Park Avenue (Upper East Side): Park Avenue (Upper East Side)
A block east of Madison, Park Avenue is stolidly comfortable and often elegant. In the low 90s, the large black shapes of the Louise Nevelson sculptures stand out on the traffic islands. Just above 96th Street the neighborhood abruptly transforms into Spanish Harlem at the point where the subway line emerges from underground. One of the best features of this boulevard is the sweeping view south, as Park Avenue coasts down to the New York Central and Met Life (originally Pan Am) buildings.Dominating a square block between 66th and 67th streets is the Seventh Regiment Armory , built in the 1870s with pseudo-medieval crenellations and the only surviving building from the era before the New York Central's railroad tracks were roofed over and Park Avenue became an upscale residential neighborhood. There are two surviving interiors inside the Veterans' Room and the Library; call ahead for a tour (tel 212/744-8180). Frequent art and antique shows provide an opportunity to gawk at the enormous drill hall inside.
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