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Honeymoon Over
On Saturday I'll be boxing the bike up and flying back to Hainan.
This bike really has had a honeymoon stage. I've only had it three weeks but it has already gone to four cities in three provinces, travelled to new and exotic locations, been on one boat, an airplane, two cars, a truck, two busses, come inside a number of restaurants, and even spent the night with me in a hotel. It's been to Pudong Development Area, Hongqiao Development, the Bund, The Temple of the Jade Buddha, Shanghai French Quarter, Suzhou, The Garden of the Master of Nets, The Garden of the Humble Administrator, the Jiangsu Provincial Jail, The Suzhou Twin Pagodas, Luzhi Ancient Township Scenic Area, Xixiu Beach, Holiday Beach, Meilan Airport, Xingang Wharfs, and Wenchang. (I didn't actually go inside the Garden of the Humble Administrator. It cost way too much. And finding the Jiangsu Provincial Jail was one of those weird accidental things that happens when you deliberately allow yourself to get lost in strange cities. Really cool looking building though. Traditional rooflines on the guard towers at the corners.) We've been photographed together more than once. Like proper honeymooners. I've had two lowspeed accidents. One in Shanghai with a motorcycle. I was on a three lane road (two bike lanes, one-way for cars) and a car forced me into the wrong way bike lane. No damage to either vehicle. One in Suzhou with another bicycle coming around a corner near the Garden of the Master of Nets. If I hadn't had the toe clips I would have managed to get my feet down before falling over. Biggest problem was convincing the bystanders that I did not need help getting up and was still on the ground because I had to check condition of bike and camera. I've finally succeeding in pulling off all of the unnecessary stickers and bits of tape from the original packaging. Have yet to collect any new unnecessary stickers but I'm on the lookout for appropriate ones. I've collected my first bits of cosmetic damage. One paint scrape came from putting the luggage rack on. Bare metal is visible. The other scrape from lying the bike on it's side to lock it. I take the front wheel off, move it to the back, and use one cable to lock both wheels and the frame to a railing. Another color of paint is visible. The seat is scuffed from when I hit the ground in Suzhou. The white lettering on the headset is just starting to wear off because I put my hand there when walking the bike. I also, somehow, managed to lose the strap from the right pedal and also the nut, bolt, and washer in the left pedal requiring replacement in a slightly different color metal. The a-yi at the apartment where I'm staying in Shanghai even used it as a clothes drying rack to hang my damp underwear on from the washing machine. -M |
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