The thing about New York is that you can feel both isolated and integrated at the same time. Walking across giant intersections in the crowd of rushing people, standing cramped in a subway car at rush hour, and chatting with the cab driver, you are a part of that bright city life, the vibrant and unique culture that is New York. You are a part of that but you are simultaneously isolated. You are self dependent in each instant and the level of actual interaction between you and your fellow New Yorkers and/or tourists is slim. You are among each other but not necessarily with each other.