On this particular morning I have a cup of coffee and read New York Magazine. I come across an article about the best neighborhoods in New York City. And there you are, Sunnyside! You are number three!

Automatically my competitive side kicks in, and I start showing the article to my coworkers. Some of the waitresses are Greek and live in Astoria. They think their neighborhood is better than Sunnyside, even though Astoria only makes number eleven on the list.


On my way back to Sunnyside I start making a list of things I have to do when I get home. One of them is doing my laundry, one of my most dreadful duties, but there is no escape. It’s either doing laundry today or buying new clothes tomorrow. When I get off the train, I see the “churro lady” (churros are pastries that look similar to cannolis from South and Central America). Across the street is the Taco truck. Yummy, me love some taco please! The fruit guy is also there. I say ‘hi’ and think about how these images of people on the street make Sunnyside familiar to me.

On my way to the laundry, I walk through the park. Two ladies are looking at a tree, talking about some special bird that lives there and sings beautifully. (Well, maybe not that beautifully at 5:00 AM…). A couple of small children are playing with the colorful water hoses. The bigger kids are shooting hoops, and everybody seems to enjoy the pleasant spring afternoon. The fancy, renovated library is right across the park. It welcomes all residents.


As I take my laundry out of the dryer, I notice that all the dryers are very old but still function very well. I was reading the ads on the board out of boredom, when I notice a flyer advertising “The Sunnyside Sound Project.” I take some pictures with my camera phone and decide to start writing about my day. I think about what makes a neighborhood good. There are many factors, but the most important one is its people. Its people make a neighborhood happy, pleasant and successful. While the buildings and the scenery of a city can be breathtaking, it is the people who make a neighborhood valuable. People who own small businesses and who don’t give up, despite the crazy economy and terrorist threats. People who are raising their family here, creating new value for the next generation. I particularly love this neighborhood because it is my little piece of the world. It is where I come to relax after a hard day of work."


Gabriela was interviewed by Tristian Goik. She talks about her little "battle of neighborhoods" after a recent article in New York Magazine rated Sunnyside the third best place to live in New York.

“My parents are Polish American, and my dad used to work in Saudi Arabia. When I was one year old, my parents made the decision to move back to their nice apartment in Sunnyside. They wanted my sister and I to have a good New York City education. I consider myself to have spent my whole life here.

I consider Sunnyside to be my personal refuge from Manhattan. Here I feel comfortable to relax in sweatpants. (I don’t have sweatpants but it’s the idea of sweatpants.) I feel safe to walk all around the neighborhood. I have a strong sense of pride for Sunnyside, but know that I am very detached from the community. I can count my Sunnyside friends on one hand. I am happy to just hang out with friends in the city and say, “Oh, I live in Sunnyside,” and smile.

I don’t really have any problems with Sunnyside, except for the ‘shoebox cinema’, a certain movie theater that is as small and sticky as a gross shoebox. Its sole redeeming value is cheap tickets. But apparently the money does not go towards training people to use the projector properly. They are very ghetto but they still checked my bags for outside food that I may or may not have had. But I need the theater and so do many others.”

Tristian was interviewed by Tony Rohling. To listen to his story, click on the button below.

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