The Cyclist’s Dilemma
Afternoons in the big city are terrible. Sunsets are horrifying, nights are long and anxious. Other people have choices, but not you. Then suddenly, a bicycle.
manhattan
A collection of 24 issues
Where the Himalayan Moss Grows
Going on a five-day cleanse—subsisting on a diet of shots, smoothies, very few actual foods, and no caffeine—leads to visions of apocalypse. From 2013, a quest to find the seven billionth child on Earth.
CrazyBike
New York's new bicycle-share program is a big success. Since May, bikers have taken 646,000 trips. But the initiative has also caused many rational people to explode with rage. Why? Because humans are hardwired to hate cheaters.
Token Anxiety
As New York City changes, so do its trains; our worries about life above and below ground move hand in hand. So which came first, the jitters or the subway?
The City of Right Angles
When your daily commute to the office means speeding on two wheels up busy avenues, a meeting with a crosstown taxi cab can change your life. But sometimes being a New Yorker requires taking the city head on.
Rising Up at Ground Zero
Construction continues at the new World Trade Center—as does criticism of the approved designs. But a look deep inside the new structure shows the progress so far has proven to be in exactly the right direction.
Here Is Everything I Learned in New York City
Five years in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Several violent attacks—in other cities. A daily attempt to be the best, which is never a good idea. Nine lessons from a mini-lifetime in the Big Apple.
Still a Terrifically Bad Idea
A morning, a bicycle, a macchiato. Or five? This time, a sensible coffee shop tour. But in the end, it still may be described in only one way.
The Broccoli That Fell From the Sky
October’s bounty includes apples, blackberries, and something half brain, half vegetable. On a New York City sidewalk, discovering a fruit for a mastodon.
Persephone in the Park
Spring is popping up all around New York City, but those crocuses have a dark history. Explaining the Pagan past of what's growing on 87th Street.
The Higher Line
When the new High Line Park opened last summer, New Yorkers lined up to be disappointed. A recent transplant finds it full of miracles.
Field Notes From 89th Street
Native New Yorkers live a traditional village life: of multiple generations, friends from kindergarten, and ghosts. Taking a naturalist’s eye to a corner of the city.
A Terrifically Bad Idea
The plan: 10 cafés, 10 macchiatos, one morning, by bike. Embarking on an adventure that can be described in only one way.
Gandhi’s Return
Last week at a Manhattan auction house, five of Mahatma Gandhi’s personal items were on the block when second thoughts crept in. From the back offices, observing an auction in suspense.
Walking Nicole Kidman
Meeting celebrities is easy—you just need a lure. An Upper East Sider and her retired racing greyhound pad around, spotting stars wherever they go.
The Big Apple's Nametag
Though it was dark for over 30 years, the neon sign above the New Yorker Hotel, for many of its former residents, never truly dimmed. Attending the hotel's anniversary celebration, the night the lights switched back on in Midtown.
The Hyperbole Towers
New York is constantly building chic apartments for its wealthiest citizens, and what luxury highrise is complete without a fatuous selling pamphlet?
Brothers From Another Mother
Did David Childs really steal his Freedom Tower design from a Yale student? And can you call that stealing, or just the way the business works? Our critic explains how plagiarism exists in architecture, and why there actually should be more of it.
To Nap, Perchance to Rest
When 37 percent of adults say they’re so tired it interferes with their work, shouldn’t smart employers bring back rest time? Visiting a new professional napping center in the Empire State Building.
All the King's Men
The king of Albania always has a seat at Sam's Place on 39th Street, which is more than he can say for his home country.
The Knickerbocker
Of all the classic New York hotels, one of its finest, the Knickerbocker, has fallen into almost-total obscurity.
The Complicated Art of Chelsea
New York's art world is made of fanatics, freaks, and the ultra-rich. In a quest to convert a rich friend to patronage, we begin to doubt the faith.
The Pigeons Are Illuminated
No one in New York sleeps easily on Sunday night, so where better to share the collective isolation than at the top of the Empire State Building?
Prison on the Park
Central Park is a lot of things: the pastoral center of New York City, a relaxing stroll on a Saturday afternoon, a patch of grass lined with horse manure. It's also home to a minimum-security prison.