We found the apt extremely nice and very charming.
Very much a fulfillment of our realistic dreams.
It has a larger living area (by NYC standards),
wooden floors, high ceiling, tasteful interior design,
large windows, comfortable furniture, and a large back deck.
The location is great: A couple of hundred meters for the center
of the west village, with lots of nice restaurants and shops
for all you may need at walking distance, and half a block from
two main metro stations (the ones of both F+M+L and of 1+2+3).
The landlord is extremely attentive and helpful around the clock...
[A more detailed review follows.]
Before elaborating, let me say something about ourselves.
We are an academic couple, city-mice types, who **love** NYC.
We have been here for a full year in 2011/12,
and for numerous short visits of months and weeks since the 1990s.
We love dining out, hanging out, and going to dance, music,
and films. And we do that a lot!
I'm writing this towards the end of August 2020,
and we have been living in the apt since Sept 1st (2019).
Before the CORONA struck the city (in early March),
we had a fantastic time, but also then we spent much of each day
in the apt, working at the large table or at the sofa.
So saying that the apt was comfortable for us means a lot.
But the real test was in the 100 days of Corona semi-curfew,
when we spent almost all the day in the apt.
We were perfectly fine "staying in place" in the apt,
which really proved how comfortable the apt was for us.
The apt is located ten stairs above the street level,
which feels both private and not overly secluded,
and yet is extremely convenient in the physical sense.
It is the first floor of a three-story townhouse,
built in the mid 19th century, and there are only
two other apartments above it and a restaurant below,
which creates **no** hazards (i.e., no smell or noise at all).
The apt has a wooden floor, which is mostly exposed,
because having no apt below requires no carpets.
The wooden floor itself is a real woodwork -- a real gem,
not a modern parquet "defined" to be a wooden floor.
The apt is on the south side of the street,
and has a large deck on its (south) back
(say, the size of a very large room).
The living area of the apt consists of two large rooms connected by
a large two-fly door, which when opened gives the feel of a single space.
The bedroom is on the north size, and it has a large bed,
several storage areas, a sofa, and a desk.
It has two large windows to the street, with good shades,
which allow you excellent darkness for sleeping
as well as some nice light when you do want it.
(This is a feature I care about a lot!)
The other room has several furniture including a sofa,
a low table, a few chairs, and a large dining table.
It has two extremely large mirrors that make it feel even larger
than it is, and the large windows to the south intensify this feeling.
The bathroom and kitchen (at the west side of the apt) are small,
but are very clean and feel very cozy.
The bathtub is old-fashioned in the best sense of the word,
and so is the tiling in the bathroom. I really liked the bathroom,
and that's an important aspect of an apt for me.
In addition, there is a storage place next to the entry doorway.
All furniture, linen, towels, and kitchen-ware feel clean and cozy,
although they are quite an eclectic collection.
In the winter, three radiators provide perfect heating
(we even kept one closed at all time),
while in the summer two air-conditioners keep the apt
cool enough even when outside heat is high.
In short, you get comfortable temperatures all year long.
In general, the apt gives a feeling of a place where
some nice guys live, but does not let you feel that you intrude
as some temporary visitor. This should be contrasted to both
the commercial feeling that some rented apt give and to the feeling
that you have taken shelter for one night in some friend's place.
The location is great. It is Greenwich Village,
in my opinion, the nicest part of NYC to live in;
I prefer this neighborhood over Chelsea,
let alone the upper sides or other areas.
In addition to the charm of the neighborhood
and the vast collection of restaurants, bars, and shops
(for food and utilities of all sorts),
this neighborhood is well-connected to the rest of NYC
(which cannot be said, say, about the East Village).
We traveled daily to various parts of the city,
and enjoyed the proximity and high frequency of the Metro;
the stations of lines 1+2+3 and L+F+M are half a block away.
Let me also stress that the neighborhood and these Metro stations
feel extremely safe.
Lastly, let me mention that the landlord has been extremely attentive
and helpful around the clock. In particular, due to a delay in our flight,
we arrived at the apt a couple of hours later than planned and he kept
saying "no problem" all along, when we reported our position.
Minor issues that came up during the year were addressed by him
extremely quickly, even when he was on the other side of the globe.
| Excellent |
Otto
| 8/20/2020 8:15:00 AM |