At long last I Like Local* is based at home in Ireland again, and what a pleasure that is! Though the summer, with all its Danish and Scottish adventures, was Supernice, it's great to be home to assume my role here as a freelance visionary (my current favourite made-up job title: altogether more positive-sounding than "floundering graduate", which I went with for a while).
And look! The sun is shining and Dublin Bikes are launched! Enjoying Dublin just got easier with the roll-out of 450 shiny bicycles to be found at 40 stations from one canal to the other. My only previous experience of city bikes was in Aarhus, where the bikes are handy but uuuugly, and Dublin Bikes in stark comparison are really cute in grey and turquoise, chunky and sturdy to make vandalism difficult, and practical with baskets, locks and led lamps on the front. Although they seem a little tricky to pay for at first (you'll need credit card details at the ready, and not all stations are pay stations) they seem like a really positive addition to the city. So far the reception seems good too - 2000 subscribers so far, and 1150 journeys in the first day. They may not seem like such a good idea if they're soon found floating along the Liffey in their dozens, but for now, they get a stamp of approval from me :)
