The Big Apple, the City that Never Sleeps, New York is the ultimate travel destination. But over that last few years, it’s gotten a bad reputation. Mention New York almost anywhere in the world and the person you’re taking to will wince. An image of completely concrete covered streets, of men and woman dressed in all black hurriedly typing on their blackberries as they speed walk past you, a hoard of people attempting to cross the street, running to get to work on time, never glancing up at the world around them.

Recently Cambridge University claimed that New Yorkers are the most “neurotic and unfriendly” people in the US. While I can accept this description for a business area, or perhaps a report about the New York police force and their reactions to Occupy Wall Street, but it’s not fair to generalize this way. New York City is most certainly not unfriendly or “neurotic,” let alone bland.

Friendly guy in an Elmo costume.

Now, don’t think that I would send you straight to Times Square; the city is more than what you see on postcards. In fact, that’s the last place to go if you want to experience the city. That’s the place where you’ll encounter the crowds of people, where walking a block feels like you’re swimming upriver.

For this photowalk project, I walked around Union Square, Bryant Park, General Worth Square, and Madison Square Park. There’s an unbelievable amount of interesting people, you just have to have the guts to walk up to them and say hello. That can be quite a feat, though. You’ll meet storytellers, you’ll meet mathematicians, and educators. This may be the only place you’ll see a high school dropout sitting next to a businessman wearing a Prada suit.

This may be my favorite guy in the world. He was originally a photographer, and now he runs a store that sells puppets. He’s also hilarious.

New York has some of the largest museums in the world; we have Broadway (as well as off Broadway and off off Broadway) productions, we have a food culture influenced by the city’s immigrant history. New York has got Yankee Stadium, hot dog stands, and awesome taxi cab drivers.  And believe it or not, it’s not just a concrete jungle. In Central Park I honestly feel like I could be in the suburbs - it’s a genuine break from the city. What more could you need?

See! We really do have something that resembles nature! Central Park, right after a rain storm.

There are eight million energetic, enthusiastic people here; all you have to do is strike up a conversation.

This lady I met at Bryant Park. We walked to Times Square to get falafel, which is where she is pictured.

Anne Driscoll is a member of the Youth Travel Blogging Mentorship Program.

All photos courtesy and copyright Anne Driscoll