It was a dream Christmas trip to Soneva Fushi in the Maldives that did it. I hadn't really ridden a bike since my BMX days as a nipper, but cruising around palm-lined, sandy paths and I fell in love with the childish freedom of being on two-wheels.

Back in Blighty and it's a different story; tarmac, traffic, fumes and a lot of swearing. But undeterred, I've been circling bicycle shops and made several attempts at leaping on a Boris. (The very notion!)

There's a colourful bike that keeps tantalizing me. It's by a new brand called Pitango, (named after a zingy South American fruit) founded by two Israelis and a Brit; Oriya - a sous-chef, Ilan - a mountain guide and Simon - a teacher.

While visiting Simon in London, Ilan bought a bicycle and spent his time beaning around on it. On his return to Israel he realized there were no great bikes available at good prices. "So I went to China and Taiwan to source the bike components," explains Ilan, "as ethically as it's possible to do there." The bike parts were then shipped back to be fitted together in the UK and Israel. The first Pitango Bike went on sale in 2011. "And after just two shipments, we were the number one single speed bike in Israel," says Ilan.

To an amateur cyclist, the best thing about these bikes is that they're light and they look pretty. Pitango launches different colours each season and you can build up the colours (different frame, handlebars, wheels) according to your whims. And the brand are committed to supporting local bike shops rather than purely selling online, because, as Ilan says, "There aren't many people who know how to mend a puncture. So after buying a bike, the next most important thing is finding a friendly local shop who'll fix it."

www.pitangobikes.com

Pitango Bikes offered all Vanity Fair A-List members the chance to win a Pitango Bike (from £375). Don't miss out on future offers, sign up to the A-List.

Pairing food and drink in a way that makes you happy - whether it's a burger and Coke or a Dover sole and grand cru white Burgundy - is one of life's simple pleasures. If, however, you are the sort of person for whom the pleasure becomes more and more intense as it gets less and less simple, then you should book yourself (and nine like-minded friends) in for an evening at the new Krug Kitchen at Aveqia.

Krug needs no introduction; Aveqia might. It's a wildly successful Scandinavian operation that has lately opened its doors in London. They prefer not to call it a cookery school, but the fact is you will have to cook and you are likely to learn something while you're at it. The idea is that a team of crack chefs mastermind a Michelin-star-worthy menu and then help you to make it. Guests are divided into teams, each in charge of a different dish. "Liquid inspiration" is, of course, to hand, in the form of Krug's standard-bearing Grande Cuvée, while you slave over a hot stove.

The results are thoughtfully paired with different Krug vintages, in a way that, even if you're used to this sort of culinary matchmaking, will knock your socks off. (Who knew that salted pistachios would hit it off so well with Krug 1998?) The combination of great food and great company - for which you are responsible, after all - is a fantastic start. The addition of great wine into the mix certainly doesn't hurt.

By Steve King

An evening at the Krug Kitchen at Aveqia costs £3,500 for up to 10 people.
Aveqia, 2 St Bride Street, London EC4A 4AD
Tel: 020 3651 2972
www.aveqia.co.uk

I don't know why, but the act of shopping is a lot less fun than it used to be. All that hairing about looking for the dream dress that probably won't change your life can frankly be exhausting and often (in my case) disappointing.

But a sneak preview of the new Chanel boutique on Bond Street and here was a shop I could hang out in. Or even live in.

Okay there's no bed, but there are plenty of (Coco would've approved) tweed sofas. So I could sleep on a sofa, wake-up and head straight to the Beauty 'Try-On' room, get dolled up, a spritz of No. 5 and I'm set for ready-to-wear on the 1st floor. I'd choose a full-length pink lace slip dress (blokes would call it a nightie), lace up bovver boots and a Scottish knit from the current Métiers d'art Paris-Edimbourg collection. So now I'm gussied up, but I need the finishing touches. Back to the ground floor for a clutch bag and sunglasses - plucked off the magnetic wall. (Yes a magnetic wall which all the bags stick to - proper genius).

Then I'd call up my mates, and we'd drink bubbly, try on shoes then wander round gazing at the 23 pieces of contemporary art dotted over all three floors, including a crude oil sculpture that reads 'Chic' by Andrei Molodkin and Collier Cascade by Jean-Michel Othoniel - a massive strand of pearls tumbling through the atrium.

This shop is very, very nice. It's huge, but the inspiration for architect Peter Marino, was Mademoiselle Chanel's Rue Cambom apartment. Hence why the space is chopped into smaller rooms and feels like a place to nestle into. Pity there isn't a bed.

Chanel, 158-159 New Bond Street, London, W1J 6DG
Tel: 0207 493 5040

www.chanel.com