Biking in Spain

After the Tour de France finished this summer with a Spaniard winning for the fourth year in a row, NPR ran a story on July 29th about biking in Spain and the correspondent, based in Madrid, reported that people in Spain hardly ever biked to work or to run errands, even though Spain produced the last four Tour winners.

Having grown up in New York City – Manhattan to be exact – I know how easy it is to judge (and mistakenly so) a country by its largest city. In any event, while Madrid is not considered to be at all a biker-friendly city, Spain’s next three largest cities – Barcelona, Valencia and Seville – all are, and people in these cities make good use of their bikes for errands, commuting, leisure and sport. Barcelona and Seville both have incredibly cheap city sponsored bike rental programs (Bicing and Sevici), and Valencia has bike shops on what seems like every 10-20 blocks.

There are of course two big issues in Spain for bikers – sharing the road with pretty crazy drivers, and security. Bike rental shops tend to rent bikes with two! locks included and instruct you on how to lock your bike to make it fairly theft proof. I overheard one potential renter exclaim, “They would steal the seat?” and the bike expert replying, “they will steal anything… and everything if they can.”

There is nothing one can do about the crazy drivers, except be careful and stick to bike lanes and sidewalks, and observe the lights.

If you are planning on using a bike for getting around – take note. In Valencia, bikes are only allowed on the Metro during certain days and hours – all day Sundays and holidays they are allowed as well as AFTER 2pm on Saturdays. Otherwise they are not allowed and if you do bring the bike on during a weekday you will find your self being escorted out of the Metro by the Metro policia – I have seen it happen.

There is great biking to be had in Spain for all levels and for all purposes, and you will definitely not be the only one out if you choose to make it your transport choice.

Bastille Day and Tour du France The Green Way in Limoges, Gueret and more

Happy Bastille Day!
You can hear the podcast to New Hampshire Public Radio's Word of Mouth segment on The Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally in France at http://www.nhpr.org/node/26019.

I am listing here the details on some of the tips I gave on the show.

The Tour du France route on July 14th runs from Limoges (in the Limousin region) to Issoudun (in the Centre region) - 194.5km (about 120 miles) - right through the center of France. See the Tour du France route at www.letour.fr

Health food stores in the area include:
In Limoges (87 Haute Vienne dept):
La Vie Claire, 9 rue Lansecot, 87000 Limoges; Tel: 05 55 307 671
Bonne Terre affiliated stores:
Planete Nature, 15 rue Hoche, 87000 Limoges, Tel: 05 55 796 997 (off Place Marceau)
Rayons Verts, 11 rue Clouet, Limoges, Tel: 05 55 439 583

In Gueret (Creuse # 23):
La Vie Claire, 4 rue de l’Eglise, 23000 Gueret, Tel: 05 55 528 547

In Chateauroux:
Castel Bio, 15 rue Joseph Bellier, Chateauroux, Tel: 02 54 089 144
Espace Bio, Centre Commercial St Jacques, 36000 Chateauroux

There are markets in Issoudun, Bourges, Gueret and other towns. In Gueret market days are Thursday and Saturdays.


Places to lay your head at night include the following "green" lodging:

Holiday Tipis in France has six tipis powered by solar electricity. Open from May 1st to August 31st, they serve local foods for breakfast included in the tipi charge, and optional dinners three evenings a week. Stays range from three to seven days and prices run from 170 to 350 euros per tipi depending upon length of stay. Located about fifteen minutes from Gueret. Holiday Tipis in France, 7 Folbeix, Ladapeyre, Creuse, France 23270; Tel: 05 55 809 026; Email: info@vacanesdetipienfrance.com; Web site: www.vacanesdetipienfrance.com

3 Place de Sarbres is a vegetarian bed & breakfast in a renovated 18th century house in the town of Felletin about 1hr 45 minutes East of Limoges and one hour south of Le Creuse, considered the French Lake District. The apartment ranges from 189-252 euros per week.
Bed and Breakfast rooms are 50 euros a night - vegetarian meals are extra. In Felletin the water comes from the mountains so it is like bottled water from the tap... also there is a micro brewery in the town. www.3placedesarbres.com; info@3placedesarbres.com; Tel: 05 55 665 229

Northeast of Gueret you will find Le Petit Pauliat, a rural gite rented by the week from Saturday to Saturday in a beautiful rural setting with nearby Le Petit Pauliat, 4 Pauliat, 03380 Treignat; Tel: 04 70 070 885; Email: info@pauliat.com; Web site: www.pauliat.com.

For the thermal baths....
Evaux-Les-Bains is a small spa and thermal bath town east of Gueret. More information is at the town web site: www.ot-evauxlesbains.com; and at the Web site for the baths: www.evauxthermes.com

Walking routes include:
One of the Routes to Santiago de Compostela in Spain (Route of St James), runs through the region of Limousin, starting in Vezelay and heading south of Bourges towards Limoges and St Leonard De Noblat - GR 654. ANother walking path is GR 3 - see the Website for both of them at: http://www.ffrandonnee.fr/itineraires/ideesRandos_selection.aspx - click on the map for the area you want.

Parks: Issoudun has city parks and sites
Regional Natural Park is in Brenne just west of Chateauroux between Limoges and Bourges - Web site: http://www.parc-naturel-brenne.fr/parc/ou/index.html

Excursions:
90 km south of Limoges the town of Brive-la-Gaillarde is home to a famous market where you can find local specialties including walnuts, mushrooms, truffles, apples and violet mustard. The market is held on Place du 14 Juillet and Place de Lattre de Tassigny on Tuesday and Saturday mornings from 8am to 12:30pm.

The Limousin region was home to a strong contingent of the French Resistance including the Maquis guerilla resistance fighters who worked to combat the Nazi controlled government in Vichy. In Brive-la-Gaillard you can find the Musée de la Resistance et de la Deportation Edmund Michelet (The Resistance & Deportation Museum), with memorabilia, artifacts and photographs from World War II and the French Resistance. Musée de la Resistance et de la Deportation Edmund Michelet (The Resistance & Deportation Museum), rue Champanatier, 19100 Brive la Gaillard; Tel: 05 55 740 608. Open every day except Sunday and holidays from 10am to 12pm/2pm to 6pm with free entrance.

Organic and Bio-Dynamic Vineyards:
Biovidis is a biodynamic vineyard in Amboise, Indre et Loire - www.biovidis.com

Here's to Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity, not just for the French, but for the planet!

Vermont Local Food and Drink

If you live in Vermont or are visiting for the summer, you can find farmer’s markets and locally produced food throughout the state. The Vermont Agriculture Department has a searchable map on their web site to help you locate farmer’s markets, farm stands, pick-your-own farms, CSA farms, apples, and other Vermont specialty products. See http://www.vermontagriculture.com/buylocal/buy/farmstands_map.html.

At the Web site for the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA VT), http://www.nofavt.org, you can search for organic farms by county or by product. And at the Local Banquet Magazine Web site, you can explore their excellent Links page for a comprehensive list of localvore-local foods Web sites - http://www.localbanquet.com/links.html.

If you are particularly looking for local beer and wine, there are microbreweries and wineries around the state. The Vermont Brewer’s Association has a handy map and list of the local breweries, wineries, and cider houses, see http://www.vermontbrewers.com/tours.html.

If you happen to be driving to Vermont from the south, you can stop in Greenfield, Massachusetts to enjoy The People’s Pint Restaurant & Brewery, open everyday from 4:00pm, committed to serving local food and their own beer since 1997 – check it out on the web at: http://www.thepeoplespint.com.

Happy delicious local eating!

Talk About A Multi-Family Yard Sale!

If you are looking for a different kind of vacation or adventure and are a yard sale fan, you can try scoping out the 654 mile long yard sale! that runs along U.S. 127 from north of Toledo Ohio, down through Kentucky and Tennessee to Gadsden, Alabama. The sale, in its 22 year, runs from August 6-9 and has its own website: http://www.127sale.com.
When you tire of yard sale purchasing you can visit the national parks and historic sites that line the route.
With 654 miles you are bound to find some fun and fabulous items, and for a greener experience, you can bike and avoid some of the traffic headaches.