At the beginning of May, Molly and I spent a rare kidless morning at the monthly Antiques to Flea Market in Olde Towne Portsmouth. In our rummaging, I found a stack of vintage postcards showing scenes from Norfolk in the 1910s, '20s, and '30s. They were a little overpriced, so I didn't take any of them home. But I can't stop looking for similar vintage postcards online. It's so amazing to see how our familiar city has changed over the years, how much different things are now and how much they are the same. When I was growing up, downtown Granby Street was a mess of boarded-up buildings, but now it looks as bustling with life as it does in the postcard from the '30s, above.
Looking at these old cards, I've started a sort of mental list of dream destinations around Hampton Roads, places I would visit and blog about if I had a time machine at my disposal. First up on the list: definitely the Ocean View Amusement Park. Can you just imagine?
The Portsmouth flea is a really varied market -- I can't wait to go back next month. There's a good amount of junque, but with many excellent finds interspersed. Here are some of the ones we came across:
^^ We affectionately called this mirror the "skinny mirror" -- so named because it was truly and amazingly flattering. Looking in it was like instantly losing 10 pounds. It was from the mid-1800s and thus out of our price range, but I like that it's been making women feel pretty for well over a hundred years.
^^ I have a thing for antique glassware.
I'm crazy about flea markets.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it great? I need to plan a visit soon. Was the vendor selling tons of postcards? If so, I have seen him. Way, way overpriced. I love looking at antique furniture there and adding to my collection of Ball mason jars (blue). I can only imagine how fabulous the Ocean View amusement park must have been!
ReplyDeleteYep -- I think it might be the same vendor. Let me know if you're planning to go in July!
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