‘Begin Again’ Video Shows off Paris

Here’s Taylor Swift in a romantic fantasy in Paris. The video has beautiful shots of the city. It really shows the appeal of a living in a place where you can easily stroll, enjoy public squares, and contemplate on a park bench. She’s even got her Cycle Chic going on, riding  an upright bicycle in a dress and heels.

Dutch Urban Design Illustrated

When New Zealander Toby Morris first moved to Amsterdam, he was amazed by the Dutch capital and the easy way of life of its inhabitants. So much so that he was inspired to draw a black-and-white illustration almost every day for a year of a different aspect of life in this charming city. He put these together in a book called Alledaags, which means “everyday” in Dutch. Maybe it’s everyday for the Dutch, but unfortunately many other places in the world don’t enjoy this wonderful way of life–cycling, sidewalk cafes, urban green spaces, walking, taking public transport–because their cities aren’t designed in a way that allows it. Many thanks to Toby for sharing his art so more people can see what it’s like to live here.

Alledaags

 

 

Midnight in Paris

Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris shows the best features of European urban design–cafes, parks, markets, places to stroll, small winding medieval streets…

 

Space Pirate in Creative Cities

The true-life story of how Apple developer Mike Lee chose Amsterdam to start the community of Appsterdam. The Space Pirate takes all of the best parts of cities around the world trying to make the perfect creative city–safety, tolerance, health care, cycling infrastructure, art, public squares, markets, cafe culture, innovation. But it was missing one key ingredient–gezellig. And he found it in Amsterdam.