PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A series of walks along the Philadelphia border allow participants to learn about the city, each other and themselves.
On a recent day, JJ Tiziou of West Philadelphia stretched out a large paper map of Philadelphia on a sidewalk in the Navy Yard for a group of about 15 people before they embarked on the 5- to 6-hour trek from South Philadelphia to Penn's Landing.
The excursion is one of a dozen offered by “Walk Around Philadelphia,” Tiziou’s project since 2020, which explores the very edge of the city — the 100 miles that make up the Philadelphia border. Tiziou breaks that perimeter up into a segments approximately 10 miles long guides groups on each trek on select days in February and September.
“We are very squarely in Philadelphia at this moment,” Tiziou said to the group. “The nearest border to us is in the middle of the Delaware River.”
In some parts of the city — the Navy Yard, for example — that border is more conceptual than actual.
“Walk Around Philadelphia is an opportunity to connect with the city, to its landscape, to our neighbors, to our own bodies,” says Tiziou. “To challenge ourselves, to learn about ourselves. We are literally exploring borders and boundaries. This concept of who draws these lines and decides what is and what’s not Philadelphia.”
Helen Horstmann-Allen of Center City said this was her first time with Walk Around Philadelphia.
“It’s February. It’s the dead of winter. You need a reason to get out of the house,” she said. “What better reason than this? It’s a beautiful day for it. Five hours of walking, and you’re going to have a different perspective on the world.”
And she was ready — with her “comfy shoes” and hat, snacks in her backpack, and a water bottle.
On her fifth “Walk,” Ana Mayol of Northern Liberties is a seasoned veteran. She says the experience can be illuminating.
“Philadelphia is a great city. And you may think a great city is just Center City, but it’s so much more than that,” Mayol said. “This is a great way of finding out how diverse and beautiful the city is, and how many parks — I mean, just go with an open mind about all of the good things and the history that there is in the city — and not just Center City.”
Sasha Aleiner of Elkins Park has participated in three walks.
“In some areas of Philadelphia, there can definitely be improvement for safety and accessibility — and I think that those helping to organize the walk have done a good job in finding alternative directions, and we can walk in the direction we want to go safely,” Aleiner said.
Graham Brent of Northwest Philadelphia says the treks provide connections that he otherwise would probably not have made.
“The walking is really a mechanism for all kinds of other things — for discovery, for education, for self improvement, for community,” Brent said. “And I meet people. I have conversations in the group — and outside of the group that we run into — that I would never have normally.
Upcoming outings include: Somerton towards Fox Chase, and Fox Chase towards Broad Street.