Saturday, Sept. 22, is International CAR-FREE DAY so park the automobile, don a comfortable pair of sneakers, enjoy San Juan (or any city you happen to be in) on foot. A walk from Ocean Park to Old San Juan takes about two hours, maybe less if you walk fast. And what a grand tour of the city it is! From residential Ocean Park, with its pretty homes and leafy streets, to touristy Condado with its glitzy hotels, then cross Dos Hermanos Bridge to reach Isleta de San Juan and coast along Muñoz Rivera Avenue with the vast blue Atlantic Sea spread out against the sky until finally you reach Plaza Colón, the entrance to Old San Juan. Once there, reward yourself with a nice cool refreshment: perhaps a glass of Corona, or an artisanal beer, but make sure it is bién fria! If that's too much exercise, try a bus trip. Bus service along Ponce de León Ave. is a lot more dependable than on alternative routes and a ride to the old city on the Metrobus line is a breeze on week-ends when traffic is at its lowest. Bus rides can be lots of fun too and another good way to see the city.
Wikipedia estimates that more than 100 million people in 1,500 cities throughout the globe will participate in CAR-FREE DAY, an international initiative designed to motivate people to experience the city with fewer cars. A great idea, now how about making it a reality?
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| Photography by Denise Blasor If I couldn't walk far and fast, I think I should just explode and perish. Charles Dickens |
Bici Resuelve Wheel Power
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| Photography by Jennifer Rose Sarraga Bici Resuelve Entrepreneur Zoraida Lopez on her way to make a delivery |
Bici Resuelve (a loose translation is Bicycle Gets It Done) is the brainchild of former computer systems analyst Julio Molina and former library assistant Zoraida Lopez. When the couple decided to start up a business, they didn't have to look too far or wide for an idea. As bicycle buffs, they already spent a lot of time riding around the city, often doing favors for friends who needed things picked up or delivered. Which got them thinking: why not make money doing something they already were doing for free?
In business for nearly one year, Bici Resuelve is managing to hold its own. It's a tough business, all right, but you won't find Zoraida complaining. The most you'll get her to say is that all that pedaling under the hot sun is hard work and yes, it does take a lot of energy. Luckily, the duo has plenty of vim and vigor, not to mention enterprise and dedication.
The concept for the business is neat and simple. Both Zoraida and Julio do errands or deliveries for businesses and individuals: like pick up a take out order from a restaurant, medicines from the pharmacy, groceries from the supermarket. They'll buy items for you at a store, take your clothes to the cleaner, deliver a gift to a friend, bring over a package or anything else as long as it does not weigh more than 30 pounds, which is the maximum each of their bikes can accommodate safely. The duo covers a wide swath of territory: Miramar, Condado, Ocean Park, Punta Las Marias, Santurce, and Milla de Oro (Hato Rey's Golden Mile sector). They are available from 8 a.m. to midnight, every day of the week.
"It doesn't matter what you need. Bici Resuelve will hunt down the items you need and deliver them right to your front door," says the Facebook page on which the duo advertises its service. The page brims with pictures of a wide variety of businesses whose products Bici Resuelve will glady deliver to your home (Businesses don't pay for this free advertisement, by the way). Other ways the duo have of marketing their service is word-of-mouth and a very simpatico bookmark-style flier that features an illustration of a man pedaling the high-wheeler bicycle popular in the 1880s (the bike was also known as penny-farthing because the front wheel was larger than the rear one, much like the penny was larger than the farthing).
The cost of the service is so moderate it is practically one of the best deals in town: just $5 per delivery, meaning that if several people are ordering take-out from a restaurant, the cost of getting x-number of meals delivered to a single address is only $5 (each additional stopover is an extra $3). Should Bici Resuelve have to pick up specific items at a supermarket or other store, it will not charge for this part of the service but the client must reimburse the cost of the purchase upon delivery, in addition to paying the $5 delivery charge. So far the duo has not had any problems with this arrangement, according to Zoraida. Payment is by cash or, if you pay by check, there's an extra $2 fee.
Tips are welcome.
A sociologist and librarian by training, Zoraida said she spends her downtime in between delivery jobs reading books about her favorite topics such as urbanism, natural medicine, the environment and health. A vegetarian, she also cooks, makes soaps and is a dedicated recycler who recently organized a Facebook group in which members recycle, exchange or give away possessions. "I like to know that people interchange things and are not throwing away items that still have some use."
BICI RESUELVE Facebook.com 787.671.7410
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| Photography by Denise Blasor "Getting lost is the only place worth going to." Tiziano Scarpa |
HOT WHEELS
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| Courtesy of Wikipedia |
bike fever for some time now and the
latest brand to make a big hit is the
Brompton Bicycle. Selling points: it is
foldable and portable.
"Many people are intimidated by bikes
that look too complicated or too sporty,"
said Gabriel Olmo, exclusive dealer
for the British-made bike which he
started selling eight weeks ago out of
his Condado store, Go Alternativo.
With the Brompton, "you
don't have to be an athlete."
The bike is simple to handle, taking as little as 15 to 20 seconds to unfold and get ready for the road. Weighing between 20 and 28 pounds, Brompton is available in various designs, each featuring a different handlebar style, and it suits riders of different heights, from 4" to 6.7"tall. It doesn't come cheap but then these are bikes that Brompton takes pride in building by hand from scratch. Models start at $1,100. Those seeking a less expensive option might want to consider the Dahon folding bike with prices between $600 and $1,100. Olmo plans to add a third brand but this folding bike will feature an electric motor.
If you'd like to try out the Brompton, all you have to do is call Olmo at 787.998.7433. He is available every day of the week by appointment. The only day that Go Alternativo is open to the public is on Saturday.
GO ALTERNATIVO, #1129 Ashford Ave. 787.998.7433
(The store is located on the same block as La Concha Hotel in Condado.)
© 2012 Lorraine Blasor All Rights Reserved☼
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