89th St Between 2nd Ave and 1st Ave

    

It seems that the tiniest of blocks are always the ones to be made narrower by massive trees in the middle of the sidewalk, trash bins behind obstructive fences and gargantuan stoops jutting out from their buildings. You rarely see these sorts of obstructions on the larger blocks, the ones that wouldn't be impacted by them. Following this backwards formula to a tee, this block feels like an obstacle course. If, while on this street, you encounter anyone walking the other way one of you will inevitably have to wait to allow the other person pass. There's a certain charm to all this maneuvering. It's a feeling of community by proximity–even if it's entirely artificial and only lasts for a second.

The trees which block the sidewalk also do a tremendous job of blocking the sunlight. With the specks of light fighting their way through to reach the ground, it's a marvel that this street isn't depressing. Quite the opposite, though. The residential atmosphere comes off as welcoming and laid back. It's not fancy. It's not full of buildings reaching for the sky. It's simply an unambitious and unpretentious block which is completely enjoyable to walk down. Granted, that's all you'll be able to do is walk…I can't recall a single business, save for a dry cleaner, that wasn't technically on First or Second Avenue. But be that as it may, with bustling industry bookending the street and chain hotels visible in the distance, it's great to have a block on which things slow down–if only for the moment that you're forced to let someone else pass by a tree.