Today a good friend of mine spoke to me about his recent trip to Spain. The thing he went on and on about the most was the bike rental kiosk’s that were located all around the city, both in Barcelona and in Madrid. He loved the idea of paying to use the bike as needed and found it a much cooler way to see the city. He much preferred it to the typical taxi cabs. I also had seen something about a company in Paris called Vélib that offers the same type of service for Parisians. It is apparently working so well that it is expanding to other parts of France. There is also a similar service in Washington DC called Clear Channel Smartbike, that is sponsored by the department of transportation. I wish they would put more of these around the country, it’s too smart of an idea. Here is a video from Conde’Nast Travel that demonstrates the concept very well. Enjoy!
If you like reading and travel often, or find carrying your books and newspapers around with you is cumbersome, this is quite possibly the coolest device you will ever use. KINDLE, from Amazon is an electronic E-Book that stores all of your books in it’s internal memory. You can purchase new books directly from the device via it’s wi-fi connection. In addition to books, magazines, the top newspapers and blogs are available for viewing. You can add memory via SD Memory cards. The KINDLE device has a glare proof, paper like screen with ink like image for hours of tireless reading. You can store over 250 titles on the KINDLE and if you accidentally delete one that you have already purchased, they are always stored on your home page at Amazon for re-download. There is a built in dictionary, connection to Wiki-pedia online via it’s wi-fi. You can bookmark and annotate pages as well as adjust the text size to your preference. There is even a search feature and keyboard built into the device. It includes a long life rechargeable battery. On a recent flight, a woman had one and couldn’t put it down. She not only read that days Wall Street Journal and New York Times, but she read Newsweek magazine (including images) and a Best Selling Novel. Obviously this is the future, trying to live a greener paper free life. I also like the idea of not having tons of books laying around my house everywhere. A novel idea. KINDLE
The dialogue reads like this:
Older Lady: Would you like some tea?
Older Man: Yes, that would be lovely, thanks. Telltale noises from the other side of the wall.
Older Lady [muttering under her breath]: You should rather be biking, too, Rezso.
The tagline at the end is “You should rather be biking, too…”
From British outdoor gear maker Barbour comes these cool retro-inspired motorcycles jackets. Available in waxed leather or waxed cloth these belted jackets will top off any cool ride. A perfect compliment to your Triumph Bonneville. These jacket are cut slimmer to their original motorcycle designs. The International Jacket comes in a shorter 3/4 version as well. Still with set in sleeves, two-way front zip studded fly front and a corduroy inner collar and cuffs. PU coated polyamide inner drip strip and coated with Barbour Sylkoil wax. As with all Barbour coats they can be sent to Barbour for alterations, adjustments button/zipper repair/replacements and re-waxing. They are guaranteed to last a lifetime. BARBOUR
Located in the Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam, Netherlands is this cool restaurant, bar/lounge, dance club and meeting space called the VAKZUID. Built right into the stadiums structure, Vakzuid has terraces that look out onto the Olympic stadium on the inside and a huge outdoor terrace/bar area on the outside of the stadium. They have an excellent restaurant, with tall ceilings and open views with low, comfortable furniture. There are even meeting rooms to hold private business meetings or luncheons. The menu itself is large and varied and at one end of the Vakzuid you can see into the large kitchen where the chefs do their thing. The Vakzuid has live performance in a state of the art dance/music/concert area. A must see, and a cool place to hang out when you get to Amsterdam. They are open daily from 10 AM to 1 AM, Fridays till 3 AM, Saturdays between 2PM and 3 AM. Check their site for the agenda and events. VAKZUID
“L’eroica is a period cyclotourist rally held mainly on gravel roads, organized since 1997. Held each year, it is a special race. It proposes surroundings and scenes from the “heroic” times of cycling, including dust, mud, no organized service, vintage refreshments, wonderful and demanding roads with a great ability to adapt and to suffer. Sponsored by Italian bank Monte Dei Paschi Di Siena. There are three different courses to choose from. The course of L’Eroica winds through some of the most beautiful roads of the Chianti, Valdarbia and Valdorcia, some of them still unpaved surfaces (strade bianche) which makes possible to relive the atmosphere of “heroic” cycling times. The “Long” course is 250 kms and is marked with permanent signs in cooperation with the Siena Provincial Council and Siena Tourism Agency. There are arrows indicating the right directions at all crossings and signs indicating the distance to the nearest towns every 5 kms. The signs cover both the “long” and “medium” (135 kms) courses, while the “short” and “cyclotouristic” courses are not covered. There are specific rules that constitute a historic bicycle and they are available for rent. The next event takes place October 5th, 2008, in the Chianti Valley. The following photographs are not period photos. These are from recent events. Talk about purists. L’EROICA
Here is yet another cool shoemaker from Italy. Pantofola d’Oro shoes have continued with their vintage soccer or cycling look. They are of course handmade. They have been in existence since the 1940’s. The shoemakers son Emilio Lazzarini was a semi-professional wrestler who grew tired of the painful and uncomfortable shoes they had to wear. Since his father and grand father were luxury shoemakers since 1886, he asked him to make him a pair of comfortable shoes that held his foot securely and wore well. The Pantofola d’Oro shoe was born and were soon the rage, desired by all other athletes in the region. Since then, Pantofola d’Oro company has been heavily involved in professional sports as well as soccer in Italy and still sponsors 8 pro Italian soccer teams. Today they make cleated soccer shoes, golf cleats, soft golf cleats, deck shoes, casual shoes, sneakers, vintage styles athletic shoes. Still searching for them in the States. PANTOFOLAd’ORO
Coming from the heart of Italy in Florence is Serafini. Since 1932 this sports shoe maker has been making these Italian classics. Still handmade since their inception, these are cool sneakers. Available in dozens of color combinations even a special 2008 Olympic edition that offers the colors for various countries. Not available in the US to my knowledge, but put them on your cool-list the next time you travel to Italy. SERAFINI
Johnny Loco has created a lifestyle for chilling out and simply enjoying life. Not only does Johnny Loco make cool customized City Cruisers, Beach Cruisers and Cargo Cruiser Bikes but they also make mens and womens clothing, shoes and leather bags. They want the Johnny Loco way of life to inspire people to enjoy even the shortest break in their daily routine. Johnny Loco introduced their popular beach cruisers to the European market back in 2005 and have never looked back. They also offer three Johnny Loco vacation packages. One in Canto Bravo off the coast of Brazil, another called “Mambo Tango” in Argentina and the third Rio Package. Each trip or tour is loaded with cool experiences where you can vibe with the nature and see beautiful beaches and historical landmarks. I’ve gotta hand it to Johnny Loco, the concept is cool. JOHNNY LOCO
