The sun was shining gloriously on a recent afternoon in downtown Northampton. I decided to take a stroll through the familiar streets—I've lived in the Valley for 13 years—and visit some of my favorite haunts. I parked on Market Street, thinking that the area was a perfect place to begin my meandering.
As I walked toward town, I passed Joe's Café Spaghetti and Pizza House, known to us locals as just Joe's, the only place in town for spaghetti and a beer with no frills attached. Next up on my left was Better Yet, pretty much known as the best secondhand store in town. I peered through the window and decided I'd leave browsing through other people's treasures for another day.
Stepping off Market Street and onto Main, I couldn't resist the pull of Roz's Place, a store filled half with vintage goods and the other half with new, über-trendy items. Over the years, I have purchased some outrageously awesome things at Roz's: a red flapper dress, a kick-ass vintage leather jacket, the best belt I have ever seen (I lost it a few years ago), '70s-style bellbottoms and an ankle-length, see-through, lime green ballgown, just to name a few. I took one full tour through the store, and then, confident I wasn't missing out on the new hot ticket item, I left Roz's treasures for someone else to discover that day.
As I looked across the street at the Del Raye Bar & Grille, an upscale restaurant featuring eclectic nouvelle cuisine, I remembered my last experience there. It was the day before my birthday last year. A friend and I headed to the bar at the Del, as it's commonly called, and ordered up a plate of Blue Point oysters. We washed the scrumptious shellfish down (they were so good we ordered another plate) with a bottle of my favorite champagne, Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label, a brand not found in most Northampton restaurants.
Since it was the middle of the afternoon, I had no choice but to forego recreating that experience and decided to pop somewhere for a beer and something to munch on. Although I often go to Fitzwilly's—they have Sea Dog Blueberry on tap and amazing spinach and artichoke dip—today I walked on by the bustling eatery and opted for a seat at the bar in The Dirty Truth, a beer and wine bar that prides itself—a lot—on its outstanding selection of beers from around the world. I got a bottle of Cantillon Gueuze, a tart Belgian beer, and ordered a serving of The Truth's three-cheese macaroni, hands-down the best macaroni west of Boston. After filling up, I decided I needed a smoke. So I headed west into town, walking up Main Street toward Smith College to Aurora Borealis, a kitschy store complete with a smoke shop.
As I walked I passed by some of my other favorite restaurants, including Spoleto, an Italian restaurant with a welcoming aura, and Zen, a relatively new downtown eatery with pan-Asian cuisine and an extensive selection of Sake—including the light and airy Hakushika Namazake and the multi-flavored Momokawa Nigori.
After stopping in R. Michelson Galleries to check out my favorite Dr. Seuss painting, "Cat From the Wrong Side of the Tracks," I decided it was time to indulge in some good-old fashioned therapy—retail therapy.
I took a peek in the window of Ten Thousand Villages, a shop featuring fair trade jewelry, home décor and more from artists in African, Asian and Latin American countries, before continuing up Main Street to Thornes Marketplace, a three-level "mall" conspicuously lacking a mall vibe. As I walked around the market, I realized that a person could get anything they needed inside these four walls. So I did. I grabbed a CD at Dynamite Records, enjoyed a 15-minute seated massage at Backstop, then headed to Changes Salon, a full-service salon for men, women and kids, and got my nails done. Then I picked up a new whisk at Different Drummer's Kitchen, a copy of Sex Wars by Marge Piercy at Booklink Booksellers and cherry-colored Prescriptives lipstick at Cedar Chest.
I trekked to the third floor to look at the art gracing the walls of the A.P.E. Art and Performance Gallery before heading back downstairs to pick up some tempura for my vegan buddy from Paul & Elizabeth's, a natural foods restaurant. After that, I tried on jeans in 25 Central, a hip clothing store for cool chics like myself, and picked up some Birds of Paradise, funky rainbow-colored flowers, at Flowers a La Carte. I made one last stop in Thornes, saving the best for last: Herrell's Ice Cream.
Since I couldn't go into any stores until I finished my Damn Yankees Devilmint Stripe ice cream cone, I window shopped as I ambled down the remainder of Main Street. I made a mental note that Faces was having a summer sundress sale and that Strada had some new sneakers on display. My cone was gone by the time I reached Broadside Bookshop, which was a good thing because I rarely passed by the independent bookstore without popping in. That day I scored a new book by Peter Hessler, Oracle Bones: A Journey Through Time and China, and checked out the upcoming author events the store was hosting.
As I made my way to my ultimate destination, there was only one thought in my mind: cigar or hand-rolled cigarette? My nose decided for me the second I opened the door to the back room in Aurora Borealis. The pungent scent of cigars hit me in the face, and I was sold. (The shop also sells tobacco and regular name-brand cigarettes.)
Back outside as I lit my Romeo y Julieta, I decided to extend my jaunt past downtown and walk around the Smith College Campus. As I thought in eager anticipation about the sites to explore on campus—the botanical garden, the Smith College Art Museum, the gazebo by the river—I realized that I could stop by Forbes Library on the way back, browse the bookshelves and check out the art upstairs at the Hosmer Art Gallery.
I puffed on my Julieta and smiled as I waited for the light to change, because, I reflected, a day strolling the streets of downtown Northampton is more than a day well spent. It's an experience hardly rivaled.
