4 Ave, NoHo

Several years ago the hipsters, artists and college students must have gotten together and decided to descend upon a neighborhood. They all seemed to agree upon Union Square. Lots of stores have come into the area to pacify the new up and coming crowd in the area and it has transformed the neighborhood. Sushi Samba and Whole Foods provide some seriously good eats and the Virgin Megastore draws in a huge crowd. Luxury buildings have popped up and living is expensive, very expensive. Apartment hunting in the area is not for the tight of pocket or even the faint of heart.

Each time that I have visited the Union Square area, I can't help but think it's where all the 'hipsters' decided would be a cool place to hang out. But beyond that simple observation, this a great place to shop. My personal favorite, Virgin MegaRecords has a location here, as well as several shoe stores.

Union Square South is where all the cool kids (and artisans) are hanging out on the north (park) side. It’s also where you can find Whole Foods, the Virgin MegaStore, and DSW, and Shoe Mania. So there is some definite good shopping to be done, if you need shoes or some good organic or specialty groceries. The counter on the south side is a clock. Counting up on the left and counting down the seconds, minutes, and hours of the day on the right.