Say Anything

Astor Place

"In the beginning I was of the mind that I could say or do anything. I was from the Bronx, and who didn’t say what they thought there?"
Jennifer Lopez, Vogue

Change, Chaos and Disfunction

Morningside Heights

"There is a magical/diabolical allure of the constant change, disfunction, and chaos of this city. It has transformed right before my eyes leaving a transitory, impermanent feeling that radiates in my soul. NYC is my DNA—it's what makes me who I am today. The strength and vitality that beats within me is because of this astronomically powerful city." 
Richie Shazam, Vice 

Fast Paced

FDR Drive

"New York is very fast-paced. You're always running; you're always busy. It's just something I love."
Julia Danan, Whitman

New York Demeanor

Wall Street

"In many ways Wall Street was the one part of America in which Japanese citizens, especially those from Tokyo itself, felt most at home. The buildings were so tall as to deny one a look at the sky, the streets so packed that a visitor from another planet might think that yellow cabs and black limousines were the primary form of life here. People moved along the crowded, dirty sidewalks in bustling anonymity, eyes rigidly fixed forward both to show purpose and to avoid even visual contact with others who might be competitors or, more likely, were just in the way. The whole city of New York had taken its demeanor from this place, brusque, rapid, impersonal, tough in form, but not in substance."
Tom Clancy, Debt of Honor

Most Moral

Church of the Transfiguration

"New York is the cleanest city on earth. You can't find a more moral race of people anywhere." 
Peter McGuinness, The American Establishment And Other Reports Opinions And Speculations

Emotional Place

Astor Place

"New York is an emotional place. It's a place where people feel willing to express themselves."
Matthew Lella, CanadianArchitect.com

Different Walks of Life

West 34th Street

"One of the reasons we live in New York is because, without having to explain things to the girls, they can walk around the streets and just by looking around them see that the world is composed of all different people from different walks of life, different languages and different socio-economic backgrounds. They pick it up through osmosis."
Matt Damon, The Guardian

Buildings that Block Sunlight

East 23rd Street

"I am entranced, thinking about New York and its vast buildings that block sunlight; its fast-paced lifestyle, with many moving bodies, their feet scurrying across the pavement, some with briefcases in hand, others with a cellphone stuck to their ear; the streets, clogged with traffic, car horns blaring from all ends, vulgar language being yelled from open windows."
Jamal Cadoura, Tides That Turn

Coolest City in the World

Port Authority Bus Terminal

"I took the bus to Manhattan, and it blew my mind to be really in New York seeing the things I'd seen on TV and soaking up the magnitude of everything—New York is the coolest city in the world."
Anonymous New Zealander, quoted in CultureShock! USA

Playground

Lego store in the Flatiron District

"The good thing about New York is that you’re never bored. I mean, it’s a playground for adults and children. Sometimes my kids say, 'Why don’t we live in the country?' But I say, 'You guys are going to be thanking us when you’re older, because New York City, what a great place to live.' You’re never bored, you don’t have to ever repeat a restaurant. It’s such an amazing fantasyland."
David Burtka, New York Post

Brio and Energy

Williamsburg Bridge

"In New York — whose subway trains in particular have been 'tattooed' with a brio and an energy to put our own rude practitioners to shame — not an inch of free space is spared except that of advertisements."
Gilbert Adair, Myth and Memories

Badass New Yorkers

Alphabet City

"Being from New York means you're badass, honestly. I think that New Yorkers are some of the best people in the world. Not saying that we're always nice, but we're always pretty honest and we know what we want and we go get it. New York is all about like the hustle, the nitty gritty."
Justine Skye, V Magazine

Something New

Fifth Avenue

"New York is endlessly forgetful, yesterday is over, 'let's build something new, let's do something new,' that's what New York is about."
Elisabetta Barizza and ‎Marco Falsetti, Rome and the Legacy of Louis I. Kahn

New York Geography

Morningside Heights

"If you live in New York long enough, the places become more important than the people. Geography is stationary, whereas the faces are always changing, fading in and out with seasons, fads, phases, friendships."
David Goodwillie, Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time

Cold New York

Bryant Park fountain

"New York is cold, but I like where I'm living
There's music on Clinton Street all through the evening."
Leonard Cohen, Famous Blue Raincoat

Foreign Cultures

Koreatown

"That's what's great about New York: you don't have to travel to learn about other cultures. They all come here."
Lionel Fusco (Kevin Chapman), Person of Internet

Better Version

Columbia University

"As I've walked around New York City, I've felt the energy of people striving toward something. That magical energy is contagious and pushes me to be a better version of myself."
Jade Garnett, Insider

Better Class

Office of the Chief Medical Examiner

"The Manhattan dead are a much better class of cadaver. I just autopsied a hedge fund manager, and his arteries still reeked of porterhouse."
Joanne Webster (Jane Curtin), Unforgettable

Walking in Manhattan

South Street Seaport

"Walking in Manhattan is never just about getting from A to B. It’s also a form of self-expression and self-preservation. To escape home, no matter how tony your address, is to seek time and space for you to be you, whether you’re John Travolta strutting to the Bee Gees in Bay Ridge or Dustin Hoffman slamming the hood of a cab that dared to get in his way on Sixth Avenue. 'Hey! I’m walking here!' is every frustrated New Yorker’s cri de coeur, a curse as much as it is an affirmation."
John Brodie, Town & Country

Competitive About Everything

Midtown

"New Yorkers are competitive about everything. They even run for revolving doors, as though it might be the last available space."
John Bohannon, Abracadabra, You're Dead

Deal with People

East 14th Street

"I have a somewhat reclusive quality myself and actually what's great about New York is that it pushes you to be social because the streets are full of people. In Los Angeles, it's hard to leave your house because everything is spread out. New York forces you to deal with people."
Paul Sparks, Elle

Friendly and Lonely

Dumbo

"New York is a weirdly friendly town and I always find myself having conversations with complete strangers. On the other hand, if you're feeling lost and alone, the city can exacerbate your loneliness.''
Paul Auster, The New York Times