Our bikes arrived safely from Stuttgart last week, so on friday, we went out to the warehouse to pick them up. Riding the train and bus out there, we were way out of town. But after hopping on the bikes and heading in the general direction of home, the pavement melted under our rubber tires. This place is FLAT. Within an hour, we arrived back to our flat (Flat in Flat town). It really is an ease around here. Bikes are seperated from most major roads with red bricks, and sign posting is generally very good.
That pic shows (from left) the street, the parked cars, the bike path, and the pedestrian area. People are very conscious of the bikes and are rarely in the path, so its smooth sialing as long as the traffic lights dont slow you down. You can easily cover the whole city in less than an hour, and it is great to see all the people out on bikes...next to the Netherlands, this is the most I have seen, and is certainly the flattest place we have ever lived.
On Saturday, we took a ride from our place, down the canals, into the center of town. We rode by the double walled security up the ass American embassey, we saw a traditional German parade in the city center, had a picnic in a Japanese style garden, encountered some psychedelic Mali-an jam band playing at an African festival, came across a Ska/Punk street fair, watched a hot air balloon take off from a park, and had Lebanese food for dinner. All without even trying. We had no idea any of this was going on. Thats what happens in a big, busy city, I guess. Still cant believe the differences to Stuttgart.
Rode my bike to work today...felt great to be back in the saddle. Took less time than the bus and train, even though I got lost. We need a map, for sure...none of these roads are straight! Flat maybe, but not straight.
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