First of all, let's remember: when most people around the world think of New York, they only mean its central part, Manhattan. Manhattan is an island, elongated from north to south, just over 20 km long and up to 3,7 km wide. Manhattan is home to virtually everything of interest to tourists in New York: Broadway, skyscrapers , Central Park, the grid of avenues and streets, museums, theaters , art galleries, and so on. Even Harlem, famous for its (former) contrasts, is located in Manhattan.

With this in mind, we immediately set our sights on Manhattan. Although, in hindsight, we now believe it would have been better to find housing in another, more nearby borough, New Jersey, the Bronx, or even Staten Island: the quality would have been higher, the price lower, and we wouldn't have lost much in terms of ease of travel—even within Manhattan, distances are quite long, and walking is not an option; everyone uses the subway, which in New York is convenient, safe, and intuitive, with a vast network of stations. And since you have to go underground anyway, a few extra stops outside of Manhattan won't make a difference.

In Manhattan itself, everything is very expensive. A very modest hotel room, say, in Harlem, starts at $150. "Flophouses" are common: for $50 (more than likely) you'll get a bed in a shared room with shared bathrooms in the hallway. Many flophouses will even offer you a "single room": a space partitioned off in a large hallway for a bed and your suitcase, with plywood partitions that almost reach the ceiling to ensure ventilation, and receptionists provide earplugs along with the key. According to online reviews, this can be quite acceptable in terms of price-quality ratio: clean, friendly, in a very good location, no lines for the shower—if, of course, you're only looking for an overnight stay. A "Central European" room in an interesting location will cost several hundred dollars a night. And the main factor determining the price will, of course, be the location.

So, about choosing a location in Manhattan. Central Park, a fairly large rectangle, is located practically in the center of the island. The most fashionable neighborhoods lie to the east and west of Central Park, the Upper East Side and Upper West Side, respectively—that cozy and very respectable New York that filmmakers love to depict: low-rise buildings, well-kept and quiet streets, and perspective created by rows of high porches, a whole flight of stairs leading to the front doors.

North of Central Park is Harlem, which has long since ceased to be a crime-ridden and problematic area, but for a tourist visiting for a few days, it's of little interest—perhaps a quick stroll. The main attractions are located in the southern part of Manhattan, "down" from Central Park. Incidentally, in New York City, they say: what's to the north is Uppertown, what's to the south is Downtown.

The center of Manhattan, and therefore of all of New York City, is Times Square, formed by the intersection of Broadway and Seventh Avenue between 42nd and 47th Streets. This area and its surroundings are arguably the most interesting: here are the skyscrapers and observation decks of the Impairment State Building and Rockefeller Center, the theater district, the Madison Square Garden sports arena, Carnegie Hall, Grand Central Terminal, the Grand Central Library, and so on. Times Square is a stone's throw from the southern end of Central Park. This is the best part of Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Avenues—New York City's main shopping avenues. But, accordingly, hotel prices are also highest here.

At the very south of the island lies another center of interest, Downtown, the city's financial and business heart, home to New York City's famous skyscrapers, the Brooklyn Bridge, the ferry port, and the memorial to the Twin Towers destroyed on September 11th. It's a bit far from Times Square; you'll have to, as New Yorkers say, "take a train"—that is, use the subway. The space between Times Square and Downtown encompasses all of Manhattan's main neighborhoods. Chinatown and the Italian Quarter are nearby, followed by university-focused Greenwich Village, artistic SoHo, fashionable Tribeca, and utilitarian Alphabet City. It's still expensive here, but still a bit cheaper.

Ultimately, on the advice of several American friends, we decided against staying in a hotel and instead rented a private room in a regular New York apartment. But we'll probably cover this extremely curious experience in a separate article.

Pavel Vereshchagin