The undisputed financial capital of the world maintains its pride amongst some of the most influential, beautiful and historic landmarks in the city, all within walking distance of each other.

Our diverse cultures can be viewed at the Museum of Jewish Heritage–A Living Memorial to the Holocaust, the national monuments at the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island (ferry to the site), and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, located in the Alexander Hamilton Custom House. They’re bounded by the Hudson River, which opens into historic New York Harbor, the site of trade, commerce and clashes for centuries.

Lovely Trinity Church on Broadway is one of several important landmarks in the area. Designed by Richard Upjohn, it’s considered a classic example of Gothic Revival architecture and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Around the corner, George Washington made his mark, taking his oath of office at Federal Hall Memorial. Just steps away, he celebrated the end of the Revolutionary War at Fraunces Tavern, nestled in the heart of New York’s Financial District amongst art deco, gothic and modernist skyscrapers. Great wealth is spent and stored here: The New York Stock Exchange is around the corner, and within walking distance of the Federal Reserve Bank, where tons of gold are vaulted.

At the waterfront, old meets new at the South Street Seaport, where you can sit in the shadow of tall sailing ships, admire the Brooklyn Bridge and enjoy the seaport’s urban shopping mall.

The blocks south of Houston (pronounced HOW-ston) and north of Canal streets contain the city’s largest concentration of cast-iron fronted buildings. Built as warehouses and manufacturing spaces, they were converted to living spaces, or “lofts,” for artists and sculptors who appreciated the extra elbow room. The area quickly filled with art galleries, restaurants and fashion-able shops.

Soon people with deep pockets decided that if SoHo was a nice place to visit, it was an even nicer place to live. The starving artists moved to less costly neighborhoods such as DUMBO (down under the Manhattan Bridge overpass) and Williams-burg in Brooklyn. SoHo is still a center of creativity, although now, in addition to its art galleries, people are drawn by its boutiques and restaurants. This neighborhood has recently seen a surge in bars and music venues.

Abutting Soho on the east, Little Italy is still the best place to get a taste of the Old World with a snack or a gigantic meal, especially in the middle of September when the Feast of San Gennaro fills Mulberry Street with the scent of pastries and sausages.

The triangle below Canal Street (“TriBeCa”) is a neighborhood that has been transformed from a manufacturing district into a chic neighborhood of art and furniture galleries and sophisticated restaurants. Though many celebrities make their home here, it’s known for its low-key vibe. To the east of the triangle, historic buildings mark the

Chambers Street and nearby Foley Square are the sites for the impressive architecture of the Surrogate’s Court (modeled after the Paris Opera), United States and New York County courthouses.

With more than 150,000 Chinese residents, Chinatown is home to the largest Asian community in North America. The neighborhood bustles with street life from exotic food stalls to shop proprietors hawking their wares. This is creative shopping at its best: house wares, textiles and clothing, toys and gifts from trendy to traditional lines the streets and the store shelves. Eating here is an adventure, too, with venues ranging from dim sum parlors to buffets. For insight on this ancient culture in the new world, visit the Museum of Chinese in the Americas, which contains exhibits on the arrival of Chinese culture here.

Greenwich Village, known locally as the “West Village” or simply “the Village,” has been home to artists, writers, nonconformists and bohemians since the turn of the 20th century. In spite of the neighborhood’s enthusiasm for change, the area itself has changed hardly at all. With its low buildings and crooked streets, the neighborhood truly is a village within the city.

Washington Square creates a picture-perfect tableau of Village life with its distinctive arch and lovely rows of townhouses. Home to New York University, the “Square” is a lively hangout not only for thousands of students, but also jugglers, fire-eaters, hip-hoppers and old men playing chess on the many permanent outdoor game boards.

Off-Broadway theater thrives here, including Stomp, one of the longest-running Off-Broadway productions ever produced. A few blocks east, Blue Man Group Tubes enters its 11th year at Astor Place Theater, across from the Joseph Papp Public Theater.

Beat poets, anarchists, artists and musicians have put their marks on East Village, which today remains experimental, electrifying and eclectic. Young arrivals to Manhattan found their way to the East Village, attracted by its character and affordability. Now, housing bargains are few as gentrification raises the bar–and the rents–in this area. Once only the intrepid made their way to the area east of here locally known as “Alphabet City.” Now that neighborhood is visited for its community gardens, inventive dining and trendy shopping.

As Broadway bisected Manhattan north and west, a series of squares developed, creating some of the city’s loveliest small parks. Union Square, Madison Square and Gramercy Park form a collar around south Midtown leading to downtown. The Flatiron Building, one of Manhattan’s earliest skyscrapers and much loved by generations of photographers, points north at the tip of Madison Square Park. It was once the end of “Ladies Mile,” the city’s fashionable shopping district along Broadway and Sixth Avenue. This area in Chelsea has been rejuvenated and is once again in vogue, not only for its stores and restaurants, but for the art galleries on its western edge.

New Yorkers get their homegrown produce at the weekly Green Market at Union Square. As the gateway to downtown, Union Square has a history of joining uptown and downtown in spirit and in commerce. The lively square is often the site of demonstrations, markets and festivals that bring New Yorkers together.

Midtown’s attractions begin at 34th Street with the Empire State Building and Macy’s Department Store and seemingly never end. The Morgan and New York Public libraries, United Nations complex and St. Patrick’s Cathedral anchor Midtown as a center of influence and authority. Most media and advertising companies make the area their headquarters. But the sleek art deco designs of the Chrysler Building and Rockefeller Center showcase Midtown as the heart of the jazz-age city. Clustered in the Grand Central Terminal area, the spectacular skyscrapers give the city its much-loved, much-maligned character as a “concrete canyon.” New Yorkers probably wouldn’t have it any other way.

Midtown is also considered the pulse of Manhattan with the revitalized Times Square keeping the beat strong. Once neglected and squalid, 42nd Street and Broadway is now clean, safe and tourist-friendly. Visitors hoping for bargains on same-day theater tickets will eventually make their way here to the famed TKTS ticket board, where the day’s discounted offerings are posted.

The largest cultural complex in the world, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, sets the stage for the Upper West Side with 12 resident companies dedicated to music, dance, theater and film. Walking through the neighborhood, you’ll see their influences everywhere, from cafes and shops with musical themes to passers-by wheeling cellos or practicing arias.

But the arts is only one facet of the Upper West Side. Visitors flock to the American Museum of Natural History and its new state-of-the-art Rose Center for Earth and Space. History buffs are fascinated by the New York City Historical Society, affectionately called the "city’s attic." Amsterdam Avenue, known for its restaurants, is a favored spot for a leisurely Sunday brunch. Farther uptown in Morningside Heights, the campuses of Columbia University and Barnard College are architectural classics, as are Riverside Church and the ever-evolving Cathedral of St. John the Divine, the largest cathedral in the world.

The manors of the great industrialists, philanthropists as well as the great robber barons of the 19th century characterize the grandeur of the Upper East Side, nicknamed the “Silk Stocking District.” Blocks of elegant mansions and townhouses grace the streets, intimating the city’s most prestigious addresses: Park, Fifth and Madison avenues. Nearly every famous designer in high fashion is represented on Madison Avenue alongside shops just as well known in their respective fields of art, antiques and rare collectibles.

Most New York City mayors have lived at Gracie Mansion, a historic house overlooking the East River and surrounded by a waterfront park. From the Plaza Hotel at Central Park South to the end of Fifth Avenue’s “Museum Mile,” this is Manhattan’s Gold Coast with some of the highest real estate prices in the city, if not the world. And for good reason: the stretch includes world-class museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim, The Jewish Museum, Museum of the City of New York, Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, Neue Galerie New York, The Frick Collection and the Whitney Museum of American Art.

No trip is complete without a visit to Central Park, 843 acres devoted to outdoor recreation and relaxation. The park contains a zoo, a castle, exquisite gardens, a reservoir and boathouse, performance spaces, sports fields, riding trails, routes for running, biking and skating, and plenty of green space. Depending on your pleasure, you can rent horses, bikes, boats and skates. Guides give garden and birding tours; Central Park is one of the most important stopover points during migration season.

There's a saying about Harlem: "If you can't get it here, then you can't get it!" Harlem has long been the epicenter of African-American culture and heritage, and now is home to a mélange of cultures that form a poly-ethnic base from Africa, Asia, Europe, Central and South America and the Caribbean. That's what makes Harlem the hot spot for trendy boutiques, restaurants, nightclubs and bars, catering to all!

The Brownstone - This gem lives up to its 5th Avenue location!  Personal lifestyle shopping with contemporary designer women’s clothing, jewelry and accessories custom crafted from a rotating cache of fashion artisans-complete with cosmetic bar.2032 Fifth Ave,(125th & 126th) 212-996-7980

H&M Art and Home Décor - Magnificent art collection and furniture showroom located in Harlem’s 5th Avenue district; largest collection of African-American art in America, complete with museum quality European art, fine furniture, chandeliers, and home accessories.  custom framing services in one hour. 17 E. 125th(bet. 5th and Madison) 212-831-9176, www.harlemart.net

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