West End Ave Between 76th St and 78th St

Wide open and completely empty, these few blocks along the upper west side are rather plain and boring. While there are some very nice examples of architecture to gaze upon, the simple fact remains that there is very little to do up here. Townhouse after anonymous townhouse line the street with the occasional church or apartment interrupting the sheer pointlessness of it all.

I don't want to come off as too disparaging of quality architecture, especially with excellent specimens like the West End Collegiate Church & School, which sits on the corner of 77th Street. The stepped walls of the southern face of the church, frame its great round window nicely – and can be viewed from almost any surrounding street without interruption.

74th St Between Central Park West and Columbus Ave

This block has two distinct personalities, which if it weren't for the other, would overwhelm the entire street. The northern side consists nearly entirely of one specific style of brownstone whose curved facade repeats over and over again – creating a very bumpy-looking building front in the distance. The southern half has a similar repetitive feel, but this time with rows of townhouses which share a litany of characteristics such as height, window style and general layout. However, unlike the brownstones the architectural detailing on these townhouses seem to vary quite a bit from one building to the next.

I shouldn't mislead you, the entire street isn't like this, just a good chunk of it in the middle. The buildings which line the sidewalks towards the avenues are a bit more unique. The eastern end is home to the famous San Remo co-op, whose dual towers can be seen from just about anywhere in Central Park. While the base of the building doesn't appear to be anything particularly special, the building that rises above is one of the more enviable structures on the Upper West Side. It's clear the real estate market agrees, as units in this building can commonly go for as high as $15-$20 million. (It's obviously my next move...this blog is going to take me straight to the top.)

Central Park West is expectedly devoid of any shopping or restaurants, however Columbus Avenue brings with it a handful of neighborhood places that, should you need to, you can duck into. 

81st St Between West End Ave and Amsterdam Ave

Sitting in the heart of the Upper West Side, this segment of 81st Street cuts right across Broadway before continuing on along Theodore Roosevelt Park, and eventually Central Park. While the majority of the block is home to apartment buildings, getting nearer to the corners brings some commercial presence.

On the West End Avenue side, the Calhoun School sits with dominance on the corner. A uniquely-styled building (especially for a school), the architecture looks like something half-way between Frank Gehry and some Soviet-era institutional style. This could be explained by the fact that the top four stories were added on top of the 30-year-old structure in 2004.

75th St Between Columbus Ave and Amsterdam Ave

Just one of many generic blocks that hide amongst the others on the Upper West Side, this stretch of 75th Street is defined by its narrow sidewalks and strangely-similar architecture. While many of the buildings stand out on their own, it's easy to be struck by just how familiar they are. Every one of them share the same number of floors, the same basic front design, & the same window configuration. It only differs when it comes to the individual detailing of each apartment. Clearly this is an instance where a single builder was brought in to develop a big chunk of the block – it's just such a seemingly-modern idea...not something you think about happening a century ago.

Of course, beyond the older buildings, a handful of out-of-place mid-century structures sit in defiance, with strange architectural detailing, especially around the doorways. Each end of the block is teeming with life and people and stores, as both Columbus and Amsterdam are major thoroughfares of commerce. 

Central Park West Between 81st St and 77th St

On what would normally be a long, anonymous block next to Central Park, the American Museum of Natural History stands as a massive, immovable block of impressive stone. Filling the majority of Theodore Roosevelt Park, the museum is visible from just about every spot between 81st and 77th Streets. 

The northern half of the park is home to the Hayden Planetarium (which isn't to be confused with Hayden Panettiere), which has been around since the 1930's, but has only recently gained notoriety for its large, globe-shaped theater. 

There's a handful of entrances to the 81st Street Subway station here, which itself is decorated with faux fossils and bones all along the walls. The southern-most stairway is adorned with some very nice lamp poles with "Subway" delicately painted on. They appear to be designed to match the rest of the lamps that run along the front of the museum.

Riverside Dr Between 79th St and 81st St

Designed by Frederick Law Olmsted (of Central Park fame), Riverside Drive follows the meandering edge of green space which separates the streets of Manhattan from the Henry Hudson Parkway and the Hudson River. Not unlike Fifth Avenue when it travels along Central Park, Riverside Drive features row after row of expensive apartments and townhouses which look out onto the park, which in-turn is lined with a stone wall and benches. 

Looking into the park you can see many similarities with Central Park, including meandering paths which follow the contours of the carefully-designed landscape. However, only half of the area is this serene as the cars coming on and off the Parkway honk their way into and out of Manhattan traffic on 79th Street. 

There doesn't seem to be a terrific feeling of neighborhood unity here. With almost no stores or restaurants for nearly two avenue blocks, it's hard to imagine where people meet and talk, and the street itself was comparatively dead.