I ‘spose if nothing else, this blog has already pumped up my inquisitiveness towards the things I stumble upon downtown. Case in point, what is now officially my favorite alley in all of Haverhill: a sketchy crevasse located between Newman’s Discount Furniture and Royal India Restaurant.

How amazing are those old department store windows!? Once I spied those, I knew I had to investigate closer- for blog and for country!

It felt like I was stepping back in time. Stepping in something magical…and oddly slippery…and, in fact, I quickly found myself sliding downhill on a tiny stream of soon-to-be-recycled cooking oil that was seeping out of the giant drums waiting at the alley’s mouth.

If I hadn’t stopped myself, I may have wound up inside John Malkovich! I guess we’ll never know.

At the alley’s deepest point there’s a murky pool of stangant water, from which this haphazard fire escape emerges. I didn’t linger down there, but it looks like someone did:

Now that I’ve been spelunking in Haverhill’s coolest alley, you can feel free to keep a safe distance as you pass. Um, hopefully I don’t contract Haverhill Fever for the reals!

And if you’re as fascinated as I am about what it must have been like back when this end of downtown was lined with department stores, check out this cool video.  The very first Macy’s (and Macy’s Parade!) was actually located right in good old Haverhill.