City most like the New York of back in the day (Boston: transplants, apartment)
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This may be a question better suited for the "city vs city" or "general us" forum but I wanted New Yorker's opinions and also this sub-forum probably gets more traffic. This is my first post on this website.
I know other cities resent being compared to NY and there is no other city completely similar to it in the world (maybe london) I'm just trying to create a rough comparison.
I'm a New Yorker born and raised. I spent my early life on the LES but my formative years were spent in Staten Island. My parents both grew up in Alphabet City/LES/East Village area. That was the real hipster neighborhood. It was grungy, a bit dangerous, had a diverse community, and a real arts scene. And the coolest part was a struggling young musician or artist or just young kid new to the city could afford to live there and not share a 2 bedroom with 5 other people. The apartment I was born in on Avenue A was a 2 bedroom we paid $750 for in 1995. Today that same apartment in that same building goes for $3500 + and it isn't even a nice building. It's completely unaffordable, and while a lot of people come to New York to make it..they can't actually afford to live here, even areas that I was told *never* to go to or even take the train through as a kid, like Bushwick, Bed-Stuy, Crown Heights are now getting over $2000 for a studio or 1 bed. But I'm rambling, what I'm asking is what city in America has good diversity, transport, a genuine (not yuppie hipster-fied) arts and music scene and is still affordable that a low wage person (like a young artist or musician or something) could afford to live alone and still be in or near the action. Philly? Chicago? Boston? LA? I don't live in the USA (I live in Germany but I've been bouncing around Europe since I left college) anymore but I'm curious to the opinion who are still in America..
What city evokes the vibe of artsy dirty 1960's/70's NY the most? I'm talking about the New York of Andy Warhol and Lou Reed or even like the NY in the movie Rent...
The apartment I was born in on Avenue A was a 2 bedroom we paid $750 for in 1995. Today that same apartment in that same building goes for $3500 + and it isn't even a nice building.
Lol this city is an absurd place, as are the people in it. Myself included...
You want to see what Alphabet City used to look like, you're talking parts of Camden or Detroit. War zone, complete with burned out and fallen-down structures.
I have heard that there is cheap housing and a somewhat interesting art and music scene in parts of Detroit. Used to live in the city yaers ago and I haven't been back recently, but honestly that this exists it wouldn't surprise me.
I live in Berlin lol. It's an amazing city and the great part is it's still really cheap. I pay less than €600 for a beautiful renovated 2 bed in a historic building. However, I'm American and whilst I speak German. I miss being able to live in English, I miss America, I miss football, and I miss my family (who has mostly migrated to south Florida which I wouldn't lie in for a million dollars)
This may be a question better suited for the "city vs city" or "general us" forum but I wanted New Yorker's opinions and also this sub-forum probably gets more traffic. This is my first post on this website.
I know other cities resent being compared to NY and there is no other city completely similar to it in the world (maybe london) I'm just trying to create a rough comparison.
I'm a New Yorker born and raised. I spent my early life on the LES but my formative years were spent in Staten Island. My parents both grew up in Alphabet City/LES/East Village area. That was the real hipster neighborhood. It was grungy, a bit dangerous, had a diverse community, and a real arts scene. And the coolest part was a struggling young musician or artist or just young kid new to the city could afford to live there and not share a 2 bedroom with 5 other people. The apartment I was born in on Avenue A was a 2 bedroom we paid $750 for in 1995. Today that same apartment in that same building goes for $3500 + and it isn't even a nice building. It's completely unaffordable, and while a lot of people come to New York to make it..they can't actually afford to live here, even areas that I was told *never* to go to or even take the train through as a kid, like Bushwick, Bed-Stuy, Crown Heights are now getting over $2000 for a studio or 1 bed. But I'm rambling, what I'm asking is what city in America has good diversity, transport, a genuine (not yuppie hipster-fied) arts and music scene and is still affordable that a low wage person (like a young artist or musician or something) could afford to live alone and still be in or near the action. Philly? Chicago? Boston? LA? I don't live in the USA (I live in Germany but I've been bouncing around Europe since I left college) anymore but I'm curious to the opinion who are still in America..
What city evokes the vibe of artsy dirty 1960's/70's NY the most? I'm talking about the New York of Andy Warhol and Lou Reed or even like the NY in the movie Rent...
Easy go to 26st between third and lex and there is a little actual sidestreet alley that connects the two blocks by an old walk up built in the mid 1800s. Like a time warp, the alley actually has a street sign if you look close
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