Lower East Side Tour: History, Heritage, and the Cutting Edge.

The Lower East Side was New York City's immigrant gateway in the late 19th century and early 20th century, especially for Jews leaving Eastern Europe. Today, it's an enormously complex place.

A walk around the Lower East Side reveals complexity and contradiction, with layers of immigration (from Europe and later China) and migration (from Puerto Rico), an enormous variety of housing wrought by urban renewal, changes wrought by community organizing, and, most recently, changes wrought by gentrification. 

So it's unwise to focus simply on nostalgia, though significant legacy businesses--like Katz's Deli, Russ & Daughters appetizing shop,, and The Pickle Guys--bridge the neighborhood's past and present, and are worth a visit (at least if we can avoid lines).

The neighborhood offers rich fodder for observation and discussion. That's why my tour route covers a lot more ground that most other tours.