Chinatown

I used to designate Chinatown as my least favorite neighborhood in New York. My dislike mostly stemmed from the proliferation of open-air seafood markets—if you know me, you know of my fear and disgust for most seafood—and the shear number of people that crowd its narrow sidewalks. But recently I've wandered around the Lower East Side and Chinatown more frequently, and have found myself falling more and more in love with both neighborhoods.

The turning point for me came when I started to veer off from the main tourist drag and really explore the side streets. Chinatown is actually a very large neighborhood, one that seems to be growing and infiltrating Little Italy and the LES. I would argue that the "real" Chinatown is closer to East Broadway, under the Manhattan Bridge and away from the perfume shops and guys whispering "Rolex, Rolex" on Canal Street.

Chinatown seems less spoiled by chain stores and luxury apartment buildings than most of Manhattan, which feels like a remarkable triumph. There are so many handpainted signs, interesting shops, beautiful storefronts, ornate apartment facades and delicious smells (I still try to avoid the seafood markets) to make you feel as if you've traveled thousands of miles from New York—without ever leaving Manhattan.