Look, a lot of places of african clothing
and also african hairstyles, we have many food, soul gastronomy, here my guy, oh they are mexican obvious. - Mexicans? How are you, man? all good? [Music] Guys! how are you? Today we are going to walk through one of the "dangerous" neighborhoods in New York, the Harlem neighborhood, located at north of Manhattan. I chose this neighborhood because unlike others like maybe certain neighborhoods in the Bronx, certain neighborhoods in Queens, that are a little bit hotter here in Harlem really if you walk in the middle of the day like right now, you're
more than safe it's already when it's starting to get dark, that it starts to get a little bit unsafe but let's see, in a city as big as New York, this is to be expected and it is completely , entirely normal. This neighborhood, the neighborhood of Harlem has a great deal of importance to the African-American culture in this part of the United States, it has many sites of historical interest,
a lot of street culture and likewise in the last few decades, this area has become important to the Latino neighborhoods. We are going to be talking about it a little bit more ahead. Well, we got here by subway Look, this dude asked us for a photo with Arisita, he says she's real beuty. kind guy! well then, let's get on with this adventure, let's get amazed, let's enter the streets of the Harlem neighborhood. Let's go for it! [Music] so we're going to walk a little bit more towards the central area of the neighborhood, right now we are at the intersection of the classic Harlem and the Harlem which nowadays is known as El Barrio, like that in spanish because it is already the latin Harlem, the Hispanic Harlem, let's call it that, which has a more recent evolution of the last decades, so...to understand the history of Harlem, we have to go back hundreds of years ago to the 1800's. This whole area was all
farms and in fact forest that marked the outskirts of New York city, we are talking about that there were times when, for example, the central park didn't exist yet. Central park was all vacant lots. See, what the houses are like Like the boy on the porch, right? From Hey Arnold! kinda like that, that kind of vibes I get with this houses. It was mid 1800's that it was decided to make as such the Central Park and in fact, those dates were also the years in which emancipation from slavery began here in the United States. so this caused the African American population began to to be placed in different parts, it took several years to really neutralize this more and obviously there was a tremendous segmentation which is why the African American population had to move to the outskirts of the area and that's why these colonies began to originate which resulted, the Harlem neighborhood, which we are walking through right now. Okay, look at this, this dudes smoking a joint. A lot of people smoking here, openly and freely. I like that, look I thinks there are others, outof the barber shop, it's cool the environment, are few people who tell you like hey do not record here! like they are rude, most people are like the gentleman that we met a little bit further back and they welcome you to the neighborhood and tell you stay this way, do not walk through these streets, they advise you like, on those streets you better not go. Cool Cool people. There's an obvious smell of weed but it's good. It is obvious in many of the streets. If you take a...you inhale a little bit and tasty. She's pretty, she is pretty! Arisita flipping looks everywhere here in the neighborhood. Look, here my panas from the barbershop, they are from Dominican Republic they tell me that here in Harlem
there are not so many Dominicans, right? - No there are more boricua, mexicans and few italians after the first avenue. - In which neighborhoods are there more Dominicans?
- Washington Heights - That's the Bronx?
- High Manhattan
- Ok - And how is it going here in the barbershop? cool?
- We are doing good. I've been here 17 years in the area. How cool, it's cool the business. Let's see what else we find here. Look, a lot of places of african clothing
and also african hairstyles, the braiding and so on. We have a lot of food which is known as
the soul food. Here my pana... oh they are mexican obvious.
- Mexicans? How are you, man? all good? I heard the music and I said, they are mexicans. What a pleasure! it is a cool mix on the streets we are walking where it begins the Hispanic part of the neighborhood and the African American part of the neighborhood, if we could call it that, see here they are selling fruit, more fruit over here! Here in these streets is where we can see that people live as such, it's full of apartments, all these housing complexes. Let's walk more towards the zone more touristy area where there are more stores, commerce and see what we find I think it's over there, let's see if we walk in the right direction. [Music] See how funny, here my brother is getting a massage in the street. How great that is! You are stressed out because of work or whatever, you get a massage. What do they sell here? like jam more jewerly. What else do we have here? sombreros, this guy here sells belts, phone cases. My other brother from here handles all kinds of glasses, all colors let's go this way to see, what else they sell? Look like bracelets, jewelry of all kinds like essences, fragrances everything this is like alternative medicine, I sense all these like jams. Oh yeah, look mango butter all of this is alternative medicine. Here my friend sells like sim card for the phone, I think. This other, well here these are nut carts that you see all over the place ice cream, tasty. This really is one of the big streets in the neighborhood and you can notice, see how many stores, really the commerce is very very active. Here what else they sell? a little bit of jewelry, hats, souvenirs and ooh yes! check this, this is a spot that I was reading about, is very emblematic of the Harlem neighborhood. This is the Apollo theater, this theater the Apollo theater has a very interesting history, these stages supposedly saw the birth of superstars like Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, etcetera etcetera and the story says that people of color were not allowed to enter, African American people until 1934 and it was around that time that the whole area was flourishing in the music to the point that it became super iconic for jazz and to this day it still is here. In this area, which is the center of Harlem, you will see a lot of jewelry stores for you to dress cool with your bling bling. Here on some occasion, I don't remember if it was in this store or another one there, I remember I bought a cool necklace,
but I really I felt like I was in a hip hop video. Wow, it's not called hip hop jewerly for nothing...and they took it at some airport, they are bad at the airports, those who work with the suitcases. I have already been robbed several things. They robbed me, things that happen. Here they sell you tennis, I think it was here where we bought our bling bling How about it? a lot of flow here! It look a little bit like the one that was stolen from me, let's see if we can find it again and have a good bling bling. Grat. See this, how much bling bling they have inside of the jewelry store, all kinds, all sizes those there are worthy of a rap video.
Here as well they sell a lot of tennis shoes, they are replicas. My brother tells me that some are original
but that most of these are replica. All of these here and likewise the lotions, he tells me that most of them are replicas but one or the other could be the original. By the way, did you see the video of the lotions replicas of the perfumes replicas? interesting topic, even here in Harlem it expands Look at these here, they are flashy but the curious thing is that they are flashy but it's not really an expensive thing, is like silver at most. A lot of this it's a more metal, not diamonds He's taking the bear and it seemed to me the Santa Muerte, it is the silhouette of the Santa Muerte. Will there be many believers of Santa Muerte in this neighborhood? It is done. The deal has been made, the operation was completer, something tells me that I was scammed. I don't know why Always, right? the doubt in those kinds of places you always have to say I'm getting ripped off a lot and when you get the discount is that they are still ripping you off but not so much Interesting. Let's keep walking around, look over here, more jewelry here you can get the grillz, so you...so that your mouth will be shiny. See how much jewelry For what I see, there are a lot of tattoo studios advertised here. I imagine they'll be on the second floors Here this dude that sell hats, this way is selling like tickets and let's go out on a limb on that way, let's walk over there and see what we run into. See here, we just came across a point of great historical interest. - Hi, how are you?
- No, mexican - Oh really, my colombian accent.
- Are you walking around?
- As a tourist. - Great! I like it! - Nice too met you. What a pleasure! Lately i've been told that my accent is becoming strange. The other day in an interview I did, they commented a lot that my accent sound from Merida, now Colombia. The accent of Luisillo it transforms in a strange way. As I was saying, we came across a point of historical interest, super super interesting is the Theresa Hotel. During many years, was a luxury hotel, to the point where it became colloquially known as the as the Waldorf as the Four Seasons of the neighborhood, that's how it was known Now, a curious and and pretty much disturbing fact, this hotel only admitted white guests until 1940 it was already by those dates that guests of color began to be admitted. How about it? How disturbing, weird, right? Curiously, this decision brought much more fame to the hotel because the superstars of the jazz from all over this region that I'm telling you was like very iconic were staying there and it started to take a great fame in the neighborhood and in all of New York City. Sadly durind the 60's, the whole neighborhood suffered an economic decline a lot of gangs, it became violent the situation and then the hotel, around the 70's had to close down and became an office building and to this date, the hotel service has not returned but maybe someday it will come back. Nowadays it is simply of tourist interest for tourists like me come, take pictures and so on but to stay as such here in the old Four Seasons of the neighborhood you can't and that would be cool, that some billionaire dares to make the investment and turn it into a hotel again! See, I found these guys from Dominican Republic, right? and he asked me if I know what a mamañema is A pleasure, have a good time! I'll have to go to Dominican Republic I will have to go. Thank you! I do have to go to Dominican Republic,
and Puerto Rico I'm looking forward to go it does happen, from time to time that I meet people from the Dominican Republic and they tell me that when I talked about the term mamañema, that it became a meme over there. they tell me, you alredy know ehat a mamañema is? Yeah I already know. We're clear on that. Something very curious in the streets, it already happened to us twice, this it's really happening all over New York just here it's happened to us twice in a very small amount of time is that people walk right by you and they offer you drugs, substances, whatever, for example Ari goes bye and they just go like: cocaine cocaine! so they offer you whatever you want, any type of drug or substance watch out! it's not only from the streets of the neighbourhood, this happens even in Times
Square which is highly touristy. Let's see if we can manage to capture how someone offers us. Look, we came for a walk around the park, it's very cool, people here are just chilling just hanging out, right now it's a very nice day for being outside, it's sunny it's nice let's see, this is supposed to be the biggest and most emblematic of Harlem. Here a musical demonstration and look people here playing chess, wow I feel like in a movie Look! all the people who are already advanced in age, let's call it, plying chess It will be like in movies that we see, that they bet to play chess, then you arrive and say 5 dollars... you guys are good at playing chess?
I know how to play but not I dont know if I would bet with one this dudes. Surely I'll be undone in a heartbeat What else this way? there are people playing basketball. How do you call it, baloncesto or baskteball? See over here, the playground, working out, good atmosphere, just right for a nice sunny day. It is nice to come to the park to try to score. This is a gospel temple, there is no doubt, it says right here. The gospel assembly. Here come the service times, it would be cool
to be able to come and have an experience a gospel temple and sing with the people and dance and feel the energy. I don't know, it must be, I think very unique if any of you have lived an experience like this, please tell us about it. what it was like? I think that if you are a believer or not, no matter what you believe in and how you believe, as well but that all the energy that you have to live in a place like this very nice. I'd like to come here one day when it's in service, that we can live as such all that magic, all that energy [Music] Well guys, with this we conclude this adventure. I loved to be able to walk through Harlem meeting so many cool people, that was nice, it was cool. I want to emphasize, even though the title of the video is something like walking through a dangerous neighborhood in New York,
something like that I want to say the truth, that it's not at all, it has earned that reputation but I would say it's pretty friendly over all I'd go with thta fact that we met some very cool people very cool people, very succulent adventure. I hope you liked, enjoyed it. Comment on what other neighborhoods we should get to know around here in the area What's up? Thank you, friend! Thank you. Everyone gives you advice good vibes the people. We'll meet, as you know it, in a few days with a new video. Goodbye
