LES

Although I don’t foresee trading my LA lifestyle for the hustle and bustle of New York City, it’s always fun to fantasize about where I’d live if I ever did return.  In the last 10 years, the Lower East Side has dramatically changed, and it appeals to me more and more with each visit.  Although it’s rich immigrant history is still evident in the discount stores along Orchard and Delancey, high end boutiques and galleries have taken up residence in the neighborhood creating a magnificent blend of cultures.  At night, beautifully curated store fronts are hidden by graffiti laden gates.  The streets are 70s grimy, drunks liter the parks at night, and yet residents pay millions for lofts. It’s also a stone’s throw from where my Sicilian grandfather lived in a tenement on Elizabeth Street, and where my mother was born on Mott Street. I can imagine my grandmother scouring for bargains on these streets, the same ones I would chose to call home if I had to do it all over again.