may be moving to nyc

[cw]

can anybody give me a breakdown of what the different neighborhoods are all about. soho, e. village, w. village, upper west, etc.? thanks.

[superTrash]

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Chelsea :: Known mostly as NY's gay neighborhood. It's got a good nightlife and restaurant scene. Most of it is around Eighth and Ninth Avenues, between 16th - 24th St. West Chelsea, past Tenth Ave, is the heart of the gallery scene in Manhattan. Twenty Second St is the densest packed with galleries. Visually, Chelsea is a lot of old factories, large office blocks, large apartment blocks, and auto repair shops turned into galleries. Chelsea is also home to some of the more avante garde fashion houses in NY. Like Comme des Garcons and Balenciaga are both on west 22nd St. Barneys co-op is in the hood too. Lots of good apartments here, although they are very pricey.

Meatpacking District :: Just south of Chelsea, it's kind of a bit of an expensive scene these days, but some good restaurants, wine bars. West 14th St past Eighth Ave is the main drag, and home to Alexander McQueen, Stella McCartney, Jeffrey, etc... The rest of the district is slowly filling up with other brands and some nice shops mixed in. Washington St just south of 13th St has some nice interior and clothing shops. Gansevoort and Little West Twelfth have nice shops. Visually, the neighborhood is like it's name implies, old meatpacking warehouses. The district used to be one of the seedier places in Manhattan, with transvestite hookers, truckers and rooms to rent by the hour; but most of it's been replaced with design offices, boutiques and boutique hotels, etc...

West Village :: One of the nicest places in Manhattan to live, if you can afford it. A lot of brownstones, winding streets, nice views of the waterfront. The main drags are Sixth and Seventh Avenues, but the northern stretch of Bleecker St has been hopping for the past few years with Marc Jacobs boutiques, etc... And of course, there's Christopher St and Sheriden Square, which are more places for gay tourists then for locals.

Greenwhich Village :: Home to NYU and Washington Square Park. If you aren't in college or of a similiar age, the hood can feel kind of young. Bleecker St and We 4th St are tourist traps.

NoHo :: The area north of Houston St, south of 4th St, east of the Bowery and west of Mercer St. The apartments are nice, most in apartment buildings not brownstones. Bond St has several boutiques, Daryl K, Ghost, ... Lafayette St and Broadway are the main streets, although Broadway can feel like a shopping mall at times.

East Village :: Centered around Astor Square, East 8th St, and the numbered avenues. The East Village is fun. A lot of bars, a lot of restaurants, most of them cheap, a lot of people watching. Apartments can be found for decent prices. The East Village is more youth subculture oriented than more trend oriented places in Manhattan like SoHo or the Meatpacking District. Visually, it's a lot of brownstones, with some apartment blocks thrown in.

Alphabet City :: Everything east of First Avenue and south of 14th St. Avenue A,B,C are packed with bars. The neighborhood is not convenient to most subway lines, and the further east you go the seedier it gets. But you can also get in on some pretty good rents on apartments.

Lower East Side :: Like a sophisticated version of the East Village. Orchard, Ludlow, Stanton, and Rivington are main streets. This is one of my favorite parts of Manhattan. Most of the new exciting boutiques, shops, etc.. opening in the city are opening here. Most times trends start here before elsewhere. But like most things in NY it's gentrifying fast, too fast. Mix of old tenements, apartment blocks.

NoLita :: North of Little Italy and Chinatown, east of the Bowery and west of Crosby St. NoLita is like Soho's little sister. It's a lot of boutiques, restaurants, and celebrities living in the lofts above. It's a nice neighborhood, expensive though.

SoHo :: South of Houston St, north of Canal St, east of Lafayette St, and west of Sixth Ave. SoHo has turned into more of an outdoor shopping mall than a living neighborhood. I think it officially died

[cw]

thanks! much help

[sr20det]

^^ good read! very informative!!

"i know you and you know me... it's the sob story, the sob story"

[gboogie]

SuperTrash - thanks man - this is awesome. I live in NYC but it's awesome to see it broken down and i def agree with your perspective on each area. Nice one!