...a while ago now, there were two people who had a ride to the beach. The sun was shining and the weather was excellent. The autumn breeze was refreshing as they rode down the cycling lane next to Paral·lel Avenue in Barcelona. Then, at the end of the avenue, they turned right and there they were, the end of Les Rambles with its Columbus statue pretending to signal America but signalling...France? Italy?
They turned left and cycled next to the sea, bordering Port Vell' ('Old Dock'). The white boats and the sun reflecting on the water were a delightful sight. It was impossible not to take a picture.
After a few shots, the riding continued. People walked, talked and lingered calmy on the seaside, enjoying their time. Finally they got to La Barceloneta and left the bike. It was time to walk for a while now, accompanied by the fading lights of the sunset. A wonderful Sunday afternoon.
Whenever I think about city-cycling I think about the German campaign Radlust which deals with the promotion of federal cycling traffic. The term "Radlust" could be translated to "the joy of cycling". The aim of the campaign was to -- literally speaking -- mobilize the unused potential of the bicycle in cities (nearly all households in Europe own at least one bicycle) by remembering their owners about the pleasure of movement:
>> If you want to build a ship, don't drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea. << (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry)
Whenever I cycle on the weekend myself, try new bike routes or generally explore areas that I have never been to before by bicycle, I too feel this enthusiasm and pure joy of cycling. Last weekend was one of these occasions...
I put on my new stripy jersey dress, carried Paula up from the basement and set off for the unexpected. Also with me, a map printed from anachb.at (useful Viennese-area route planner), sunglasses, a hat and some of my cameras.
One of the last places I've seen in India was Jaipur. It was a real treat after the stressful time in Delhi. Although there was a huge crowd of taxi drivers waiting and hassling me at the train station, the city itself was very relaxing.
To be honest, I did not like Delhi. It's a stressful, noisy, overpopulated and dirty city. The whole place is covered in a thick pall of smog. The streets are filled with mostly men, and a lot of them are shamelessly staring at women. Not a pleasant place to be.
Maybe my bad experience is also connected to our arrival. One of the first things that happened -- even before we reached the hotel -- was a taxi breakdown in the middle of a busy street. It was hot, dirty and uncomfy. And it seemed to take forever to get out of this straining situation.
Beep! Beep! Apart from left-hand traffic this is the first thing one notices after coming to India. It’s the cars, autorickshaws and motorbikes blowing their horns on the crowded roads. Unlike Europe, however, this noise level does not indicate stress or anger. People honk for various reasons -- before and while overtaking, to indicate a turn, before stopping or changing lanes.
It's really amazing. On the weekend the temperatures went up, the sun returned after a few months of just gray sky -- and suddenly there are many many more cyclists to be seen on the roads. Spring time kicks in, yeah!
Today I even decided to cycle without a cap and without gloves. The wind in my hair just felt so lovely. Oh, how I missed that! On the other hand, my hands got really cold. On the way back from uni I wore some thin gloves again...
Truly amazing to see the bike paths in the rush hour. It's bike blossom time! Yeah, baby :).
And you're really cool if you find a chewing gum that matches your bike ride.
Actually I wanted to write about the snow biking conditions in Vienna these days, but my camera just gave up now. You'll have to wait at least till tomorrow for some pictures, sorry :(.
On the other hand, I picked up my visa for India today. Seems like some contrast at first. But it reminded my of a bike story I had read a while back in an Austrian newspaper:
Uwe Walter and Christian Sattelkow planned to spend 10 months on their bikes, starting from Graz in Austria and with destination India. The cycled in boiling heat and rain, conquered deserts and mountains, dealt with breakdowns, communication difficulties, diseases and accidents. Along the way they explored countries they didn't know yet. Altogether they wanted to cycle about 15.000 km. And all they took with them were two bikes and 30 kg of luggage each. They set of in Graz on the 17th of May 2009.
Some of their impressions in Turkey:
Unfortunately, Christian got sick in Turkey and Uwe did not want to ride through Iran all by himself. Still, Uwe decided to fly to Delhi instead and explored some places in Nepal and India by bike. Sounds like some adventure, doesn't it? If you're interested to read more about their journey, then visit their blog on derStandard.at (sorry, only in German): "Mit dem Rad nach Indien".
Another cyclist on the Mahendranagar Highway
Street in Bihar
Still, I won't go to India by bike. Nor anywhere else in the near future. My bike is mostly my local transport, but not my roving vehicle :). Got any (bicycle) traveling plans yourself?
The title is a literal translation of a German saying. But it's not about big words this time. It just came to my mind when I was cycling in the morning sun on the weekend. Inspired by Filigree's post, I took a picture of myself -- well, my shadow -- too ;-).
Very cool freehand cycling ...
... and an older pic from above
I will try to get some better shots in the future. However, I do recommend to take such pictures while cycling on a quiet bike path and not in the middle of the rush hour on a busy road ;-).
There are more and more cyclists on the road these days. It's lovely -- sunny and warm. And sometimes I don't even have to ride up that hill on my own. Today I followed that woman in a flowery shirt and skirt. She did ride a bit close to the parked cars and her chain was crunching, which tells me that she's only on the bike for a short time. But well, good to be out, riding into the evening sun, isn't it? ;-)
More cyclists? More about how to count cyclists this weekend..
