The lobbies of 5-star hotels are ideal locales for fulfilling many of my exigencies as a Manhattan flâneuse. On a practical level, they provide hyper-clean ‘public’ bathrooms with elegant Molton Brown soaps (when the line at Starbucks is daunting). The wireless internet access is especially helpful to me since I am no longer able to tap into the wandering wireless in my maid’s quarters.

Right now I am sitting in a little salon in the Peninsula Hotel off of 5th Avenue and enjoying its luxuries. For New Yorkers dealing with cramped quarters and seedy apartments, the plush furniture, intimate lighting, and prettily framed art provide an idyllic refuge.

The people-watching is an added diversion. Foreign tourists mill about, dressed in their extreme takes on what’s chic in Manhattan. They clutch bloated Bergdorf Goodman shopping bags and are often in intriguingly ecstatic or irritated moods.

Lindt chocolate truffles and Granny Smith apples are additional perks. If you need something mailed, postage is free when you drop it with someone at the front desk. If you’re truly dressed to the nines, you can fudge your way into procuring a hard-to-get restaurant reservation from the overly accommodating concierge. With enough lurking, you may even meet an exotic stranger to foot the dinner bill.

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