Content area
Full Text
WANT TO CHAT with Jackie O's doorman? Travel back to the days when bon vivants lived in splendor on Broadway? Check out a little-known enclave by the sea in Brooklyn? Then grab a pair of sneakers and set off on one of the dozens of architectural weekend walking tours held throughout the city this summer. The guided tours take a look at the architecture, history and social fabric of many New York neighborhoods and range in scope and subject matter, exploring everything from the mansions of Beekman Place to the tenements of the Lower East Side, from the Tudor charm of Jackson Heights to the ethnic bustle of Astoria.
The walks, which take two to four hours, attract natives and newcomers alike. Along the way, guides provide all sorts of insights, pointing out the difference between an Italianate and Georgian-style row house, for instance, or disclosing that Cyndi Lauper's co-op is located in what was once the American Thread Building.
"People are more aware of the city now," said Herman Storick, president of New York Walk-About. "At one time, many historic buildings were being demolished. Now, there's more conservation work going on. And, besides, people are just plain curious."
Storick will be leading several tours of Manhattan this summer. The first one, Sunday at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., is entitled "Sutton Place, Beekman Place and Turtle Bay: From Better to Best." The walk will cover three elegant neighborhoods in the East 40s and 50s that are sprinkled with ivy-covered Italianate brownstones and luxury apartment buildings. Just a few blocks away from the heart of midtown, these streets - with their river views and private gardens - appear quiet and isolated.
On Sunday, July 10, at 2 p.m., New York Walk-About explores "The Great White Way," the ribbon of Broadway from 23rd Street to 42nd Street. The area had its heyday in the 1880s and '90s. Back then, 28th Street was nicknamed "Tin Pan Alley" because of the cacophony of sounds emanating from all the music-publishing houses, and the old Madison Square Garden housed singers, fighters and a Wild West Show. The music halls and Florodora girls are gone, but on the corner of West 29th Street and Broadway, the Gilsey House still stands....