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There are two types of people consistently in Soho: wealthy young people who live in amazing lofts and eat at Soho's incredible, renowned restaurants, and tourists who come to shop up and down Broadway everyday. For those of us in the middle, Soho remains a go-to spot for shopping and perhaps nightlife.

Soho is one of the coolest neighborhoods aesthetically, thanks to this fusion it has going on of industrial and quaint. You'll find lots of cast iron architecture, warehouses and European embellishment along cobblestone streets. The apartments here are usually lofts and lots of bars and restaurants have opened in spacious warehouse-type locations. The shopping here is expensive and designer, with a few bones thrown to the middle class, like Topshop and H&M. Broadway has a few stores that are worth fighting crowds for, but usually the strip is a tourist-infested nightmare. The side streets, like Prince, Greene and Mercer, are the real gems, with off-the-beaten-track boutiques and bars. While you'll find fashion's best offerings in Soho - from Scoop to Catherine Malandrino to L'Agent Provocateur - you'll also find quirky-cool spots like KidRobot for toys and Evolution for scientific wonders and taxidermy.

The dining scene in Soho is fantastic if you've got the bucks, otherwise, not so much. But I do recommend Fanelli's on Prince and Broome Street Bar for that authentic Soho starving artist community vibe, only with delicious comfort food.

If more people could afford to live in Soho, it'd probably have a better reputation - people often write it off as pretentious. But aside from the tourist invasion, it can be a really cool place.

Greenwich Village is one of the very best neighborhoods in Manhattan, basically because it has everything you could wish for packaged in a charming, small-town vibe sort of way. Start at the not-so-small-town Union Square for all of your convenience shopping - it's the village's hub for chain stores, including Best Buy, Whole Foods, DSW, Babies R US, etc. Along the east side of Greenwich Village runs Broadway, and the stretch here is lined with great shopping - boutiques, vintage store, designer stores and a few cooler versions of chains like Urban Outfitters and Le Petit Chateau. Along the west side is Sixth Avenue, and this is arguably the best stretch of this avenue. Boutiques, cafes and little restaurants line this stretch where iconic village streets like Bleecker meet it.

Then you have Washington Square Park, long the one and only place to go for some of New York's best street performers. The brownstones that surround the park are gorgeous and stately, juxtaposing the park's gritty history - though it's cleaned up now. Along the streets of MacDougal, Sullivan and Thompson, especially between Bleecker and West 3rd, you have everything you could want in the way of nightlife, from great restaurants representing every part of the world and bars that range from raucous club to quiet pub. The only problem you may find here is the brazen invasion of NYU students, which some people claim has ruined the area. It has in no way ruined the area - there are still great stores, restaurants, bars and the architecture and spirit of the village remain. But it is definitely an obstacle to overcome when trying to enjoy a night out.

The most amazing thing about Greenwich Village is that it has literally everything you could want, but that's not even enough for it. It also happens to be surrounded by New York's other coolest neighborhoods, so if you're somehow not satisfied by this neighborhood, you're just blocks away from another.

Roosevelt Island has three things going for it, and each one appeals to a different group of people. For those who want to live in Manhattan but need more affordable rents and are willing to sacrifice the convenience and liveliness of the city: Roosevelt Island has spacious apartments at low prices. For those who live in New York and are looking for an interesting, one-time day trip: Roosevelt Island has great views of the city and the river, plus tons of history to walk around and take in. For those with a bit of a dark side: Roosevelt Island was home to mental hospitals and other such institutions - most of which have since been knocked down, but you can still sneak around to explore the eerie old smallpox hospital.

Roosevelt Island is almost exclusively residential. There are a few conveniences, like a Duane Reade and Starbuck's, because how ridiculous would it be to get on a subway - especially the unreliable F - or a tram to get a cup of coffee? But that's just what residents have to do if they want to go to dinner, go shopping, go to a bar or do just about anything. The tram is a cool thing to do once as a New Yorker (plus it takes MetroCards) for the sake of the view, but I imagine it gets old for residents who probably wish there were more subway lines than the F so their choices weren't between that and this tram. The pluses of living here would be left at the rents, some parks and the medical facilities that still stand.

Once upon a time, the Meatpacking District was a district of Manhattan that actually revolved around the meat industry. While there wasn't much reason to go there unless you were part of that industry, it was an interesting place - bustling with business, cobblestoned streets, an old-world warehouse environment. Because of the cool mix of quaint cobblestones and industrial background, however, when the meat industry began its move to cheaper locations, trendy clubs and designer stores began setting up camp. For a while, the area reigned coolest in Manhattan: the seedier subcultures that were used to populating the neighborhood clung on while beautiful people started moving in, shopping high end fashions and drinking high end drinks.

When the subcultures left, though, so did any coolness. While there are still stores belonging to some of fashion's greatest - ie, Alexander McQueen - there's little other reason to visit the Meatpacking District unless you want to drink with Bridge and Tunnelers or coked-out wannabe models. Everything is oh so very fabulous here, including long lines behind velvet ropes, $18 cocktails, mini dresses that barely exist and clubs that you'd only bother going to to say you went to. The nightlife isn't actually fun, because if you got caught having fun in one of these lounges, you wouldn't be cool anymore. There might be a cool fashion crowd in these parts, but they're probably hanging out where you can't get in, so you're stuck with the over-gelled Jersey population. Saving graces? The cobblestones are still cute, though you can find them in the West Village and Soho, the Highline is an awesome elevated park worth the visit, Pasti's, while now known by every tourist nationwhide, still serves up pretty delicious food in a Parisian setting and Chelsea Market is a high end take on a food court that is basically amazing, from Jaques Torres chocolates to fresh seafood.

Old-world money meets over-the-top shopping with European architecture as a backdrop in Lenox Hill, making it the perfect setting for the opulent life of “Gossip Girl” characters. Central Park’s green oasis is decorated with regal statues and accoutrements. Regal residences with marble floors, rich awnings and wrought-iron or golden doors opened and closed by doormen are lined with trees. Perfection runs rampant here. The sidewalks are filled with designer-bedecked teenagers and nannies pushing strollers. Along avenues like Madison, some of fashion’s greatest designers have set up shop for Ladies Who Lunch to spend what they will on the next big looks, while Lexington Avenue offers a better mix of high-end and affordable – well, affordable, relatively speaking. Lexington is your best bet commercially speaking, and where you’re most likely to find a diner, deli or bistros that don’t limit you to set courses. If it is the finer dining you’re seeking, try the neighborhood’s own Café Boulud, Caravaggio or, of course, the Carlyle Restaurant in the Carlyle Hotel – a beautiful institution that also features a rare book store, Café Carlyle and Bemelman’s Bar. Bars like Lexington Bar and Books maintain the aristocratic mood by offering an after-dinner cigar oasis. In short, Lenox Hill is one of the most upper-crust areas of the Upper East Side, but it doesn’t sacrifice its personality in the process.

At first glance, Turtle Bay is an incredibly appealing place to live: rows of classic New York brownstones lined with trees make for picturesque streets. However, those streets are often closed, thanks to the neighborhood’s claim to fame, the United Nations. The same institution that causes residents much inconvenience also gives the area great prestige and a constant flow of buzz and excitement – that is, if you’re into the whole international politics thing. Even if you’re not, some visits made here by world leaders are too good to not take note of, especially when those leaders are on the controversial side. It might not be as exciting as movie star-studded neighborhoods like Soho, but there is undeniably something to be said for being able to keep an eye out for Prime Ministers, Presidents and Commanders.

The mix of restaurants is reliable – nothing too exciting or experimental, but solid enough to keep visiting diplomats happy. For a high end steak meal, visit Ben & Jack’s Steakhouse, which you know is good simply because it was founded by the owners of Peter Luger’s. Or, go low-key and kick back at the Beer Bar with, obviously, a beer menu to please and casual bar food. And don’t leave Turtle Bay without visiting Tudor City, a hidden gem of Manhattan set on a slope over First Avenue. Climb the steps to check out this little community and visit the park to spend time in this quaint little getaway.

While Central Park has become more like a veritable theme park with all of its attractions and constant bustle, New Yorkers look for parks that are more of a relaxing place to get away – to step off of the ever-busy sidewalks and escape the concrete, noisy traffic and rushing pedestrians. Madison Square Park is that kind of oasis, even if it has gotten more crowded in recent years thanks to the opening of one of New York’s most popular burger joints.

Without zoos and pools and castles, Madison Square Park is a simple, peaceful spot with green beauty all around. It is lush and relatively quiet, the perfect place to meditate, curl up with a book or have a catch-up lunch with friends. At night, the park and its surrounding area offer a romantic view, creating an Edgar Allen Poe-esque tableau with the trees framing an illuminated clock tower.

But let’s face it. The top reason most people flock to Madison Square Park is the aforementioned burger joint, Shake Shack. A line wraps halfway around the park on any given day – a line most deem completely worth it for the sought-after perfect burgers, fries and shakes. While Shake Shacks have popped up across the city since the original branch’s opening in the park, Madison Square’s location remains the most popular – what could be more perfect than chowing down on your expertly cooked fast food in a lush park plopped in the middle of the city?

There’s not a whole lot to do in the tiny neighborhood known as Civic Center, even if it is the hub of the city’s court system. New Yorkers associate the area with dreaded chores like jury duty, court dates, fighting parking tickets, etc. If you’ve never visited the area, it’s worth a trip there once, if just to see the brains behind Manhattan – here you’ll see City Hall and City Hall Park, a small but lush park with views of the surrounding legal buildings. The architecture is more old world and more attractive than that of buildings, say, midtown, but not as ornate and intriguing as architecture in areas like Sutton Place. In other words, you wouldn’t be missing anything if you didn’t take it in, but if you’re there anyway, you might as well.

The real attraction is South Street Seaport, which has pros and cons that weigh out to make it a place you perhaps visit once a year, on a particularly nice summer day. The port is always packed to the gills with tourists, and its stores cater to them instead of New Yorkers, featuring the stores they can find in their Michigan and Kentucky malls. But it’s undeniable that you can have yourself a lovely warm-weather day here, strolling the cobblestone streets, enjoying the views of boats and sitting down to relax before the sights of the Brooklyn Bridge and, of course, Brooklyn itself. You can catch a boat ride here, and you can cool off in the little mall – though you won’t want to do much shopping here. The strip is lined with decent but pricey seafood restaurants, but nothing in the way of nightlife. You can catch a food market along the street bordering the port, serving up the best culinary options in the area, like fresh-baked baklava, tea-flavored popsicles, gourmet pickles and more. It might be crowded and it might be touristy, but getting to be waterside for the day is a refreshing little break from daily city life.

Just east of Manhattan’s own “frat row” (aka, Murray Hill), Kips Bay is all about convenience. The neighborhood consists of high rises, medical facilities, grocery stores, drugstores and, yes, a mall. Basically, it’s easy to live there and just as easy to run errands there. You need medicine or food late at night? No problem. But if it’s shopping, nightlife, or a culinary treat you seek, start walking south. Or north, or west. Anywhere else. Because, like everything else about Kips Bay, the location is convenient. Because you want to be able to walk to another neighborhood to do just about anything interesting.

Of course, there is the movie theater. One of the largest and cleanest in the city, the Loews Theater is one thing people actually go to Kips Bay for. It’s attached to a strip mall, which is (word of the day!) convenient if you have time to kill before your movie starts. Otherwise, there’s nothing in this little strip mall that isn’t in another, better neighborhood anyway. This neighborhood is really best suited for those in the medical profession or those are studying to be. NYU’s medical school is here, Bellevue is here, etc. So, it’s a nice and easy, walking commute for those who notoriously work/study all hours of the day and night. If you’ve got time to have a life, though, you won’t want to have one here.