Experience the bohemian side of New York that you only read about in books. From Dutch colonists to the beat poets to punk rockers, the East Village has been home to it all. We start with an introduction to the area, from the Lanape people, who first occupied this land, to the immigrants, artists and historical figures who built it. We walk from historic Tompkins Square Park, where quite a bit of political and musical history occurred, then down the heart of the East Village, St. Mark's Street. There we'll pass such landmarks as where Andy Warhol's Velvet Underground first performed, where noted artists Keith Haring created, where Thomas Edison studied and Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass spoke, where such poets of note as W.H. Auden and Frank O'Hara lived, where German immigrants left evidence of their legacy (including the German-American Shooting Club). From there it's around the corner to the homes of Director-General of New Amsterdam, Peter Stuyvesant's family (who owned all the land we walk over). We see St. Mark's church, where many major poets and punk rockers performed, and where many notable New Yorkers are buried (including Peter Stuyvesant himself and Daniel Tompkins, for who my beloved park is named). We talk quite a bit about the Bowery, the very first street in NYC and home to CBGB -- and so much more! We end at the beautiful Washington Square Park arch