A 20-minute ride from 14th Street on Duke Ellington's famous A train lands you deep in the heart of Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant, a/k/a Bed-Stuy. Renowned for its tree-lined blocks of beautiful brownstones and other fine architectural properties, the community's affordable housing has brought yuppies from all over the city flocking to the 'hood. Adding to the primarily African and Caribbean American population, that influx brings new flavor to the cultural mecca of Brooklyn. The strong base of block associations and churches invites both single and family life to flourish within the serenity of the neighborhood. Late-night jaunts reveal neighbors sitting on each other's stoops playing cards or dominos, or just talking. Kids take over the streets, playing back-in-the-day games like skelly, hopscotch, and stickball.

Neighborhood Boundaries: Flushing Avenue on the north, Broadway and Saratoga Avenue on the east, Atlantic Avenue on the south, and Classon Avenue on the west.

Landmarks: Many neighborhood buildings have been landmarked, including the exquisite Alhambra Apartments, located on Nostrand Avenue. This terra-cotta structure was designed by 19th-century architects Morris & Freeman. Four wood-framed cottages at 1698-1708 Bergen Street are the remains of a historic settlement of free blacks called Weeksville. The site is now a museum of African American history. Bed-Stuy is also home to one of two landmarked trees in New York, the magnolia-grandiflora at 679 Lafayette Avenue.

Cultural Institutions: A late-1960s visit led senators Robert Kennedy and Jacob Javits to create the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, the first community-development nonprofit in the U.S. Today, Restoration Plaza on Fulton Street houses the popular Billie Holiday Theatre, the Skylight Gallery, and the Restoration Dance Theatre. In 1899 two Victorian mansions were turned into the first children's museum in the country. The Brooklyn Children's Museum, at 145 Brooklyn Avenue, offers an array of exhibits and programs. The Magnolia Tree Earth Center is responsible for the planting of 1500 trees throughout the area including sycamores, ginkgos, and honey locusts. The center also created several community gardens that produce flowers and fresh fruit.

Famous Residents: Local prodigies include Woodstock legend Richie Havens, Shirley Chisholm (the first black woman to serve in Congress), and Lil' Kim. Current residents include hip-hop artist and Top Dog/Underdog star Mos Def and Essence magazine's former editor in chief Monique Greenwood. Norman Mailer and Isaac Asimov were raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant.