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A Bicycle Story



 
 
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  #1  
Old September 3rd 03, 01:25 PM
Marian Rosenberg
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Default A Bicycle Story

As I wrote this for my journal/mailing list I thought that it might be
appreciated here as well.

....

On my way out the front door every morning I grab my cycle computer and
my bicycle keys.

The computer has nifty functions like the ability to tell me how fast I
am going. I don't find this all that necessary. The main purpose of
the computer, for me, is to see how far I've gone. My bicycle gets far
more use as something for exercise than it does as something for
transportation. I currently live in the downtown area. This is where
things are happening. Even with my bum leg, I can get to all of the
local places of interest on foot.

I unlock my bicycle and snap the computer into place.

When I am at the school I usually only use one of the locks. It has a
lock built into the bike. There is a second lock that immobilizes the
rear wheel. And the third lock is a cable lock. The second lock gets
used when I am parking in the daylight in an unguarded lot or when I
plan to be somewhere for a good long while. The third lock is only used
when I am parking at night or in an area where I don't trust the safety
of my bike.

Now, I creep out of the school rather slowly while trying to be
unobtrusive. Possibly because of the speeds with which I am known to go
racing through the compound the school has instituted a new rule about
not taking bicycles into the compound during school hours. I'm not
taking the bicycle into the compound during school hours. I'm taking
the bicycle -out- of the compound during school hours.

Once out on the street I head north to start a long, slow, circle around
the block. I could go south and make it to breakfast quicker, but I
like to be going the same direction as the majority of the traffic.

I usually end up almost completely circling the block rather than
waiting for the green light to cross Zhongshan Street at Likang Road. I
normally cross at Pingan Road where the lights change far more
frequently and go back down Zhongshan Street. At the first pedestrian
bridge I turn right into a small alley. This hutong probably has a name
but it doesn't have a sign.

Here I stop my bicycle.

I do not get off.

I order my breakfast from a man whose resteraunt is mounted on the back
of a cargo bicycle. After lunch is over, he will pack up his resteraunt
into the cargo area and bicycle away.

I rest while he makes my bai ji mou. These are a muslim dish originally
from Xi'An. They are basically pita bread baked in a coal fired oven
(also on the back of the bicycle) and filled with chopped meat and hot
pepper.

I eat the first and put the second in my basket.

Now, I bicycle farther down the alley and get sweet fried pastry filled
with red bean paste. This shop is actually in a building - for now.
The block is being knocked down. The one across the street, which sells
the same kind of fried pastries, is only there in the mornings and is
bicycle mounted. It is a big shop. Three bicycles for one resteraunt.

I get my four or five sweet pastries at whichever resteraunt has the
shortest line and bicycle out of the hutong. At no point have I yet
gotten off my bicycle. So far I have spent the equivalent of 37.5 cents
American.

As I go along slowly with the morning rush crowd I periodically reach
into my basket and pull out a sweet pastry. When I am finished the
sweet pastries and am at a traffic light I pull out the now cool pita
pocket. I usually pull to the side of the road to eat this. I can eat
it while moving but have found that I drop an unacceptable amount of the
greasy meat on my shirt if I do this.

Then I bicycle back to the school and park out front among 200 or so
other faculty, staff, and visitor bicycles. The students have their own
bicycle parking area. It's at the back of the school.

-M

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  #2  
Old September 3rd 03, 02:47 PM
Spider1977
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Default A Bicycle Story

Marion,

Which city are you in? My only riding experiences in China have been
fun. But I hate being on those chaotic roads in a car.

When I'm staying in a reasonable size town I always I hire one of those
three wheel cabs. I tell the rider to hop in the back and I do the
pedalling. They absolutely love it, although they tend to panic when I
start having trouble with the weird handbraking contraption. Usually
generates a bit of a crowd and quite a bit of giggling by passing women.
I always pay the driver, cause they really earn their dough.

I've done this in Chengdu, Kunmin, Zhanjiang, Changsha, Xiamen, Yong'an
and quite a few small towns out in the back blocks. It's a great way to
earn a bit of respect and have some real fun with the locals. I've even
had the pleasure of being recognised when I go back to some of these
places. It's nice to have someone greet you out of the blue in a
foreign country.

If it was good enough for Mao to swim in the three big rivers then it's
good enough for me to do some pedalling in China. I've thought about
buying a new bike and then giving it away when I leave as they're only
about $40 each brand new, but I never stay in one town long enough to
justify it.



--
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  #3  
Old September 3rd 03, 05:28 PM
Brendon M. Troy
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Default A Bicycle Story

"Spider1977" wrote in message
...
Marion,

Which city are you in? My only riding experiences in China have been
fun. But I hate being on those chaotic roads in a car.

When I'm staying in a reasonable size town I always I hire one of

those
three wheel cabs. I tell the rider to hop in the back and I do the
pedalling. They absolutely love it, although they tend to panic when I
start having trouble with the weird handbraking contraption. Usually
generates a bit of a crowd and quite a bit of giggling by passing

women.
I always pay the driver, cause they really earn their dough.

I've done this in Chengdu, Kunmin, Zhanjiang, Changsha, Xiamen,

Yong'an
and quite a few small towns out in the back blocks. It's a great way

to
earn a bit of respect and have some real fun with the locals. I've

even
had the pleasure of being recognised when I go back to some of these
places. It's nice to have someone greet you out of the blue in a
foreign country.

If it was good enough for Mao to swim in the three big rivers then

it's
good enough for me to do some pedalling in China. I've thought about
buying a new bike and then giving it away when I leave as they're only
about $40 each brand new, but I never stay in one town long enough to
justify it.


Spider,

What do you do? A friend did the same with cabs in Harbin, and (she
said) caused quite a stir amongst the locals.

Brendon


  #4  
Old September 4th 03, 06:23 AM
Marian Rosenberg
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Posts: n/a
Default A Bicycle Story

Spider1977 wrote:
Marion,

Which city are you in? My only riding experiences in China have been
fun. But I hate being on those chaotic roads in a car.


I'm in Shijiazhuang. It is the capital city of Hebei Province. Kind of
near Beijing.

If it was good enough for Mao to swim in the three big rivers then it's
good enough for me to do some pedalling in China. I've thought about
buying a new bike and then giving it away when I leave as they're only
about $40 each brand new, but I never stay in one town long enough to
justify it.


$40 is for a local higher end bicycle.

My $22 bicycle served me fine all last year.

There are bicycles better than my $58 bicycle but not a whole lot of them.

I don't know how you are travelling through China, but if you take the
wheels off of a bicycle, voila, put it in one of the big tarpaulin bags
and you now have luggage that can be taken on a train or bus or the
Beijing subway.

Just think about the taxi fares you are saving.

-M

  #5  
Old September 6th 03, 03:04 AM
bgaudet0801
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default A Bicycle Story


"Marian Rosenberg" wrote in message
...

Now, I creep out of the school rather slowly while trying to be
unobtrusive. Possibly because of the speeds with which I am known to go
racing through the compound the school has instituted a new rule about
not taking bicycles into the compound during school hours. I'm not
taking the bicycle into the compound during school hours. I'm taking
the bicycle -out- of the compound during school hours.


I absolutely adore your use of semantics in the pursuit of cycling.

--
'Sell your sin
Just cash in' -Jewell


  #6  
Old September 7th 03, 01:40 PM
Marian Rosenberg
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Posts: n/a
Default A Bicycle Story

Spider1977 wrote:
Marian Rosenber wrote:
Spider1977 wrote:
Marion,

Which city are you in? My only riding experiences in China have been
fun. But I hate being on those chaotic roads in a car.

I'm in Shijiazhuang. It is the capital city of Hebei Province. Kind of
near Beijing.
If it was good enough for Mao to swim in the three big rivers then
it's good enough for me to do some pedalling in China. I've thought
about buying a new bike and then giving it away when I leave as
they're only about $40 each brand new, but I never stay in one town
long enough to justify it.

$40 is for a local higher end bicycle.
My $22 bicycle served me fine all last year.
There are bicycles better than my $58 bicycle but not a whole lot of
them.
I don't know how you are travelling through China, but if you take the
wheels off of a bicycle, voila, put it in one of the big tarpaulin bags
and you now have luggage that can be taken on a train or bus or the
Beijing subway.
Just think about the taxi fares you are saving.
-M




M

I was in your town in April this year. I travel to China for business.
I'm a professional forester, so I get to be a visiting guru from time to
time. Most of the time I'm learning as much as the knowledge I'm
imparting, and I'm getting paid to do it!


If you ever find that you are going to be in Shijiazhuang, look me up!
I don't know how much longer I'll be in this city. I have a bad case of
inertia but I also have frustrations and irritations.

I did have a scary experience. My host from SJZ picked me up in his very
big, very black Mercedes limo. On the highway from Beijing the driver
travelled at over 200 kph. This is the fastest I've ever been in my life
on land, and I didn't enjoy it. Especially when passing those
omnipresent, overloaded blue trucks, with there penchant for changing
lanes for no particular reason. But I survived to tell the story.


DBTs or Damn Blue Trucks. They come in all shapes, all sizes, with a
myriad assortment of wheels, and motive powers ranging from electric to
coal ... and the drivers never seem to have a clue about how to drive.

I haven't seen a one wheeled DBT yet but I do not doubt that exists.
And the one that looked like it had two wheels might have had three.
I'm sure if I painted my bicycle bright blue it would give me the mystic
power to forget (or ignore) all traffic rules (or suggestions), to
disregard common courtesy, and to carry amazing loads of stuff.

I've been lucky enough to visit some amazing parts of the country,

snip
lose weight and feel healthier when I'm there. I can do without the
ganbai at meal times.


If you put your foot down about not doing it with alcohol the first time
it is ever offered to you by these people and you continue to refuse to
do it they will honor this. But the first time you do ganbei with
liquor you have lost your exempt status.

Keep those stories from your journal coming. You must be able to go on
some really good rides in the countryside aroung SJZ. The poplars must


I'm preparing for my first countryside ride this weekend. I live
practically at the intersection of Pingan North, Pingan South, Zhongshan
East, and Zhonshan West so it takes a fair amount of travel before I am
not physically inside the city.

I'm going to try bicycling to Zhengding. At 18 kilometers away I think
I should be able to manage.

be fantastic, providing shade in the summer and colour in the autumn.
I'd hate to be there in winter, do you ride your bike then?


I didn't ride it much last winter. I wasn't confident enough of my
ability. I plan to ride this winter.

Local winters are terrible and ugly. A London Fog phenomenon is caused
by wide numbers of people heating and cooking over coal. There were
days when I couldn't see the far side of the compound. Occasionally
there are sudden days of striking beauty that nearly make up for it.

Autumn was great last year. I hope this year's autumn lives up to the
promises end-of-summer is making.

I spent the hottest part of summer in the US, I'm told it rained a lot.

-M

 




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