Church Across Street

Just ask the church. They will tell you.

I worked in the area for many years. It's your basic Catholic church. I can't vouch for the bells. I don't remember a lot of noisy kids functions. They used to have very good jumble sales.

Remember the song Frere Jacques? Bell ringers sleep at night too. In NYC, bells can be rung from 8am to 9pm, as long as Frere Jacques doesn't oversleep.

I remember that song from my youth! One was asking Frere Jacques if he was sleeping, right? (Obviously I don't speak French.) Did it have to do with church bells? Gosh, what a dumb question. Sorry, George.

The literal translation is

Brother John
Are you sleeping?
Ring the morning bells!
Ding dong ding

The English version changes it to "morning bells are ringing" which is the opposite meaning of the French.

Thank you all for your comments. Special thanks to George for your very helpful info!!! I never know before that " in NYC, bells can be rung from 8am to 9pm" only. Really appreciated!!!

I should clarify that not ringing bells overnight is NOT due to a law or rule, just practice among churches that don't want to annoy the neighbors, which is most but not all of them. And of course Frere Jacques needs his shut-eye too. But you should expect bells to ring at services, weddings, funerals, and any other occasion where the church feels so moved.

There is a similar issue near mosques where the muezzin makes the call to prayer 5 times a day, but again this doesn't usually happen at night.

https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/22/realestate/when-the-noisy-neighbor-is-a-church.html

Before buying any property in the city, I suggest visiting it in the early morning and late at night, esp on a Friday or Saturday night. The church might be quiet but the a bar or restaurant across the street might not be.

I think if you want quiet, you have to go to more residential area without commercial enterprises unless you can afford a high floor with good windows which you will keep closed. If you want to be in the middle of everything, there is always noise. Think Westend in the 80s for quiet.

Hi George. Thanks for going out of your way for the translation and explanation. I really appreciate it!!

Cheers.

George: Thank you again for the NY Times article and great suggestion to visit in the early morning and late at night.

300_mercer: Westend in the 80s is quiet but too far away if walking to the office.