Thursday, April 30, 2009

"I fucking hate the changes that have happened. I’d prefer drug dealers and criminals to the yuppie shit that goes on here now"


This week's Time Out features "Great Walks," the best outdoor treks in the city. They select a stroll through the East Village, dubbing it the "Public Eye Watch." Good people watching, you know.

Here's one of their stops:

If there isn’t a swarm of roaring motorcycles outside the cute little brick facade of the Hells Angels’ HQ (77 E 3rd St between First and Second Aves) — rumored site of drug deals and racketeering since 1969 — there’s probably at least a pair of grizzled bikers watching the leggy denizens of nouveau East Village go by. “I lived here 25 years,” croaks one yellow-toothed Angel who declined to give his name before almost literally throwing us off his turf. “What do you mean people-watching? I fucking hate the changes that have happened. I’d prefer drug dealers and criminals to the yuppie shit that goes on here now.” Hurry on to Second Avenue and don’t look back.


P.S.
You may also do the "Sweet Tooth Walk" on the LES.

[Photo via Forgotten NY]

5 comments:

Jeremiah Moss said...

i love this quote.

though i subscribe, i also hate TONY. are they really telling people to go people watch at the hell's angels HQ? you can get the shit kicked out of you on that doorstep. it's not cute. it's not mickey mouse.

EV Grieve said...

I saw some dorky tourists get shooed away while trying to take pictures in front of the HQ on Sunday

Ken Mac said...

my accountant used to live across from that Hell's Angels location. Back in the early 90s it was not fun walking over there. Damn, I miss it. Hello Howie Solo!

Bowery Boogie said...

TONY is a rag.

prodigal son said...

Its funny that the point of many of these walks seems to be people watching, when watching different types of people going about their business is one of the things we lost in Manhattan over the past six years. The whole point of this site and Jeremaih's is how similar the remaining stores are, how similar the people frequenting the stores, etc.

Now what the city still has is some beautiful buildings and vistas, and a handful of the walks such as the Central Park one emphasize that, but the EV is perhaps not the best neighborhood for that sort of walk.