Mah-jongg meisters, slow-motion tai-chi practitioners and old aunties gossiping over homemade dumplings: it might feel like Shanghai, but this leafy oasis is core to NYC history. In the 19th century, this was part of the infamous Five Points neighborhood, the city’s first tenement slums and the inspiration for Martin Scorsese’s Gangs of New York.
The ‘five points’ were the five streets that used to converge here; now you’ll find the intersection of only Mosco, Worth and Baxter Sts. Aside from serving up an intriguing slice of multicultural life, the park's other perk these days is its public bathroom, making it the perfect place for a pit stop.