The Big Apple, the center of the universe; New York, New York. In my 24 years of living in New York, I have garnered many experiences and opinions, which may be useful for those hoping to make New York their home.
First of all, geographically New York City is made up of five boroughs, akin to counties, townships or districts. There is Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island.
Manhattan is what is most commonly referred to as New York City. It is home to Times Square, the Empire State Building, the Freedom Tower, Wall Street, Broadway, Columbia University and NYU.
There are no rules regarding how tall buildings are allowed to be in Manhattan, so here is where you will get the most skyscrapers. This is also where you will find the most expensive, tiniest apartments of all five boroughs (though Brooklyn is starting to compete for this).
Manhattan is made up of several smaller villages, all practically piled on top of one another. Most generally speaking, Manhattan can be broken down into 8 segments; from top to bottom, Harlem, the upper east side, the upper west side, midtown, lower midtown, the lower east side, lower west side and the Financial District. Within each of these areas are several smaller neighbourhoods that are often determined by race, culture or historical reference.
Brooklyn is known for its cultural diversity, independent art scene, distinct ethnic neighborhoods, and more recently, as a hipster haven. Brooklyn has become extremely gentrified within the past decade, which has rebuilt some of its less desirable neighbourhoods. It is now home to many young, artistically driven families; the new generation of yuppies. You will most likely visit Brooklyn several times during your stay in NYC, as there are many things to do and see for young people. Coney Island, one of the nations first amusement parks is located on his historic waterfront of Brooklyn.
Queens is both the largest borough, and the most ethnically diverse county in the entire United States. Queens is mostly residential and middle class, meaning the majority of its occupants commute to Manhattan for work. Queens is the site of Citi Field and Shea Stadium and the home of the New York Mets. It also annually hosts the US Tennis Open.
The Bronx is home to the largest co-op housing complex in the United States, meaning it is home to a lot of low-income, urban dwellers. It is notorious for being the birthplace of rap and hip-hop. Geographically, the Bronx is the only one of the five boroughs that is attached to the U.S. mainland. You probably won’t have a reason to go up to the Bronx as an international student, unless of course you attend Fordham University or a baseball game at Yankee Stadium.
Staten Island is an oddity among the five boroughs, as it is not particularly urban, nor is it connected by the NYC subway system. In my 24 years of living in New York, I have been to Staten Island one time. You probably won’t ever have a reason to go there. Technically, Staten Island is closer to New Jersey, and is the southernmost part of the state of New York. Until 2001 the borough was home to the largest landfill in the world, now they are recreating it into a park.
Surrounding the NY Metropolitan area to the north of the Bronx you have Westchester and Eastchester counties, which are lovely suburbs not too far from the city. To the east, my home: Long Island (which is connected to Queens and Brooklyn. To the south and west, you have New Jersey.
There you have it. A map of New York.
