Wonderful Anarchy

East Village

"One thing I like about New York is that it's ugly. There's a wonderful anarchy. New York has all the ugliness and terror of the 20th century. But if you look closely, all the beauty and sublimity is there, too. All the contradictions. Everything that's nice about this century and everything that's awful is here."
Charles Simic, The New York Times

Nicest People

East Village

"I am now a New Yorker through and through. New York is so diverse and so welcoming. I don’t know why New Yorkers have a reputation for being impolite. They are the nicest people. You know, you fall down on the street and these are the people that are going to help you up."

Geneva Carr, TV Fanatic

World Metaphor

East Village (art by Bunny M)

"New York is the metaphor for the world. It is the most beautiful and the most fetid city alive."
Giovanni Uminici, Giovanni Uminici: My New York

Place to Dance

East Village

"This is New York. We'll find a place to dance."
John M. Ford, 110 Stories

Sense of Community

East Village community garden

"I love living in New York because there's so much talent in such a small space. You get inspired walking your own block. And people work so hard in order to stay here. I learn something every day and I've made some really beautiful friendships. And there's such a sense of community in New York. New Yorkers actually are really friendly and they really help people, like they help their neighbor. We saw that with the pandemic. There's a connection. You're all living together and that feels nice."
Katie Holmes. NY1

New York's Feelings

East Village

"New York is a person. You might argue that cities are cities that therefore can't also be people any more than people can also be cities, and you may be right that other cities aren't people, but I think you're wrong about New York. I have lived in other cities; I have lived in Los Angeles, and Chicago, and Dallas, and they are all cities that are nice cities but cities that are not people. You may dispute this belief, but today I worried I'd hurt New York's feelings, and New York let me know we were okay, same as any close friend I'd had since I was a kid might have done."
Lauren Graham, Have I Told You This Already?

Despair of Love

East Village

"To know New York is to know the agonizing despair that is loving it. Desperately, begrudgingly, faithfully. Few cities in the world instill such conflicted passion."
Jenny Bahn, Cereal City Guide: New York

Reasons to Love New York

East Village

"I love New York for a lot of reasons. I love New York for fashion, I love seeing people walking down the street in the most intricate, beautiful outfits. I love meeting people everywhere, I love seeing people everywhere. The energy's palpable, it's something unlike anything else. The best about New York is the inspiration that it grants me. I don't think I've ever been more creative anywhere else than I have been here."
Zión Moreno, V Magazine

New York Dream

East Village

"That kind of toughness that New York has, people who live here have that toughness, too. Where it’s, like, I’m going to make it no matter what. I know to the outside it looks as if I’m struggling or that this is a fool’s errand, but to me, I know this is all going to happen. It’s this unbreakable spirit that New York has. We’re all in this struggle together, and one day, I’m going to have an apartment with a washer-dryer in the apartment. That was my dream for so long, and I made it happen. I was like, I’ve made it!"
Phoebe Robinson, The Washington Post

Keeping a Balance

"It’s sometimes challenging in such a vibrant city like New York to take the time to retire, process all the things that are happening and regain strength. It is a matter of keeping a balance and sometimes consciously take a step out of the madness."
Nicole Pfister, East Village