character in many respects. It is a place of many different people, and it can be smelly, crowded, littered-- and don't forget that the erotic shops have windows that could make you blush! (More likely, though, they'll make you laugh or roll your eyes.) Most of the stores are open by noon at the latest, but the evenings get very wild in the summer. Plan to go in the afternoon if you want to have a relaxed time (once again, this is when the stroller types are there)-- and obviously, go at night if you want to see craziness. Whatever you do, DON'T TRY TO DRIVE ON SOUTH STREET FROM 2nd to 10th St. AT NIGHT! Traffic hardly moves since lots of people are cruising and trying to find parking. It's practically at a standstill all night long. Oh, and I don't think you should eat at Johnny Rockets. Though it has a cute retro theme, the food there made me feel gross after I ate it!