My name is Stephanie Azzopardi.
For me, the Upper East Side is the neighborhood with the pretty streets (especially when trees are lit up at Christmas time). Its home to some great restaurants (shout out to Burger Heaven), some state of the art research labs and hospitals along the east river, and some expensive stores, not to mention Hunter College. The Upper East Side is so special to me because it is the neighborhood I grew up in. Growing up as a kid, Dylan’s was the candy store down the street and Central Park was my backyard. The street fairs on Third Avenue were my favorite events. Street vendors sold everything from clothing to small figurines. Balloons would create an arc across the street at every block. One time I actually got to take one of the balloon arcs back with me to my apartment. It was a funny sight when I tried to squish a thousand balloons into an elevator in my building. For the week afterwards, my sisters and I had incessant fun with the balloons. The Upper East Side is more residential than other areas of Manhattan, which gave it all the more homely feeling. As one can imagine, the apartment living quarters in NYC were very tight quarters. I shared my bedroom with my two sisters. I used to love the top bunk, but eventually I settled for the lower bunk as the oldest (and heaviest). The proximity of my home to my school, restaurants, and the park was so convenient. Every Wednesday, my whole class would walk over to McDonald’s (parents included) and bond over greasy foods. Every day after the subway ride back from school, my sister and I would race up the block to our building. The person who high-fived the doorman first was the winner. I moved away from the Upper East Side when I was 10 years old. Being back in the neighborhood and going to Hunter College has been an interesting experience. Visiting places around the neighborhood has brought back memories from when I was a kid. The safety and beauty of the streets still appeal to me and I dream of one day living in the neighborhood again.
