The history of South Philly is basically a list of immigrants who moved in among the factories before moving to nicer areas of the city or New Jersey. The factories are mostly all shut down these days. Immigrants in order: Irish, Italians, Asians (I could list the subgroups, but might mess up the order of arrival) and now Mexicans. The Italians claim that they own South Philly and so it is known as the Italian area of town with the Italian Market being the most touristy attraction. The outdoor market is on the wide sidewalks outside of the traditional meat and cheese shops.
There are still a lot of traditional Italian families who have multiple generations all living on the same block. It seems as if the pattern is something like: When you get married and move out of your parent's house for the first time, you trade homes with your grandmother. She moves in with your folks while you and your spouse get her home. When we tell people that one set of parents live in Carlisle, a whole 2 hour drive away, they freak out and tell us we are bad people for moving so far from home. We have learned to by-pass the subject of where Joshua's family lives.
We have gotten in the habit of purchasing only fresh pasta from a local shop. Not surprising, Sal, one of the shop's employees, looks like a guy from The Sopranos. Joshua has threatened to divorce me if I tell Sal that my husband makes a wonderful tofu tomato sauce ... or as it is known around here "gravy." As in, "My grandmother makes the best ravioli and gravy." Um, yuck?
There is a South Philly hairstyle that every lady sports. It's like a bob but with enough fluffing to make it more of a helmet. They stare at my hair because it is so flat.
When I went to school in Baltimore, I learned that sneakers hanging from the power line was a gang code meaning that drugs are being sold on that corner. Not sure if this is still true, but there are pockets of South Philadelphia with this cultural phenomenon. At times, they seem to hang more and more sneakers in the same spot to the point of absurdity. One place had at least a dozen pairs hanging from the wires.
The ice cream truck drives through our neighborhood at least once a day. During the first snow of the season, he was driving down our street and was mobbed by customers. Not sure of the reason for the ice cream craving. (This picture was taken a few weeks ago out our front window between the Christmas decorations.)
But the most notable aspect of South Philadelphia is how friendly the neighborhood is. People say hello and if they know you live on the block, they will introduce themselves. This community connection has been surprising at times -- like when they used to just stroll into the house uninvited during the house remodel -- but it is always wonderful.
Even though I would love to leave this analysis of South Philly in the Polly Positive Realm, there is one major part of living in this area that we cannot stand: The frequent use of yelling to parent children. Now, obviously we are not parents and we aren't the authority on the subject, however we have seen far too much yelling, hitting and swearing at children for our taste. It seems in such stark contrast to the friendly welcomes we receive. It is still difficult to get our minds around how to deal with this issue.
As with any city, I'm sure the list of things we find unique and exciting will continue to grow as we learn more about our surroundings. We will be sure to keep you posted.
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