Trenton. Say the word to any New Jerseyian or even a Pennsylvanian and they will shudder. Trenton. It’s a vile word. What little I know and see about Trenton is from the Trenton train station. Dirty. Filthy. Broken. Is that the city or the politicians who inhabit the capital? Both. I know better than to take a train station and extrapolate that data point to represent an entire city. But still.
Trenton’s most historically significant site is the Washington Barracks. I’ve visited Washington Crossing several times. I’ve seen a reenacted of Washington crossing the Delaware. I know he surprised attacked the Hessians on the Jersey side. I’ve never seen where the Hessians were sleeping. Where Washington launched his attack. The Washington Barracks provides more details. The Hessians all came from the Hesse-Kassel region of Germany between Hanover and Frankfurt. They probably weren’t drunk when Washington attacked, they were just a little disorganized. A guided tour of the barracks is included in the price of admission. The most interesting part of the barracks was the medical history that impacted the military events. Washington lived through yellow fever earlier in his life and knew that an outbreak could decimate the Continental Army. He began inoculating his troops using the latest medical technology.
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Trenton has several neighborhoods, each with a slight distinction, although you’ll never be mistaken for thinking you left Trenton’s city limits. I went to Trenton Coffee House and Records (now closed) in the Chambersburg section, what I believe is the city’s Italian neighborhood, or at least was at one point in time. There are glimmers of a glorious past—columned banks, fire and police stations that show evidence of civic pride, and public parks. All worn down. It’s like the buildings gave up. A gloomy day may not present Trenton in its best light (literally and figuratively) but it does feel like Trentonian weather.
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Photogenic although probably not for the right reasons.
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What I wonder about Trenton, is regardless of your political views, is why Americans collectively allow this embarrassment of a city to exist in what we portend to be a great country. I’m not sure how politicians, of both parties, can drive to the capital building each day, pass through this decrepit city, say “let’s go out for lunch today”, “oh wait there’s no where to eat in Trenton”, and allow this to be day after day, year after year. Then again I never ventured beyond the train station for fifteen years so maybe the politicians are just as bad.
I wrapped up the Trenton tour with a drive slightly north to Riverhorse Brewing, which was previously located in Lambertville and for reasons that escape me, decided to move to Ewing Township. Riverhorse has been around since 1996—to me, they are microbrewing royalty and instead of having the pomp and circumstance of that royal legacy they relocated to a warehouse in Ewing. I guess check them out. Maybe. Winding roads lead north to Hopewell, a quaint New Jersey village town, famously known as where Charles Lindbergh retreated to avoid the public spotlight—only to have his baby kidnapped. The Brick Farm Market is a cool, buzzing spot.
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BURLINGTON
My brother lives in Bangkok. He's constantly looking at Philadelphia area homes along the Delaware River. He sends me links to homes in Burlington all the time saying "This looks like a great place to live." I respond with "Yeah it's awesome..." There's a great historical core with coffee shops, microbreweries, good restaurants, good shopping, it's wonderful...but...the homes he sends me have property taxes that are $20,000/year. The equivalent homes in Pennsylvania have taxes at under $10,000/year. So I'll stick with visiting the coffee shops and microbreweries.
I encourage everyone who lives in the Philadelphia area to visit Burlington, NJ and Bristol, PA, its sister city across the river. These places are hiding in plain site and cool places to visit on a Saturday or Sunday. No need to travel around the world, for historical places with some flair, that are sitting in your backyard.
My brother lives in Bangkok. He's constantly looking at Philadelphia area homes along the Delaware River. He sends me links to homes in Burlington all the time saying "This looks like a great place to live." I respond with "Yeah it's awesome..." There's a great historical core with coffee shops, microbreweries, good restaurants, good shopping, it's wonderful...but...the homes he sends me have property taxes that are $20,000/year. The equivalent homes in Pennsylvania have taxes at under $10,000/year. So I'll stick with visiting the coffee shops and microbreweries.
I encourage everyone who lives in the Philadelphia area to visit Burlington, NJ and Bristol, PA, its sister city across the river. These places are hiding in plain site and cool places to visit on a Saturday or Sunday. No need to travel around the world, for historical places with some flair, that are sitting in your backyard.
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BAPS SHRI SWAMINARAYAN MANDIR
BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, the largest Hindu temple in the world outside of India. It is located in Robbinsville. The temple complex had it's official opening in October 2023 and Daddy had been looking forward to visiting the temple for the past few months. It's an impressive site although difficult to slot in this temple with other cultural sites solely due to its "youth", for lack of a better word. If the temple was 150 years old, it'd rank on a cultural list in a position similar to The Royal Palace in Bangkok. Despite lacking an historical "weight" the site immediately becomes a "must see" attraction for those living in the surrounding area and for all points between Philadelphia and New York City. The temple complex receives 20,000+ visitors on the weekend, thus the best advice is to arrive early on a weekday.
BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, the largest Hindu temple in the world outside of India. It is located in Robbinsville. The temple complex had it's official opening in October 2023 and Daddy had been looking forward to visiting the temple for the past few months. It's an impressive site although difficult to slot in this temple with other cultural sites solely due to its "youth", for lack of a better word. If the temple was 150 years old, it'd rank on a cultural list in a position similar to The Royal Palace in Bangkok. Despite lacking an historical "weight" the site immediately becomes a "must see" attraction for those living in the surrounding area and for all points between Philadelphia and New York City. The temple complex receives 20,000+ visitors on the weekend, thus the best advice is to arrive early on a weekday.
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The temple's impressiveness starts as soon as you leave the parking lot. The complex's entrance area is off on the northern/right side thus depending upon where you park, you'll need to walk around Brahm Kund, a traditional step pond, part of the broader Nilkanth Plaza which features a 49-foot statue of Bhagwan Swaminarayan, portrayed as a youthful yogi. Known as Nilkanth Varni during his teenage years, he was the founder of the Swaminarayan Hindu tradition. The entrance hall...the food court...the gift shop...all impressive. Every piece of the complex was well designed and thought out, no shortcuts taken.
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Within the broader complex, the temple's size is a bit deceiving in that it appears smaller than it actually is - once you enter the temple, you realize how large the temple itself is. No photos are allowed inside the temple, which if they were, you'd wind up snapping thousands of photos and never leave. Nothing quite prepares you senses when you walk up the stairs and see the interior of the temple for the first time. Without the photos you'll need to see the interior for yourself. If you believe the exterior is impressive, you won't believe what's on the inside.
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It's not simply the scale/scope of the complex. It's not simply an attraction because it's the "largest Hindu temple outside of India". It's also the delicacy, the intricacy, the details of the site that are impressive. Particularly on the inside of the temple but also throughout the other areas. As mentioned above, even the food court was beautiful and a site to behold. My only complaints, and these are all tongue-in-cheek, is that there weren't any Sahdus, no honking horns or other noises, no monkeys or cows or goats wandering around, no dirt, no smells, no "is this really a bathroom" moments, no swindlers or scammers, no over-engineer disorganization - without these elements, was this even a Hindu temple? It wasn't simply a great site, it was a great experience from start to finish.
We ate a pie of Trenton Pizza at Papa's Tomato Pies in Robbinsville, the oldest, continuously, family-owned pizza restaurant in the U.S. They put a thin coating of mustard between the crust and tomato sauce to give their pizza a bit of zing - worth checking out but not as good as the temple's food court.
We ate a pie of Trenton Pizza at Papa's Tomato Pies in Robbinsville, the oldest, continuously, family-owned pizza restaurant in the U.S. They put a thin coating of mustard between the crust and tomato sauce to give their pizza a bit of zing - worth checking out but not as good as the temple's food court.
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