I had a fabulous long-weekend trip to New York. Recently, I overheard some Seattleites discussing how they hated New York–the crowds, the noise, the general dirtiness you feel in your hair and on your shoes at the end of the day. So here’s my passionate defense of the city as an awesome place for travelers to enjoy, and [...]
Entries Tagged as 'Urban archipelagos'
I ♥ New York
April 19th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, Novelty, Recommended sights, Transportation bliss, Urban archipelagos
Tags:New York City
Utrecht (and Not the Art Shop)
February 25th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, Obsessed with the Dutch, Urban archipelagos
Over the last year or so, Utrecht has come up again and again as a great up-and-coming destination. This recent article, “A Dutch Town That Nurtures Its Quirks,” provided me with all the convincing I need to add it to the itinerary of my next trip. It describes the appeal of the town without resorting to hyperbole and boosterism.
Tags:Netherlands·Utrecht
Piazza Times Square
February 24th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, The point of travel, Urban archipelagos
This recent piece in New York magazine about the new, pedestrian-friendly Times Square had me thinking: Why don’t more American cities think of creating something similar? It’s not like New York is a natural.
Shop Talk: Favorite Bookstores, Part II
February 17th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Betty, Favorite Bookstores, Good design, Shop talk, Urban archipelagos
I was recently in Argentina for–gasp–not work, and stumbled upon El Ateneo while in Buenos Aires. The bookstore was amazing. I could have lived there.
Tags:bookstores·Buenos Aires·design
Snowy, Sleepy Paris
February 16th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, Urban archipelagos
Environmental Graffiti has a wonderfully curated collection of photos of Paris in the snow. Spring has come early to us on the West Coast, so this seems particularly fanciful and magical to me right now. It’s worth clicking over to see the whole collection.
Shop Talk: Surf’s Up in Chinatown
February 16th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, Novelty, Shop talk, Urban archipelagos
I only bought a set of note cards at Chinatown Boardroom–a great name for a surf shop if ever there was one–but the selection was great, as was the vibe.
Alternative Take on the Vancouver Olympics
February 13th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, Urban archipelagos
The recent protest made me think of this poster, which I spotted in the excellent MacLeod’s used bookstore in downtown Vancouver last summer.
Tokyo’s Building that Tweets
February 8th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, Novelty, Obsessed with Japan, Urban archipelagos
Tokyo is on my top three list of places to go to next, and this kind of innovation is part of the reason why. According to Buzz-Beast’s helpful summary: looking at the building through the app can “display up to date shop information, interactive advertisements and even display the tweets that are coming out of the building.” Crazy, but kind of awesome.
Tags:dreamscapes·hyperbole·iPhone·Japan·Japanese design·Tokyo
Metrosexual Is to Vampire as Lumberjack Is to Wolfman
February 7th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, Novelty, Urban archipelagos, Wary of the advice of others
New York Magazine is cracking me up with their guide to how to actually go outdoors.
As a former East Coaster, I used to think going for a hike meant a walk down a paved pathway in a park, so I get where they’re coming from.
But now that they’ve also created a guide to the Urban Woodsman — the omnipresent look for most of Portland’s men for quite some time, from what I can tell (see also the Doug Fir Lounge).
“A Neighborhood That Gets It”
January 25th, 2010 · No Comments · Blog posts by Lia, Novelty, Tasty treats, Urban archipelagos
Even though Seattle is gloomy, rainy, blah blah blah, there are only a couple of other places in the world I’d like to live. And by and large, those places are gloomy and rainy too. But at least here we have great restaurants (yes, beyond just hot dogs), great parks, and great shops.
According to this article in the local paper–admittedly not exactly hard-hitting journalism–it’s an example of “density done right.”
