Gekko

Good god, you're 24 years old! (Unlike many/most people who post on this board about NYC, who are "of a certain age.") You'll love living in the East Village. Take it and don't look back.

Location is everything in New York. Do not live in Brooklyn.

And don't worry about the commute; it's summer so you'll enjoy it.

oobylicious

I want to HUG you Gekko. I needed to hear that.

ekscrunchy--my friend's place is in Kensington. "across the street from the F train to church avenue"

Mclaurie--I missed your question earlier. there are 2 bathrooms.

I just got finished talking to the guy subletting his room. He seems really nice and he said his 2 roomies are laidback, friendly, and clean; he said that if i want my own space and to go about my business they'd be cool with that or if I wanted to be befriended, they'd show me the cool things in the village! He said they're 21 yr old guys--one is working at a law firm for the summer, the other is working at the nyu radio station; psychology and economics majors. They sound pretty normal to me... He told me I seem responsible and trustworthy (I gave him references of my past roomies and landlord) and said all I had to do was say I wanted the room, they'd love to have me--so I DID!!! He did say that there were a lot of people asking about it (no surprise there), so I wanted to secure it--and I didn't have to pay a deposit or anything... so I would feel bad about it, but if something amazing did crop up, I could take that instead, right? I haven't signed my name anywhere..but I would do that only within the next week (b/c I'm going to Europe May 3rd for 3 weeks!!)..

I don't know why this is so hard for me. Last year, I lived in a similiarly sized and furnished room living with a family (people my parents age) 20 minutes north of Princeton (while interning at ETS). I had no worries about that--and I was guaranteed to be in a "sucky" location with old people (though they were nice, they weren't really "friends to hang out with").

lisettemac

YAY! I'm glad you found a place and I'm glad you went for it! You will have a wonderful time. My only hesitation was the roommates, but now that I've read your last post, it sounds like they seem responsible. A guy with a summer job at a law firm can't be too bad (and he'll be raking in the dough!).

As Gekko said, you're 24 for chrissakes! You'll love it. The E Village is now the hipster place to be.

You remind me of myself when I was about your age. I came to NY from Little Rock for a summer job at a law firm and never looked back. It's been a fantastic ride!

HAVE FUN!!

Gekko

My pleasure, oobylicious. Check back for bar & restaurant suggestions in the East Village and LES.

(At the moment, my top rec is Mercadito on Avenue B. Incredible fish tacos. Also incredible cubanos at Cafecito on C.)

KikiLee

Love Mercadito. And Wine Bar. And Mermaid Inn. And (guilty secret) Mary Ann's for cheap Mex. And Boca Chica. And... Your new neighborhood is packed with fantastic places, you are going to have an amazing time.

At 24, roommates are pretty much a fact of life in Manhattan, unless you have a trust fun. We all do it. Living with strangers is really not a big deal, and certainly not unusual. Plus you are only there for three months.

True, the WV location would have been more convenient for work, and is also a fantastic neighborhood, but who cares? You'll have an awesome time.

Welcome to NY!

lizziea06

Hi ooby - I live in the E. Village and love it. I'm in my mid-20s, like you, and there are a bunch of young people all over the place. As a previous poster said, roommates are more or less a fact of life at this age in Manhattan unless you are rolling in cash! You'll walk everywhere...NYC is smaller than you think. You really can't go wrong below 14th street! I lived at NYU the summer before I graduated as an intern...you are making a wise choice to not stay there.

The E. Village eating and drinking options tend to be cheaper than other places, IMO. My recommendations for E. Village:

Restaurants:
Mercadito (Yummy Mexican - not cheap)
Grape and Grain (cute wine bar)
Supper (cheap, good Italian)
Cafecito (good Cuban)
Gruppo (awesome pizza)

oobylicious

Thanks everyone!

One more BIG question:
A guy just CALLED (meaning: I think this is a concrete place if I get back to him asap that I want it) me today about a studio (500 sqft) in Chelsea--21st and 7th. The pictures are really nice, doorman bldg, etc. Naturally, it is more expensive, $2100/mo. plus util. However, it is much larger and an easier commute than the EV place. However, it is more expensive (though I can afford it), and perhaps not as cool a place to live? Would I find myself subwaying/taxiing over to the village area all the time anyways?

I'm not locked into the EV place b/c I didn't pay a deposit, so I can technically take this other place (for this one, I do have to pay a 2100 deposit).

EEEK. What do you all think??

KikiLee

They are both good options. Personally, I'd probably go with the EV one - the extra $600 a month can buy you a lot of cab rides if you are running late to work. The Chelsea neighborhood is technically "nicer" I guess, although I can't picture the exact corner, and personally I find the area around 23rd and 7th relatively dirty and gross.

I guess I think that if you want to know what it is "really" like to be young and living in NY, I'd go with the EV one. At 24, most of us were dealing with small apartments, roommates, and less than ideal commutes. (Heck, I'm 27, and I'm still dealing with some of it.) If you want a more convenient life (since you are lucky enough to be able to afford it), go Chelsea.

oobylicious

Thanks Kiki. Your advice REALLY helped.

I'm going to stick with the EV sublet...if nothing else, the monetary difference is just too large--I could fund another trip to Europe based on that!

I did make a pros and cons list in class this afternoon and there's a big circle around "walk to cool bars" under EV pros. LOL. After getting back from backpacking and staying in hostels, I think I'll be absolutely fine crammed into my own small room with 3 roommates .

(the only way I am "lucky" enough to be able to afford to live in the more expensive Chelsea place is only b/c here in NC rent is soo cheap--I have my own 1-bedroom apt, 10 min walking distance to campus

oobylicious

and it's only $350)


(fodors is a lil crazy right now, posting my reply before I was even done typing!)

oobylicious

What about a shoe that could double for going out or walking/hiking?

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Prod...S_CLOTHING_TOC

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Prod...S_CLOTHING_TOC

OR, perhaps just a pair of chacos (since they can be worn to the beach, casually, as well as for hiking; though you wouldn't want them if the weather is quite cool) or something similar and a pair of dress shoes.

oobylicious

Um, I have no idea why I just posted that to this message. I swear I had a different thread open! I blame Fodor's...

Men's shoe selection for traveling obviously has no role in where I decide to live in NYC

Budman

oobylicious, check out this link. It will keep the window from having to scroll across for those long URL's:

www.tinyurl.com

This is what your two links will look like:

http://tinyurl.com/sx89l
http://tinyurl.com/oj64d

oobylicious

Awesome! Thanks!