Things to do / Travel Guide
New York City (NYC) is split up into five boroughs, or administrative divisions. These boroughs are Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island. The nature of each borough is different, owing to the different types of people who have settled there over the years, and their particular histories.
In general the city's boroughs are further subdivided into neighborhoods. This term is used throughout the city, even in the non-residential districts of Manhattan. Manhattan is thus, for instance, divided into dozens of neighborhoods.
Also important to mention is that NYC is in fact made up of some 50 islands. Some of these barely peek out of the water, but the significant others include the likes of Manhattan and Staten Island. Queens and Brooklyn comprise the western end of Long Island. The Bronx is the only borough physically connected to the continental U.S. mainland. The waterway between Brooklyn and Staten Island is known as the Narrows, and it serves as the major entrance to New York Harbor.
Geologically, Manhattan is blessed with bedrock very close to the surface. This bedrock gets the credit for the borough's amazing skyline.
Manhattan
The island of Manhattan is about 12 miles long and two miles wide. At the very center of the island is Central Park, now more than 125 years old, which neatly divides the island into quarters. The area directly south of Central Park is called “Mid-town” while the area generally south of Central Park is called “Downtown.” Everything from the middle of the park to the island's northern tip is “Uptown.” The part of the island closest to Long Island is called the “East Side” and the part closer to the Hudson River is “West Side.” The two neighborhoods lying on either side of Central Park are thus called “Upper East Side” and “Upper West Side.”
The streets and avenues in Manhattan form a grid allowing for easy navigation around the city. Numbered streets run from river to river (east-west), beginning with First Street just below Greenwich Village, and end with 218th Street near Baker Field. The avenues run north-south, intersecting the streets, starting with First Avenue on the East River to 12th Avenue on the Hudson River. Not all the avenues are numbered, however, as just east of Fifth Avenue you'll find Park, Lexington, and Madison avenues. Broadway, once an Indian trail, is a bit unusual as it starts out as a typical north-south avenue, but angles sharply Downtown to just below Central Park and continues diagonally across the island. It's always easiest to ask for directions to an intersection, for example “42nd Street and Broadway.”
To estimate how long it will take you to get somewhere in Manhattan, keep in mind that there are 20 blocks per mile along the avenues (walking north/south). Walking east/west on the streets, however, the blocks are generally much longer.
The Bronx
The Bronx is the only borough of NYC that is physically attached to mainland United States. Its location is directly north of Manhattan, separated from it by the Harlem River. For the most part, its western and eastern borders are the Hudson River and the East River, respectively. Street numbering (east/west) continues where it left off in Manhattan, but numbering is the exception rather than the rule here.
Brooklyn
Brooklyn occupies the westernmost end of Long Island. It is also the most populous of the five boroughs, where most of the people who work in Manhattan live. Though not quite as structured as Manhattan, Brooklyn also uses a grid system.
Queens
Queens is the largest borough in terms of land area. The west part of the borough is more urban, while toward the east it is almost suburban. Its grid system is, again, not as well-developed as Manhattan's, but, generally, north/south are numerically-named streets, while east/west are numerically-named avenues.
Staten Island
Staten Island is the most sparsely-populated borough of New York City, containing more parks and open-air preservation than any other borough. It is located southwest of the rest of NYC, looking, geographically, like a part of New Jersey, and it is physically connected to Brooklyn only via the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.
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