Gadling + BootsnAll – Picks of the Week (4.3.09)

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Another Friday is upon us, and we’re back with another round of weekly picks from our friends at BootsnAll, the independent travel experts. What strange stories, great lists and secret travel tips caught our eye? Take a look below and find out:

  • ABC’s of Study Abroad – spending a semester abroad has become an increasingly popular option for university students in recent years. Aaron Shew gives us a rundown of great tips on the whole process, covering everything from why to do it, where to go and how to make it work for you. If you’ve ever thought about studying abroad, here’s where you can take that first step!
  • Secret Wine Country – European regions like Bordeaux and Tuscany are synonymous with vineyards, tastings and great wine. But did you ever think to try a few bottles in the Ukraine? Or in Hungary? Eileen Smith fills us in on six unexpected Eastern European hotspots where you can try a few unique vintages.
  • Cave Culture – the first reaction of most people to word “cave” is not great. Pitch black spaces, flying bats and freezing cold water all suggest caves are not particularly great places to hang out. But as Deanna Hyland points out, caves are actually fascinating places to visit, filled with amazing rock formations, unique human history and fascinating wildlife. Take a look at her list of 12 Exciting Caves to Explore around the world.

That’s all for now – see you again next Friday for another installment of our ongoing Picks of the Week series. Stay tuned.

Undiscovered New York: Flea market mania

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Here at Undiscovered New York, we often find ourselves wondering why our city is so expensive. It’s usually the first question from friends and family who come to visit us here in New York, and truthfully, they’re kind of right. Want a beer? That’ll be $7 (plus tip). Headed to a Broadway show? $60 for the cheap seats. Hotel room? Unless you’re staying at the Hotel Carter, expect to pay at least $100-$200 per night.

But as New Yorkers will tell you, there’s plenty of places to get a bargain if you know where to look. That is especially true when it comes to weekend flea market hunting, the city’s unofficial hobby. Whether it’s vintage clothing or costume jewelry, antique furniture or formica countertops, rare vinyl or a delicious vanilla pastry, New York’s flea markets offer a little something for everyone. And the best part is, New York’s vibrant community of artists and independent craftmakers ensure there’s just as much new merchandise for sale at flea markets as there is old gems.

So forget about blowing your vacation savings at Saks Fifth Avenue or down in SoHo. This week, Undiscovered New York is taking you inside some of New York City’s best flea markets and telling you where to find them. Click below for our picks of the best.
Annex / Hell’s Kitchen Flea Market
For the past 15 years, one of New York’s best flea markets was along 24th and 25th street in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood. That all ended in 2008, when rising rents forced the market to close and move shop. Thankfully, the change has been for the best, combining the fantastic variety of Chelsea’s once thriving vendor scene with the Hell’s Kitchen Flea Market on West 39th Street.

The market now combines an enormous range of items, everything from African tribal artifacts to Mid-Century Modern furniture to fine silver. It’s one of the first stops for the city’s bargain hunters and those on the lookout for a truly unique item to decorate their apartment, in New York or beyond.

Brooklyn Flea
True to the quirky and eclectic tastes of its neighborhood’s residents, the Brooklyn Flea is among the newest additions to New York’s wide array of weekend shopping markets. First opened in 2008, this smallish market is held each Saturday in the courtyard of Fort Greene’s Bishop Laughlin Memorial High School and during colder months at two smaller “pop-up” markets in DUMBO. Don’t let the size fool you though – what this market lacks in size it more than makes up in a very well curated selection of items and great food.

In addition to a great selection of vintage records, the market stocks a nice mix of interesting vendors selling home furnishings, jewelry handcrafted by local artisans and some of the best food this side of the East River. Even if you’re not the shopping type, it’s a fun place to spend a weekend afternoon chowing down on a delicious taco and checking out the crowd. If you want a unique New York souvenir, check out the vendor who sells vintage tin ceiling tiles!

The Market (Nolita)
Each weekend, a crowd of visiting trend hunters descends on Nolita, a hip neighborhood “North of Little Italy” that is home to a large number of boutiques and unique businesses. But before they browse Nolita’s sometimes pricey shops, New York City bargain-hunters head straight for The Market, a weekend market for young designers on Manhattan’s Mulberry Street. Unlike the Annex / Hell’s Kitchen market, Nolita’s The Market is all about brand new stuff. It’s also a great place to find unique one-of-a-kind items like clothing and bags you can’t find anywhere else.

Add a propeller to your car if gas prices start to rise

by Jamie Rhein on

Okay. First of all, I really don’t know if a propeller on your car will help with fuel economy–actually, it might make fuel economy worse, but you have to admit it’s a funky idea. My buddy, Greg Phelps, one of the art car gurus in Columbus, sent along this link to Dark Roasted Blend, a website devoted to “weird and wonderful things.” In December there was a post on cars with propellers.

As it turns out, the idea goes way back. In the 1900s, the military designed cars with propellers on them. One of them, the Sizaire-Berwick Wind Wagon was an armored vehicle. It looks like it would do some real damage to a chicken that happened to get in its way.

According to the post, propeller driven cars start out slow, but can get up to 170 mph. One of the drawbacks, besides the fact that the propellers look like an accident waiting to happen, a shredder on wheels, is that cars with propellers are a bit loud. Just what neighbors would like to hear early in the morning, I’m sure.

If you’re looking for a way to finance a trip, I wonder if some company would be interested in a bit of advertising. You could get one of those magnetic car signs, slap it on the side of the car and hit the road. Might be fun.

The Dark Roasted Blend post is filled with photographs and descriptions. I loved the vintage ones the best. With the snow still falling across much of the U.S., here’s a post I wrote last March about Greg’s art car. It fits the occassion. You’ll see what I mean.

VintageMaps.com

by Adrienne Wilson on

Maps are the sort of thing to get real geeked out about and that’s exactly what happened when I stumbled upon this Vintage Maps site. I pretty much flipped my wig. Reading maps is a skill I’d like to develop more and become a pro at doing, but until that time there’s nothing wrong with collecting a few here and there. Looking at vintage and antique maps and the way someone saw the world from who knows what view is something to marvel.

This antique map of Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey in Asia looks very different to me, but it could just be the small photo size of the map. If you’ve got a favorite region of the world it might be worth getting one of these vintage pieces for your library in addition to the maps of the modern world. They’re a little pricey in comparison to the maps you would use on the road today, but I’m sure worth every penny.