NEWTOWN HOLIDAY PARADE Sunday Dec 2

ANOTHER holiday event this weekend!!

Fifteen years ago, Newtown's holiday parade was a modest, very small town event, held on the Friday before Thanksgiving.  Not anymore!!

Now the largest holiday parade in Bucks County, the 8th annual Newtown Holiday Parade is Sunday Dec 2th at 2 pm.  A popular family tradition, the parade provides a magical experience for the entire community. 

Over 5000 people are expected to come & watch the estimated 1200 participants, including the high school marching bands, Mummers Bands, horse-drawn carriages, floats, antique cars, color guard, fire trucks, Santa & much more!  (What can be "more" than Santa??)

Come early & bring your family, bundled up, with blankets and CHAIRS.  The entire route has sidewalks available for spectators to pick a spot & watch the entire parade marching by.

The parade begins on South State Street  (at the Stocking Works Building) at 2:00 p.m., continues north on State Street, turns left onto Washington Ave, then right onto Sycamore Street, coming to an end at the Durham Rd (at the Green Parrot - where Goodnoe's was located).

Be sure to linger after the parade ~ many Newtown businesses will feature special promotions, so don’t leave town before grabbing a bite to eat or stocking up for the holidays.  And you'd be hard pressed to find a prettier little town than Newtown decked out for the holidays.  

Take a leisurely meander on foot AND by car to see all the beautiful homes & buildings, many of historical significance.  Newtown was the the county seat when Pennsylvania was a colony and a state (from 1725-1813) and it was home to one of the young country's most famous painters, Edward Hicks (1780-1849).

GO!  ~ ~ Even if you can't make it to Sunday's parade, Newtown is always worth a visit.  Stroll State Street, enjoying a real honest-to-gosh hardware store like you don't see anymore (serving Newtown residents for over 100 years!);  stop into Pat's Colonial Kitchen for breakfast or lunch;  and townfolk are mega proud that their movie theatre is the nation's oldest (includes a balcony, open on weekends) - there is a special Saturday morning showing of The Polar Express, with a $2 donation admission *OR* 4 cans of food.  Motor west on Sycamore to the entirely new part of town, the phalanx of stores & restaurants gobbling up the space where Goodnoe's Ice Cream once stood.

ISAAC  NEWTOWN's ~ ~ Of course, I'm going to urge you to stop into Isaac Newtown's (behind Allegheny Art, which is also well worth a visit), a gathering place for old & young alike, even families.  John & I met there when the restaurant was called (not kidding) The Academy, and courted over their delicious Onion Nest.  

The name is different, but the menu's  just as droll & extensive as it was 24 years ago (Onion Nest is now $5.50, not much more than back when).  

Not so their beer selection, which would have left our younger, single selves agog - beers currently on tap include Founders Pale Ale, Belhaven Scottish Ale, Magic Hat #9, Goose Island Minx, Lavery Imp. French Ale, Delirium Tremens, Delirium Noel, Goose Island IPA, DuClaw Serum II IPA, Goose Island Matilda, Great Lakes Winter Ale, Goose Island Bourbon County, Left Hand Sawtooth Ale, Sierra Celebration, Avery Joes Pilsner and Allagash White.  Whew!  To think that when John caught my attention shouting out, “Hey, Bryn Athyn!” we thought a pub was top-of-the-line if it had Heineken, or Guiness on tap!