Unox to go

Any normal school day I pass the railway station of 's-Hertogenbosch.
In the summer, on very warm days I like to buy a Swirl  (ice cream with toppings you like).Nowadays it's to cold for ice cream, so they invented..



picture: by myself

What is it?

From November till May Swirls is transformed to Unox.  You can get here their famour Unox sandwiches and pea soup. Nice and warm when you're hungry and have to wait for you train. (which happens to often in the Netherlands) The store itself is small but efficent, and looks very nice.

picture: google - picasa

Why is it cool?
As you can see on the picture (unfortunately, my BlackBerry doens't take quality pictures..) it looks very nice and cozy. This indicates that little bit more experience. (read: experience economy) The particular thing about it is the contrast of the conviviality of Unox and the boring look along with the people in rush at the railway station. Another delicate thing about this concept is that you can get here a warm an healthy meal, which you can't get anywhere else on the station. It isn't the healtiest food on earth, but hey it's always better than a bag of fries ;)

Caire

Last week we had an guest-college at school, from the Caretakers, Coen and Maaike.

These two people have been ill by themselves, and they noticed they could really use some more help, during their illness and rehabilation. The demand for care is huge, bigger than the group op healthproffesionals. Another problem is the low budget for care in the Netherlands

What is it?

The caretakers are working at a new care platform, Caire.

You can ask and offer here your help. This is an example of how Caire works:

''Els is a single mother with breast cancer. She has a problem, because tomorrow she has to go to the hospital for her fourth chemotherapy treatment, but she hasn't any form of transportation.

''Els' friend told her http://www.caire.nu . Els decided to register to try to solve the problem.
Els is now using the social network to demand for transport. Els can choose who can see the questation. For instance, only friends of family or people in the neighborhood. Or everyone who registered on Caire.''

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''Joop is retired and he wants to do something for the society, occassinally and not on a regular base.
Joop also decided to apply http://www.caire.nu . Joop loves driving and he indicates that he would like to help people who need transportation.''

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''Joop is retired and do not mind occasionally do something for society, but not on regular basis. He also has logged on www.caire.nu. Jake loves driving and indicates that he would like to help people who need transportation.''

.

''Caire liks patients and helpers. And so, Joop and Els linked. Both of them receive an message automatically. They can indicate whether they agree this service. Once that's done, Joop is ready to take Els to the hospital.''

The people who gives the help get a reward. The patient may give the caregiver star rating. With that system others users of Caire can see the good experiences from the pratient. The caregiver also receives flags in exchange for his help, with this flags he can get discount on his health insurance for example.

Why is it cool?

I think this is very unique, because it's a big network of help askers and givers all over the Netherlands. The patient don't have to worry if the caregiver really wants to help him, otherwise he had not offered his help to Caire. Caregivers can do something for the society, in their own spare time.

I think it's very cool that their is something developed in our society, trough Web 2.0 (social media), where help can me exchanged. So, the social network even has affect on people's health.

This is an great initiative by Coen and Maaike, and I wish them all the succes in the further developing of Caire!

Diet2go

I spotted the Diet2go app this weekend, when I was looking for some nice apps in the android store for my dad's HTC desire. I have a blackberry, so there aren't many apps I can use *sadface*. This app is available for android phones, Iphones and soon for Ovi phones.

What is it?
In these days, many people are too fat and have too much weight. Many people are working on that with a diet. But in these days people are always busy, so somethimes it's difficult to think about dieting. Meantime, many people have smartphones, which they use all day.

Using this app can help you to keep you motivated.

You have to answer a couple of questions and after that you can choose a diet.

Every week there are new food schedules, and you can make an online shoppinglist.

And last but not least, the program gives you many tips and tricks for weightloss, which can motivate you.

Why is it cool?

I definitely think this free, English, diet-app is a great invention. Because it’s simple, fast and you’ll have it always with you.

This app is available in the Android market and in the iTunes store.

Experience Economy

As I told you before, I study International Lifestyle.
In this block, which is Leisure, it's mostly about experience economy.
Before I am going to share my coolhunts with you, I will explain what experience economy really is.

"Experience Economy is a similar term for the economy, which is not just the product or service, but with a product or service associated experience."

So, It is the experience which adds that little bit extra to product or service. Something you'll never forget.

I hope you will enjoy reading the coolhunts which are comming, and I'll keep you updated!

Love,
simone

Hey you!

Hey you!

Welcome to my new blog, From the City,
I'll introduce myself a little bit and I'll tell you why I started this blog.

I had a couple of blogs before, the last one is called Estilo de Vida(http://estilodevida.punt.nl). The reason I started this blog is my study, but I'll tell you more about that later.
My name is Simone, I'm almost 18 years old and I come from a little village near Den Bosch (The Netherlands). I'm searching for a nice room or appartment in Tilburg. Last year I got my Havo diploma and now I'm studying International Lifestyle in Tilburg. So far, I like it. We have a very very nice class, so I'm happy!
I like shopping (who doens't?), reading, be active on forums, running, partying, cooking, doing things with friends, listening music, chilling, eating and travelling. I am a bit lazy too. My friends are very important to me, so is my family!

About my study, it's an international study based on trends and concepting in various factors: Appearance, Leisure, Human Movement, Health, Food and Living. And guess what, those are the things I really love! On this blog I will keep you updated about new concepts and my study.
I hope to see you often!

With love,
Simone