“I didn’t even go north of 40th Street the entire trip – I broke my midtown slump!”
It was like a badge of honor or something, I exclaimed to B as I returned home from a 24 hour business/leisure trip to New York City. It was true: I hadn’t ventured north of 40th Street the entire trip – actually hadn’t ventured north of 26th Street except for a work event & to catch the train at Penn Station. It was like discovering a whole new city.
And I was madly in love.
Gone are the soaring glass skyscrapers of mid-town, replaced by open green spaces, brownstones & boutique shops. A quick glance up Lexington Ave. blends the two: there’s the Chrysler Building, towering over the neighborhood.
Stroll south & you’ll come across parks… Gramercy Park, ringed by its exclusive iron fence; Madison Square Park, where you have no choice but to stop for a burger at Shake Shack; Union Square Park, home to my favorite spot in all of New York City.
So the next time you’re in New York City, head south of 40th Street… & break out of your Midtown slump.
Some cool places to check out in the bottom half of Manhattan island…
- Fishes Eddy
- Joe Fresh (our friends from Canada share their amazing fashion with NYC!)
- Shake Shack
- Gramercy Tavern
- Union Square Greenmarket
- The Strand Book Store
We love downtown NYC. I’d even say we prefer everything south of 14th Street (Union Square). My wife loves to shop the boutiques of SoHo, and we both love restaurants and bars of West Village, Greenwich Village and Lower East Side. Obviously there are great things to experience north of downtown, but I can’t say I have much need for Midtown. We also love Brooklyn, but that’s another post!
It’s always wonderful when you find little pieces of paradise in the midst of the usual New York hubbub. I’ve been to all the classic, tourist-y places in New York City, and I’ve still got the whole summer ahead of me, so time to take my travels downtown! Any places in specific that are good for families? It’s so hard finding activities suitable for the three-year-old, nineteen-year-old, and all the kids in between.
Sorry, Julia, I’m no help since I write exclusively from a DINK perspective!