Down on india street
A hip and historic urban neighborhood
By Christian Ruffner
By Christian Ruffner
Little Italy’s motto is “A Hip and Historic Urban Neighborhood”. I have found that this statement could not be more true. As I walk down India Street, I see bright lights advertising Italian food, art galleries, and cafes. Looking up at the light posts, you see banners appreciating Italian celebrities. Then when you take a left on Cedar Street, you end up by Our Lady of the Rosary Church and the Italian Culture Center, where you can take classes to learn Italian. Walking down these well lit streets with history around every corner, you never lose a sense of community and pride in where Little Italy’s citizens work and live.
Little Italy as a community has dated back since the early 1900’s. Many people from Genoa and Sicily, Italy were drawn because of the similar climate between the areas. Most of the people had made a living as fisherman, and continued that on here as well. Often if Italian immigrants did not own a boat, then they would work in seafood processing plants. At one time over 6,000 families had lived there making San Diego center of the world’s tuna industry. Unfortunately, there was a setback during World War II and the range of boats was restricted by the Navy. The area declined further when interstate five was built and spilt the city in half, but many citizens still owned business there, continuing to be a part of the community. In 2004 the community created the Piazza Basilone as a gather center and a war memorial to honor the 12 neighborhood men that had died in World War II. After doing research on the history of Little Italy and reading about how tight knit the community was, I knew I had to find some community events to go to and experience for myself. The first event that I attended was Halloween on India Street. The local businesses host an event so that the kids of downtown have a safe place to go on such a fun night. When you arrive, at the end of each block are haybales with scarecrows in them for kids to take photos with. At the Piazza Basilone was member of the community sitting around enjoying the night and watching people come in go with handfuls of candy. It opened my eyes to the fact that it didn’t matter what age you were, but that community events in Little Italy were for everyone. The next event that I went to was Little Italy’s farmers market. The streets had been closed off, and there were more vendors than you could count. People from all over San Diego come to sell their product to a community that welcomes all. There was artwork, food, snacks, fruits, vegetables, and even jewelry. Walking down the crowded streets is like being at carnival. You expect to see clowns and men on stilts. If you are looking for something truly unique, you should go to Little Italy’s farmers market. In Little Italy, most of what you see when you walk down a street is Italian restaurants. I knew that if I wanted to understand how Little Italy became what it is today, I needed to talk to a family who had been there for a very long time. I thought there would be nothing better than a family run restaurant. When looking up restaurants in Little Italy, one kept occurring as being popular to tourists and locals. I felt it was perfect location to talk to someone about how Little Italy has changed. When you walk in, the first half of the restaurant is a deli with packed meats and seasonings on shelves everywhere. There is not much room to walk around, and it almost makes you feel claustrophobic. But there is a sense of warmth and familiarity when you walk in there, like your family, while you enjoy your stay. I walked up to the deli counter where there were two young men that seemed to be in their early 20s. I explained my project to them, and a voice from the back yelled “Take him to talk to Gina, she been here the longest!” When they took me to the back, there was an older lady with curly brown hair in a Filippi’s staff shirt. She was sitting at a table playing with silverware. When I explained my problem and asked if I could set up an interview, she said “Well, ask your questions now.” She explained the history of Filippi’s to me. It started as just a deli in 1950. After the owner’s untimely death at 54, his sons took over and started to make pizza. What stuck me with me after the interview was that when I asked her what makes a successful restaurant, her answer was ”A lot of good quality food but for affordable prices.” It’s so simple, but so important for a restaurant because people want to feel like they are getting a great deal. Like they’re family. This view on business has been very successful for them, because they now own 14 restaurants throughout San Diego serving authentic Italian food.
Out of all the places I visited in Little Italy, the warmest and most welcoming was Our Lady Of The Rosary Catholic Church. I visited on a Sunday at the end of their 9:30 Mass. As people were leaving, I slipped in to get photos of the murals painted on the walls and ceiling. The pastor then came up to welcome me, and invited me to take as many photos as I wanted. As I walked around, the people asked me about my project and even took me to the Choir Balcony to take a perfect shot. They told me how the murals were painted in 1925 and how little things were painted in, like a model of the church in one of the murals. This truly gave me sense of community and friendliness. It was refreshing to talk to people that were interested in what you were doing and just cared about other people. It made me understand why people spend their time there, volunteering as much as they can to give to the community they love. To these people, it’s not just a community. It’s family. Walk down any street in Little Italy, and you will find a hip and historic neighborhood. Whether you're looking for food, religion, or community, it’s here. People of all demographics and all diversities can enjoy this small town feel in such a big place. Even with all the hustle and bustle, you can feel people care about what you're thinking and how you feel. It’s an amazing feat that a community all started on the skill of fishing to support yourself and your family. The pride they take in their community to keep it clean and colorful is really quite shocking and something you do not see every day. I think that it says a lot of how much people take care of Little Italy and San Diego as a whole that they have kept this place so nice for so long. |