9 June 2009
The Copenhagen Cycle Chic Tokyo Film
Addendum: Vimeo.com has 'issues' at the moment... so the videos may not play.
Right then. Got THIS out of my system. A video of Copenhagen Cycle Chic Goes To Tokyo. Featuring the unsung heroes of bicycle culture, the fine citizens of a city completely saturated by bicycles.
On my last evening of my Cycle Chic tour of Japan I spent about 40 minutes outside my hotel on Shibuya Crossing - the world's busiest pedestrian crossing by the way - and filmed the locals on two wheels on an average Wednesday night.
Tokyo is everything. The fixie fad is at home here but there are scores of bicycle types whizzing past. Mamacharis for kid transport, cruisers, folding bikes, sit up straights, you name it.
Cycle Chic-wise, Tokyo gives Copenhagen a run for her money, what with the uniquely Japanese culture for being impeccably dressed.
Wifealiciousness and I couldn't decide which music was best so I just made two versions. The pop-a-delic one above with Turning Japanese by The Vapors and this version with the theme song from Get Carter, the classic cool film with Michael Caine.
Whatever works for you.
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3 comments:
Ooo, beautiful video. Personally, I much prefer the "Get Carter" version. Maybe because, IMO, it better suits the nighttime vibe. Or maybe just because I never liked that other song all that much. :)
I'm curious, where do people ride in Tokyo? That is, do they mostly ride in the streets, or is there much in the way of bike-specific infrastructure? I ask because I only recently heard that Tokyo was a big bike city, and the person telling me this was saying it managed to be that way without a lot of separate bike facilities.
Are most Tokyo bike riders comfortable with getting out there and mixing it up with cars?
they ride on the streets and on the sidewalks in tokyo.
they are considering how to implement bike lanes, though.
i wouldn't say they 'mix it up' with cars. i rode around the city a couple of weeks ago, on the streets, and didn't feel in danger at any moment.
it's a bike culture, after all. the cars expect to see bikes so they watch out for them.
oh and thanks for the comment about the video. i agree completely about the music and like the 'night' angle you present.
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