The East Village is one of the premiere living locations in lower Manhattan. Along with the Lower East Side, it has seen a great surge in popularity due to its ever expanding nightlife, cultural exploits, and proximity to downtown parks and shopping. For a downtown native like myself, it is one of the last semi-affordable neighborhoods around, rivaled by Alphabet City to the east and Chinatown to the south. Although, I will say to its credit that it has retained at least a small portion of its “old New York” charm. All that being said there are some pitfalls… A affordable studio, like my own, is essentially a box with only the absolutely necessary amenities. Complete with knee high refrigerator (the freezer fits little more than my fist), unreasonably high cabinets (I am 6’4 for the record), and very little counter space; my submarine kitchen has, needless to say, no dish washer. While I’ve never had any problem washing dishes by hand, the drying process lends itself to some very creative improvisation…

By Teo J. Babini, POW