Travel Day Trips presents Northampton MA
On a summer morning, wandering off I95N and trying to find a McDonald's, myself and two friends accidentally came upon a city. Its streets gave off a golden aura in the morning light. People were already at the sidewalk stalls buying produce, plants and flowers. Stopped at a light, we watched and asked ourselves, what place was this? We were on our way to Deerfield, but we vowed to stop back at this place later in the day. That we did. And what we found was a wonderful, walkable, friendly town full of people who got along with each other, who enjoyed being out and about. This city is Northampton, MA and one of my favorite travel day trip destinations. Let me tell you about it in the following posts.
The city is a collection of old fashion three and four-story buildings containing a mix of boutiques and restaurants along with an arts center and municipal buildings. Some of my favorite shops are:
Broadside Books - a good old fashion, non big box book store complete with creaky floor ambiance.
Happy Valley - a gift store with items from all over the world. A fun little store with a variety of stuff tomake you smile.
Skera - A high-end art clothes boutique in business for 35 years. Beautiful clothes, hats, coats, scarves and jewelry.
Faces - Fun, fun, fun place with a great collection of gag gifts. A favorite with the college crowd. Check out the clever line of greeting cards, jewelry and funny T-shirts.
Ten Thousand Villages - Yes this is a chain store but I still like to go in and check out the items for sale from around the world.
essentials - If you are looking for unique stationery and paper goods, this is the place. It also sells some furniture and kids items.
All the above stores are on the main boulevard. This is just a sample, there are more and a great place to stop at is Thornes. It contains a variety of stores including a health food store, book shop, ice cream parlor and a safe and clean rest room. Its on the lower floor and yes, never pass up a good pit stop. One of my favorite stores is the Cedar Closet which as a great collection of soaps and lotions. And for the dollar conscience there is Acme Surplus, a great place to get low cost items. These are just a sample of the stores, there is more off the side streets. It all makes for a wonderful afternoon of strolling and window shopping or just plain shopping. Northampton is a walkable, social place with a vibrant street scene full of street musicians and neo hippies and punks. You can see everyone from bikers to teenagers with green hair to retirees. Everyone gets along with each other. When you learn about the city, you will understand its unique history. Smith College is just up the slight hill from downtown and has a good museum. Just off Masonic St. is a mural depicting The History of Women in Northampton from 1600 - 1980.
Travel Day Trips
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