# Going to NYC, anywhere I should stay out of? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 24, 2008, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529 "2008-03-24T15:18:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/21 "2008-03-25T15:47:50Z")
[QUOTE=Bosda Di’Chi of Tricor] No Harlem. I don’t care what color you are–no Harlem. [/QUOTE] Bosda? What the hell are you talking about? When was the last time you were in NYC? Just a few years ago, I took my kids to the southern part of Harlem (for a museum). It is notihng like it use to be and it was never anywhere near as bad as the jokes. Did you know Harlem runs part way down the East Side of Central Park? Did you know that is becoming a nice area? ---
**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/22 "2008-03-25T17:00:28Z")
I agree regarding Harlem. I have friends who have lived there, and I’ve heard nothing bad at all about the area. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/23 "2008-03-25T19:16:13Z")
> [@](#): > > Going to NYC, anywhere I should stay out of? Well, there’s that eastside hooker I’ve heard bad things about. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/24 "2008-03-25T19:48:44Z")
[QUOTE=What Exit?] Bosda? What the hell are you talking about? When was the last time you were in NYC? Just a few years ago, I took my kids to the southern part of Harlem (for a museum). It is notihng like it use to be and it was never anywhere near as bad as the jokes. Did you know Harlem runs part way down the East Side of Central Park? Did you know that is becoming a nice area? [/QUOTE] I think Bosda might just have seen the NYC episode of the Simpsons, specifically the part about Homer’s first time in the city! ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/25 "2008-03-25T20:40:52Z")
Haven’t been since I was a kid. Live & learn. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/26 "2008-03-25T20:58:52Z")
There aren’t many really “bad” parts below 125th st and I rarely venture past the 80s so I can’t speak for up there. You might want to avoid parts of Tribeca, 11th Ave, Avenue C & D or Lower Manhattan by the World Trade Center simply because they tend to be somewhat isolated and empty of people at night. Of course, their isolation and emptiness is generally a good indication that you will have no reason to go there anyway. ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/27 "2008-03-26T06:27:40Z")
[QUOTE=An Gadaí] I think Bosda might just have seen the NYC episode of the Simpsons, specifically the part about Homer’s first time in the city! [/QUOTE] Homer didn’t go to Harlem. He was walking from Port Authority Bus Terminal to Penn Station, which is 8th Ave from 40th St to 32nd St. Of course, that WAS the 70s when Chelesa-Clinton (yes, there’s actually a district named that!) was known as Hell’s Kitchen. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/28 "2008-03-26T11:47:19Z")
[QUOTE= Bosda] Haven’t been since I was a kid. Live & learn. [/QUOTE] Just how long has it been since you were a kid?!?!?! Harlem is Times Square Lite right now and is only getting yuppier. Next thing you know, you’ll be warning us not to go to the Soviet Union. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Kid\_A\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Kid\_A\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kid_A_1)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/29 "2008-03-26T12:37:24Z")
Morningside Park. Friend of mine goes to Columbia and typically gets an email a day about a mugging/robbery in the park. Harlem was a shock to me from the 5 minutes I saw of it (I had a very stereotypical view of it)…we rode the bus to 125th and Lexington from 119th and Broadway on a Sunday morning with everyone going to church. We saw the Apollo and the new Payless?!?. Check it out if you get the chance. Harlem…not the Payless Shoes. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/30 "2008-03-26T12:42:18Z")
[QUOTE=fusoya] when Chelesa-Clinton (yes, there’s actually a district named that!) [/QUOTE] Only by real-estate brokers and yuppies, I hope. I’m never adopting that term and I still think it’s new enough that we can kill it. ---
**Author:** ![liberty3701](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@liberty3701](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liberty3701)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/31 "2008-03-26T13:00:37Z")
This is not a place to stay out of so much as a tip. Washington Square Park is under construction, so I wouldn’t bother taking a special trip to see it. I’ve noticed a lot of disappointed tourists in the area lately. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/32 "2008-03-26T13:06:27Z")
Central Park in the middle of the night? I knew a girl in school who was hanging out there very late (past midnight) with people and got thrown out. ---
**Author:** ![Rube\_E.Tewesday](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f0a364/32.png) [@Rube\_E.Tewesday](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rube_E.Tewesday)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/33 "2008-03-26T13:39:17Z")
[QUOTE=fusoya] Homer didn’t go to Harlem. He was walking from Port Authority Bus Terminal to Penn Station, which is 8th Ave from 40th St to 32nd St. Of course, that WAS the 70s when Chelesa-Clinton (yes, there’s actually a district named that!) was known as Hell’s Kitchen. [/QUOTE] Anyway, of course you’ll have a bad impression of a place if you just concentrate on the pimps and the C.H.U.D.s. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/34 "2008-03-26T14:22:33Z")
**Marley23** , those names pre-date President Clinton. I still call it Hell’s Kitchen (which is a sub-section of Chelsea). ---
**Author:** ![JohnBckWLD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d6d6ee/32.png) [@JohnBckWLD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnBckWLD)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/35 "2008-03-26T14:38:16Z")
If you find yourself up on Jerome Avenue in The Bronx and gotta take a shit, it might be best to avoid [The Cafe Oasis Sports Bar](http://www.nypost.com/seven/03252008/news/regionalnews/crap_shoot_103427.htm) ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2008, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/36 "2008-03-26T15:12:38Z")
[QUOTE=fusoya] Homer didn’t go to Harlem. He was walking from Port Authority Bus Terminal to Penn Station, which is 8th Ave from 40th St to 32nd St. Of course, that WAS the 70s when Chelesa-Clinton (yes, there’s actually a district named that!) was known as Hell’s Kitchen. [/QUOTE] Speaking of which, I would avoid that whole area between Penn Station and the Port Authority, unless you have business in New Jersey or are going to Madison Square Garden. I find the whole area to be dirty, crowded and there’s not a lot to do or see there anyway. ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/37 "2008-04-07T05:44:10Z")
Nonsense. 40th St between 8th & 7th Ave has Midtown Comics and a Popeyes, and therefore is my favorite stretch of road in the whole city. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/38 "2008-04-07T06:07:55Z")
[QUOTE=EJsGirl] Alphabet City? Just as a precaution… [/QUOTE] Heh, Alphabet City is Yuppietown. Enjoy yourself out there. Sunrise is fun in the park along the river, but if you’re worried don’t go there. It’s not more dangerous than the Upper East Side though. That being said, you’re just as likely to get mugged anywhere in Manhattan. It doesn’t matter where you are. If you look lost, you might look like easy prey. The places that you shouldn’t go are places that you’re not going to go. If you find yourself there, then you made a REALLY wrong turn. Don’t go to East New York, but I’ve never heard of anyone accidentally ending up there, so you should be fine. In general the places where you might get mugged are gonna be places where they are desolate. Downtown in the Financial District is a no man’s land at night. It’s not that it’s dangerous, just that it’s desolate. Yeah, there ain’t much to see west of Penn Station in the 30s. The East Side of Harlem can be shady at night. Washington Heights might be a little intimidating at night if you don’t know where you’re going. In 1999 you could buy Crack AND Brie in Alphabet City. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Parker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/39 "2008-04-07T06:15:17Z")
[QUOTE=mswas] Heh, Alphabet City is Yuppietown. [/QUOTE] Avenue C is pretty nice these days. There are a lot of good restaurants along it. But Avenue D…D is for DEAD! I’m living on the edge, I tell ya! Sincerely, Resident of Alphabet City ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529/40 "2008-04-07T14:44:23Z")
[QUOTE=fusoya] Homer didn’t go to Harlem. He was walking from Port Authority Bus Terminal to Penn Station, which is 8th Ave from 40th St to 32nd St. Of course, that WAS the 70s when Chelesa-Clinton (yes, there’s actually a district named that!) was known as Hell’s Kitchen. [/QUOTE] It hasn’t been the same since they kicked the Irish out. 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-to-nyc-anywhere-i-should-stay-out-of/442529.md?page=1)