I should point out that the new apartment is on the fifth floor of a very old pre-war walk-up building. You never realize that you've been taking elevators for granted until you suddenly don't have one.

In general, my new residence seems typical of apartments in the Upper East Side. It'll take me a while to get used to, and it appears that I've grown used to thinking of Harlem as home - despite having lived in the area for only seven months. I am at my old apartment on 120^th street as I write this, and I'm still feeling regretful of my decision to move. Today is the last day of my lease. It's only natural that I feel this way: This apartment was unusually spacious for Manhattan standards, had a great view, an elevator big enough for my bike, and a washer and dryer inside. It was a much higher standard of living than I anticipated before I arrived in the US. But the real reason I am sad to leave is the neighborhood - despite it's stereotypical reputation as a 'dodgy' neighborhood, El Barrio is not only very safe and peaceful, it also has a lot of charm, great food, lots of family run businesses and restaurants, hardly any chain stores, and a sense of community which you can find in only very few other neighborhoods in New York. There were several times I felt guilty about the comfort I was enjoying. It's a well known fact that gentrification has been forcing local residents out of the area for a few years now, and newly-built 'luxury' apartments such as this one - which sticks out like a sore thumb among beautiful old townhouses - are to blame for the rising rent.

Prices seem to have fallen badly this year, though. We were offered a decent reduction on the monthly rent by our landlord, as were our neighbors. The offer came too late; I had by then, already signed up for a new place (the UES apartment), and plans for the move were pretty much irreversible.

On the bright side, I will be saving some money (I had better, given that the new house is nowhere as comfortable as the last). I'll also be closer to work/University, which means my bike ride will be shorter. The most interesting thing is my room: It is connected to the house by a spiral staircase, and leads straight to an almost private terrace!