Imagine the money you'll save in one year by driving a Vespa rather than an SUV. It could possibly pay for the bike! Gas prices are rising every day. Get yourself on a Vespa or Piaggio scooter today and start SAVING MONEY!

"Jammin on Julia" is The Downtown Art District's spring outdoor event. Vespa New Orleans will be hosting the "after party" from 9-11pm with live music by Riccardo Crespo & Sol Brasil.

We will also be featuring the artwork of local artist Roberto Torres at
The Gallery Within (the Vespa shop).
Attendance will be limited so come by Vespa New Orleans this week to pick up your invitation.
Don't miss it!

If you would like to be part of "Team Vespa" and collect entries from the Galleries for the drawing of prizes at 9:00pm give Gayle a call 595 6776.

Born three days after his parents arrived in the United States from The Azores Islands, an archipelago about 750 miles off the coast of Portugal, Roberto Santo Cristo Soares lived in New England (more specifically in the city of Fall River, Massachusetts) for the first 40 years of his life. There he worked almost exclusively in theatre as an actor, director, designer, playwright and producer. Deciding, in 1998 to focus on writing, he came to New Orleans for a two year stay in the hopes of discovering what it was about the city that had inspired so many authors and playwrights.

"Like most people I came with a preconceived idea of what New Orleans was all about. I'd read "A Confederacy of Dunces" and "The Grandissemes," Faulkner and Rice and Chopin. I'd seen "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "The Big Easy" and "Easy Rider. What I discovered when I got here was exactly what I expected which led me to wonder if the city really does inspire the fictions that are written about it or if it's the fiction that inspires the city. In the end I think it's a little bit of both."

As his two-year plan stretched into three, four and five Roberto fell more and more in love with New Orleans, a city that was tempering his New England elitism and forcing him to accept the importance of history and culture. Here he rediscovered his Portuguese/Brazilian roots, found his love for the visual, and finally embraced the fact that he is an artist. In 2000 he began creating a series of digital pieces that combined found image with his own photography, embracing an aesthetic that is both accessible and tantalizing.

"New Orleans has taught me, among many things, the importance of the story – everything has a story and it's the story that makes a thing real and important."

In this Post-Katrina Era Roberto is focusing his work on the New Orleans Icon, those iconic images that define the city and have become a part of its folklore. The Sewer and Waterboard covers, the horse heads of the French Quarter, each icon is heightened and reproduced in a way that gives it the weight it so richly deserves in these times of re-definition and re-building.

"Yes, we need to rebuild the city, but lets not throw the baby out with the bathwater, so to speak."

In an effort to continue our support of the New Orleans Police Department, Vespa New Orleans is sponsoring Nelson Savoie's Night Out Against Crime party in August to raise money for the NOPD's 1st District by raffling off a Piaggio Typhoon. The 1st district station, located on Rampart Street, was hit hard by Katrina. Currently the station still does not have air conditioning. All proceeds raised will go directly to improving the work enviornment for the officiers of the 1st District. Tickets are $5 for one chance and 3 for $10 and will be available later this week at Vespa New Orleans or by contacting Nelson at 504-628-5552.

Vespa and Piaggio are the official scooter of the New Orleans Police Department.

Visit the Vespa Baton Rouge tent at the DDD's Live after Five concert series in downtown Baton Rouge on Friday evenings this spring. The concerts are every Friday for the next 4 weeks from 5pm to 8pm in
Galvez Plaza on the corner of 3rd and North Blvd. This week Palo Viejo will perform. See you there!

This week Marcia Ball and Washboard Chaz Blues Trio are performing.
Once again, Vespa New Orleans will provide Vespa parking for the event. Can't wait to see you there!

The black GTS is finally here. This bike joins the GTS lineup of red and silver, and comes with a tan set. The Vespa GTS is a 250cc fuel injected bike. Come by and get yours today!

Light blue is back, and it is going to go fast. This new blue is a beautiful metallic. Don't wait, reserve yours today!

This will be an exciting weekend full of events. In addition to this party being a celebration for our new Julia Street location, it will also fall on the 4 year anniversery of our first day of business. Stay tuned for details.

New Orleans will once again be home to Tales of the Cocktail, a dining and drinking experience that explores the history and spirit of the cocktail this summer at various locations in the New Orleans French Quarter and headquartered at the Hotel Monteleone July 19-23.

Vespa New Orleans is sponsoring Mix it Up on Magazine Street. The event takes place on the 2000 Block of Magazine Street from 6 - 9 p.m. Admission is $15.

Listen to music by local DJs, shop unique boutiques and enjoy a variety of cocktails in a block-party style event.