Londoners Dance Naked

We only just reported on people riding bycicles in the nude, and now Londoners have discovered the joys of partying, clubbing and dancing naked.
Visiting our fellow blog Nudist Day (www.nudistday.com), I discovered that one London nightclub is staging monthly nude nightclub evenings in a purely naturist context, i.e. targeted at people who enjoy social nudity, and with sex strongly off limits.
The organizers of the event - known as Starkers, a British slang term for naked - say it is a roaring success, and attracts all kinds of people interested in a naturist lifestyle. While often, visitors to naturist clubs in European countries are middle-aged or older, the party events succeed in drawing interest from younger people.
The organizers take the right stand that there is no place for sex at their events. People not behaving respectfully toward other partygoers are warned and thrown out, and rightly so. Therefore, only the security people at the club wear clothes, while even the DJs, who play the latest dance music, are naked.
The Starkers event is held at a club the third Friday of each month near Vauxhall underground station, and you can read more details at the web site www.starkersclub.co.uk
If I were passing through London - and unfortunately I have no such plans for the near future - I would love to time my visit with one of the club nights. I also would suggest to the organizers that they franchise the event, so there can be Starkers Clubs all over Europe, in Paris, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, and who knows, one day in Hong Kong and Taipei.
Again, thanks to the web site www.nudistday.com, where you can read the full interview with the organizers.

On Your Bike!

On your bikes! Ready! Set! Go!
But first take your clothes off and maybe put some paint on. That's the essence of the World Naked Bike Ride, scheduled for this coming Saturday, March 10, in many parts of the world.
The event began as a protest against aggressive behavior and waste of energy resources by car users. While that is still the underlying message, the event has turned into a worldwide carnival, especially popular in places like the U.S. West Coast, Australia and New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
The organizers accept complete nudity, but also encourage body painting and artwork to stimulate creativity.
As you could expect, Taiwan is not on the list of places organizing a naked bike ride this Saturday, but maybe in the future it will join in.
While riding a bycicle in the nude in the middle of other traffic and with TV cameras filming away is not your idea of naturism, it is certainly an innocent and fun way of encouraging general acceptance of nudity.
And if you miss this one, there are more opportunities on June 9 and 30. Just check out the organizers' web site, www.worldnakedbikeride.org

Naturist Awards

A lot was made in the Western media this week about an award for the best - or most beautiful - breasts, proclaimed for Mexican actress Salma Hayek. The entertainer was awarded the prize on the strength of a topless performance in a recent movie. I haven't seen that film, but the award of course doesn't mean Miss Hayek is a naturist, though one would hope she is.
One very recent high-profile award-winner who is most definitely a naturist, is Britain's Helen Mirren. As you all know, she won the Oscar or Academy Award for Best Actress, not for her breasts, but for her acting talent in "The Queen." In interviews, Miss Mirren has said she enjoys being naked on the beach with other naturists, even though she doesn't like eating in the buff.
The Oscar winner is only one of many international actors and entertainers who are at least occasional naturists, with Jennifer Lopez, Bruce Willis, Christina Aguilera and Alicia Silverstone among the most recent cases. Penelope Cruz was recently photographed - wearing a bikini - at a nude beach, though she denied being a naturist.
I am thinking of including a more thorough list and celebrity quotes about naturism and nudity in the book I am working on. I can't think of a more effective way of firing up interest in naturism than having celebrities give positive comments.

The 2007 World Handbook

The International Naturist Federation World Handbook for 2007 has arrived!
The guide, which used to stay valid for two years, has a 29th edition that looks slicker and more streamlined, and also less bulky than its predecessors.
What is the World Handbook?
It's a list of mostly official naturist resorts, hotels and campings all over the world, but mostly in Europe and North America - because that's where most naturist resorts are - but also including places like Australia and New Zealand, South Africa, Brazil and Argentina, and the Caribbean.
In the 336-page book, you'll mostly find small colorful maps of where to find the resorts and hotels, with a list of symbols describing the facilities available. The book also contains brief lists of free beaches, has introductions in German, English, French and Dutch, and colorful ads here and there for some of the resorts.
The World Handbook is really a book for the naturist traveler, if you're planning on going to one of the countries listed, and you are absolutely set on finding a naturist resort or beach, this is the must-have guidebook.
The volume was published in Germany, and has a glossy cover showing two people's behinds - one with a deep suntan, one very white - against a perfect blue sky.
The INF handbook will be available in many book stores mainly in Europe, and is available outside by mail from the publisher, Warlich Druck und Verlag, based in the German town of Meckenheim. Its list price is 14.8 euro per copy, though mailing costs have to be computed separately depending on the destination.