Chelsea
Chelsea is a neighborhood roughly bounded by 30th Street on the north, 14th Street on the south, the Hudson on the west, and possibly Fifth Avenue on the east.
It was named for Columbia alum Clement Clarke Moore's estate, itself named after Chelsea Manor in England, from which the London neighborhood also takes its name.
Here you'll find New York's most storied (and overrated) clubs, many art galleries (especially in the area between 23rd and 27th Steets and 10th and 11th Aves.), the wealthier members of the city's gay population, the once-authentic-but-now-fauxhemian Chelsea Hotel, such nouveauites as a cafe where you can intake calories whilst burning them on treadmills and a snack shop with both sushi and wine bars, and the Chelsea Piers sports complex.
In other words, hit both the bank and the gym before visiting.