19 JUL 2021 · And here we are., my friends. 14 months after New York City experienced its first lockdown due to the COVID virus. Like everything else, we stopped these 90 second recordings on New York City…because, if you remember, I used to end them with “…until next time, go out there and see the world”. Well, we have not been able to see much of the world recently, have we. So it felt strange. But we are getting back on tracks. One way or another we are getting out of this weird period of our lives. And, boy, what a shock to New York City this pandemic has been! The city that never stops and never sleeps…did stop for the first time ever in its history. And it went into a long forced sleep not knowing even the basics of what lying on a bed actually meant. You will recall me saying you don’t really visit New York City but that it is New York City that takes you for a ride without asking permission. Well, this time you could not even hear New York City. I took the most harrowing pictures I never thought I could have taken. Not even in a movie set I could have imagined a deserted Broadway, empty subway trains, a ghost Wall Street and a silent Times Square. Silence?! That was not even in the vocabulary of newyorkers. These places never stopped. Not during wars. Not even on 9-11. It has been shocking really. It felt as if New York City could not cope with it. Lots of newyorkers left the city. Some of them for good and suddenly. They left with the same hurry like the pioneers during the far west conquest would leave a camp site when they smelled danger. But things are getting better. Restrictions are easing and New York City is reopening. I’d love to think that this was not an induced motionless sleep but rather an hibernation. When animals hibernate they grow stronger and prepare themselves for the next chapter. New York City is an animal and is back with a vengeance. So, when you can, safely, come back to visit New York City. You will see the statue of Liberty standing there and you will hear her say “Come on you, welcome back. Let me take you for a ride!” Stay tuned for a renewed New York City and until next time…well…stay safe and start planning your wanderings around the world.

30 MAR 2020 · New York City is the mecca of cement and metal with its skyscrapers, huge buildings, subway stations and bridges. In fairness, there are also some nice green areas like the gigantic Central Park. However, did you know that actual farms that grow any sort of vegetables have been appearing right in the middle of the city? Yes! The trend has picked up fast and there are now almost 20 farms in the City alone of which 4 just in the Manhattan area. They are appropriately called urban farms. Urban farms are all very different in terms of size, location, and purpose. Some are on roof tops, some others are in between buildings. Some are owned by a small group of individuals, others by companies. However, all urban farms have few things in common that make them unique: -They exist to connect to the community that they serve and they are proud of that; -They teach community kids about agriculture, the respect for nature’s beauty, its pace and the seasons cycle -They tend to use recycled materials and they are almost entirely organic -The largest ones even sell their produce to local markets and restaurants Visiting them during weekends is really a breath of fresh air and authenticity and somehow you forget that you are still in the middle of the chaotic New York City. So, next time you are walking around the five boroughs of New York City and you want to know how vegetables should really taste, remember that you are never too far from a urban farm. Find it, immerse yourself in it, and enjoy it. Stay tuned for new trends from New York City and until next time, go out there and see the world.

11 MAR 2020 · Climate change and rising water levels are not news anymore. What’s new is the renewed spirit of New York City in how to prevent massive disasters to its most vulnerable sections. Over the decades, the once never ending line of buzzing piers all across the shoreline of the East River and the Hudson river have disappeared and have been replaced by the largest financial district in the world, its countless shopping malls and an exploding population. To do that, New York City has been reclaiming land from the sea for centuries. Now, the more regular and stronger hurricanes and rising water levels are reminders that the sea is not just the subject of beautiful landscapes but it can also reclaim what it lost and bring destruction and mayhem. As a countermeasure, structural works will begin towards the end of 2019 to fortify Lower Manhattan: New York City’s oldest and therefore most fragile section, as well as one of its richest. The shoreline of the East River will be extended up to 150 meters with elevated and reinforced land in order to protect the FDR highway, Battery tunnel and many subways tunnels. More flood protection will also be built at the Seaport area as well as at Battery Park City on the Hudson river. The bottom line is that in the next 3 to 4 years, New York City will have changed once again and, we hope, for the better. So, don’t worry if you have not visited it yet. Like its inhabitants, New York City is very resilient and will still be there stronger and bolder posing for your pictures…only this time a little bit further away. Stay tuned for new trends from New York City and until next time, go out there and see the world.

28 FEB 2020 · New York City is the city that famously never sleeps. That’s actually true. People coming and going and their consumption are constant. That brings huge levels of every type of pollution: air pollution, light pollution, noise pollution, and a massive daily production of trash. Thankfully, enough New Yorkers are not insensitive to this man-made disaster. The 4-Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle and most recently refill) are becoming more and more popular on commercials, subway adverts and t-shirt slogans. Refilling, for example, has now entered the shopping experience in few trendy shops of New York City. You go into one of these shops that sell anything from milk, wine, sugar, flour to spices, salts and cookies with your own bottle or jar. You fill it, pay for the content and put it in your recycled shopping bag. This simple activity achieves a lot and is very fulfilling: -it makes you part of the physical experience of packaging -it allows you to decide precisely how much you want to buy -and you will not be overwhelmed by multiple brands staring at you from the shelf -...but, more importantly, you will have done your part in reducing waste. So, next time you cannot sleep in the Big Apple, look for these shops and be part of the refilling revolution. Stay tuned for new trends from New York City and until next time, go out there and see the world.

10 FEB 2020 · Like in other places around the world and within the United States, New York City has recently been involved in legal disputes around what types of cannabinoid are allowed for normal consumption. The most recent twist in New York City is what type of cannabis can be given to our dogs and cats or pets in general. Cannabidiol (cannabidial) (also known as CBD) is a type of cannabinoid. It is found in the cannabis plant but unlike THC, which is found in marijuana, CBD is not psychoactive which basically means that it won't get you or your pets high. In fact, it is claimed that CBD can help our pets with relieving pain, seizures, and separation anxiety and so just in Manhattan alone a handful of pet shops selling CBD has sprung. New Yorkers love their pets. So why not involving them in this fascinating debate which puts different parts of society at odds: youngsters versus oldies, liberals versus conservatives, and people who see pets as an extension of themselves versus people who say...well, maybe enough is enough! Stay tuned for new trends from New York City and until next time, go out there and see the world.

20 JAN 2020 · What is immersive theatre? It is a form of stage production that is gaining more and more interest in Broadway plays whereby the distance between the audience and the performers is blurred. In some cases, for example, members of the audience sit directly on the stage, sometimes even drinking and dining on the stage, becoming basically part of the props, being watched by the other spectactors. In other occasions, actors physically leave the stage and keep on performing in the streets just outside the theatre as they are followed by a camera. What this does is to create an increased sense of real time experience within the real time of a play. The audience is bombarded by different stimuli. The experience goes back and forth from two dimensional to multi-dimensional with a taste of reality show that we are now so accustomed to. The result is always exhilarating although a bit confusing at the beginning. And it is fascinating to see how one of the oldest forms of entertainment tries to keep pace with the sensorial revolution of the digital age. Stay tuned for new trends from New York and until next time, go out there and see the world.