Time is Nothing
30th January 2012
Time is Nothing is not your usual timelapse.
17 Countries. 343 Days. 6237 Photographs. You’ll recognise a lot of the landmarks, and the landscapes are beautiful, but the cool thing is how much of the video is focused on people and how gorgeous the music is.
I loved seeing so many of the places we’ve been and it made me want to go to the ones we haven’t yet. Read more about Kien Lam’s travels here.
Definitely worth a watch.
(Thanks Dad)
CommentLion Dance 舞狮
27th January 2012
Here’s some New Year Lion Luck on a Friday afternoon courtesy of my awesome Dad.
(Thanks Dad)
Kung Hei Fat Choi
26th January 2012
So here we are in the Year of the Dragon. Symbolising Yang and the male half of the universe, the Dragon is the only legendary animal of the Chinese Zodiac and considered to be the luckiest of all the zodiacs.
Happiness, wealth, longevity and Sun Leen Fai Lok to all my family and friends in Hong Kong!
GreenZero Chargers
18th January 2012
Eco-friendly chargers are nothing new, but I thought these GreenZero charges by Bracketron were particularly cool. Green for the home, black for travel.
They detect when your device is fully charged and in turn shut off the incoming power. Good for the environment, good for you.
(via Werd)
Lantern Love
11th January 2012
This photo of the Loy Krathong festival in Thailand makes me wish I was there. Beautiful.
blackbox
4th January 2012
A few years ago we spent a month in Oaxaca over New Year and it was one of my favourite places in Mexico by a mile. With a beautiful zocalo, gorgeous old buildings, quirky shops, fun bars and great restaurants, there was also a really cool art and graffiti scene with awesome stencils and images pasted all over the city walls.
This morning an article in Dwell caught my eye and I found myself reading a great story about a studio-cum-shop in Oaxaca called blackbox.
blackbox finds and collaborates with local artisans who use ancient techniques to churn out the same woven rugs, wooden carvings and pottery pieces again and again for uninspired tourists. By helping them bring their designs up to date and to use design as “a tool for social improvement”, new products (that wouldn’t look out of place in the MOMA store) are created using craftsmanship that’s been around for centuries.
I love the idea of developing these crafts – it helps ensure these techniques are not lost forever while producing some awesome new designs along the way.
Industrial designer Gustavo Fricke who opened blackbox says the shop’s overarching goal is: “To build trust and working relationships with these communities and give them a new channel for their work. I want the younger generation to feel proud of their skills, to realize: “Shit, man, this is cool and I made it. I learned this from my grandpa, and now this is giving me my bread.” “
Very cool.
(via Dwell)
The Art Of Flight
16th December 2011
Last night we went to watch The Art Of Flight which was being shown as part of the Wavescape 2011 Surf Film Festival. If you want a movie that literally takes your breath away, this is the one for you.
Just as good (if not better) than That’s It That’s All, Travis Rice and his RedBull/Quiksilver crew travel from Alaska to Patagonia in search of the perfect ride. Completely awe-inspiring, the most stunning scenery and jaw-dropping snowboarding that will blow your mind, this is what life is all about.
AM.azing.
Volvo Ocean Race
8th December 2011
Last night we saw the Camper yacht down at the V&A Waterfront because the teams taking part in the Volvo Ocean Race are in Cape Town until the 12th December.
One of the most extreme around the world sailing races, the race began in Alicante, Spain in October and will finish up in Galway, Ireland in July next year. Sailing 72,000kms through some of the world’s most dangerous stretches of ocean, these 11 man crew’s must be about as hardcore as they come.
This lovely infographic designed by Column Five Media can be viewed over on NOWNESS to help you get a better idea of what these guys are up against.
Sketchtravel
30th November 2011
I never heard about Sketchtravel before, but after reading about it this morning I fell completely in love with the project.
The red sketchbook was passed between 71 artists in 12 countries over 4 and a half years. The list of artists and illustrators is impressive (Quentin Blake, James Jean, Taiyō Matsumoto to name a few) but it’s the idea that this little book was travelling for all that time that makes me smile – and that they managed to auction it off for $96,000, all of which was donated to Room to Read, a awesome charity that helps kids learn to read. Sold.
The beautiful video was put together by Sketchtravel and is totally inspiring and well worth a watch.
You can read more about Sketchtravel here or buy the book from here (which has just been added to the top of my christmas list).
(via MatadorNetwork)
Wrap Up
29th November 2011
How awesome is this Pendleton Glacier National Park Blanket? I found it over on the National Geographic Gift Guide and although it’s expensive at $178, it’s also been in production since 1916. Good old fashioned design at it’s best, which says enough for me.
Get yours here.
Not For Parents: The Travel Book
28th November 2011
We’ve bought loads of Lonely Planet books over the years and they’ve always been amazing in helping us on our travels, however in the Not for Parents: The Travel Book you won’t find bus schedules, advice on restaurants to try or be able to work out which hostel has a better bar.
Written especially for kids aged 8 – 11, it features weird and wonderful foods, strange historical facts, cool stories and tonnes of information to get those little creative juices flowing. Every country has a whole page dedicated to it and I can’t think of a more awesome way to teach kids about travelling and the world we live in.
Portaledge Hanging Tent
4th November 2011
This looks like fun! I know my friend Nick would go crazy for one of these Portaledge tents to take rock climbing.
Hanging from a cliff with a view like that would be pretty spectacular – as long as you remembered to zip up the door before you went to sleep!
(via LikeCool)
