In January, Greg Cantori and his wife, Renee, left their Pasadena home for five weeks and rented an apartment in Bogota, Colombia. It was a very different kind of vacation.
The Cantoris were in the final stage of a rigorous adoption procedure, one that required them to take a figurative test drive with their prospective daughter.
Things couldn't have gone better. Eleven-year-old Andrea proved to be the girl of their dreams. Surprisingly, Bogota also stole Greg's heart.
FOR THE RECORD - Matthew Sholler was misidentified in an article in Sunday's Ideas section about efforts to create a Sunday car-free zone in Baltimore. He is director of development and communications at the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy.
The Sun regrets the error.
"I felt like I was in Utopia," he says.
Every Sunday, a 19th-century silence descends upon that mountain city. Some 75 miles of connecting streets are closed to traffic from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. As many as 2 million people pour forth to walk, cycle, Rollerblade, jog and simply socialize in communal peace.
No cars. No pollution. No gridlock. No roar of traffic.
"Ciclovia," as it's known, is the world's biggest block party, an urban transformation that borders on magical.
"It's like everyone puts on a new suit of clothes," says Cantori.
A thought quickly ballooned in his brain: Why not export the idea to Maryland?
Cantori, 46, is executive director of the Knott Foundation, a Roman Catholic philanthropic organization in Hampden and a board member of One Less Car, a nonprofit that promotes a more bicycle-friendly culture.
He frequently cycles the 22 miles from home to work. He's convinced car-crazy America is driving itself into a ditch.
Gas prices creep ever higher. Traffic keeps getting worse. Obesity is on the rise. All of which could argue in favor of trying something akin to Ciclovia in Baltimore.
"My mind's going overtime right now on this," says Cantori, who's writing a pilot-project proposal. "Why can't we have it here? It's not that expensive."
The city Planning Department - mindful of the fact that more than a third of Baltimore households don't have a car - is developing a master bike plan that should be completed this summer. Among other things, the draft calls for creating 32 miles of new bike lanes.
That's good news. But, says Cantori, "I don't think it's gonna change much in terms of people's behavior."
Bogota's Ciclovia is all about changing behavior on a mass scale. The throwback Sundays began more than 20 years ago, initially involving only about four miles of roads. Over the years more miles were added, plus more activities.
