Welcoming another bike (or two) to the fold...

Folding bikes, of course. 

Since my Dahon Vitesse, although beautiful and a dream to ride, is not suitable for taking on an airplane as a piece of regular checked luggage, I had to start again with my search. This time we decided to go the secondhand route, so we searched Kijiji. By this time, Hubby was convinced that folding bikes were a good idea, so we ended up buying two older Dahon bikes with the sixteen inch wheels. 





Mine, which I have christened "Kleine Fiets," is made of gleaming stainless steel and folds to an unbelievably small size. It came with its own softside carry case. Once I got used to the tiny wheels, it was surprisingly comfortable and fast. One problem, though -- the Sturmey Archer 3-speed internal hub isn't working quite right. I can't shift into the lowest gear. But for riding around town, without any significant hills, it was just fine with only the two gears. I tested it on a 10 km ride and even rode up the little -- but very steep -- hill on the trail behind our house. No problem!

From looking at photos online, we figure this is one of the very early Dahons, from the 1980s.

The other is also a Dahon, subtitled Piccolo, and it is considerably newer. It doesn't have the angled bar that is on the older model and it doesn't fold quite as compactly. Like the older one, it has the Sturmey Archer 3-speed hub. I rode it over the same 10 km route, and found it pretty much the same as the other bike, except that I could shift into all three gears on this one.






So, we were pretty pleased with our finds. For less than $300, we had two folding bikes that rode well and could fit into standard suitcases.

London, here we come. 













But. Of course, there's a but. We decided to see whether we could get the gears fixed on the older bike. So, we rode to a DIY bike shop, which shall remain nameless. My understanding of this place was that there would be people there who would show us how to fix the bike. However, when I got there, the super-zealous guy said, "Wow, this is a beautiful bike!" He popped it up on a stand and started working on it. Next thing I knew, the gears were in worse shape than before. I thanked him, paid the minuscule fee and left. The bike was still rideable, but the gears were harder to shift than before and I still had only the two gears.

Oh well, I thought. It'll be OK. But then when we were trying to decide which suitcases to use, Hubby took the back rack and fenders off the Piccolo 9to make it smaller), and when he reassembled everything, something was wrong with the rear wheel. Oops!

Just proves the truth of one of my favourite sayings: if it's not broken, don't fix it.

Copenhagen Cyclists in the Spring

How Lorne Gunter gets to be a columnist for a major Edmonton newspaper is beyond me. I can only hope it's because he is willing to work for food. Oh wait, maybe it's his ability to overlook the obvious: He claims that on his recent visit to Copenhagen, he didn't see any cyclists in the bike lanes. 

To put it quite simply: I don't believe him. But wait, maybe that is a tad uncharitable. Maybe he is telling the truth. It's possible that he didn't go outside, since he thought the weather was so formidable. (We're talking 8 degrees Celsius -- that's PLUS 8, not minus 8.) Or maybe he just didn't look around him as he walked along with his jacket's hood obstructing his vision.  

In stating his claim, he is trying to prove a point, summarized in the last line of his op-ed: Spending millions on bicycle infrastructure cannot create a bike culture where Mother Nature rules against it.

Why do I think I know better than an esteemed columnist? I have visited Copenhagen not once, but twice.

The first time was in early March and the first thing I noticed was all the cyclists. I rented a bike and rode along with them, all over the city. It wasn't exactly warm -- about 3 to 5 degrees Celsius during my 3-day visit -- but the cyclists were definitely out there.

This statue of King Christian X was one of the sights I rode past. I also rode to the harbour to visit the Little Mermaid.

The second time I visited Copenhagen was in late April. Again, Mother Nature was doing her best to discourage outdoor activity. It was about 8 degrees, and it was windy and raining rather enthusiastically, which made it feel even colder. But the local cyclists were undaunted. During the morning and afternoon rush hours, the bike lanes were busy, and even in between they were well used.

Not only were there plenty of cyclists out and about, I was struck by the way they were dressed. Some of the women had bare legs or just thin nylons. Some of the riders had bare hands, although most wore what I would consider thin and inadequate gloves. Many had nothing on their heads. Of course, most of them were probably just riding a short distance to work, not spending the whole day riding around, as I was, but still...

So, a word of warning -- just because you read it in the Sun, you shouldn't necessarily believe it. 

Above photo: My rental bike from the Wakeup Hotel in Copenhagen. At first, I was nervous about parking my bike because I thought I might lose it among all the other bikes (hundreds) that were parked nearby. Fortunately, this bike has some identifying marks -- a bright green "wakeup" stamped on the frame, a green "503" on the back fender, and bright orange front forks.

The photos below were all taken on my trips to Copenhagen.

March 5, 2015 - 5 degrees Celsius. You just can't keep those Copenhagen cyclists off the streets!

Oh yes, one more thing... Gunther also discusses Amsterdam. I've been there, too, three or four times, and yes, the first time I inadvertently stepped into a bike lane and received hard stares from passing cyclists. But guess what? That happened to me in Vancouver's Stanley Park, too. As Dr. Suess might say: In cars or on bikes; in the rain, in the snow; people are people wherever you go. A bike lane is for bikes, after all. 

Seen from Copenhagen

the Copenhagen GoBike -- with GPS and battery power -- no thanks!

This 3-speed rental bike was more my cup of tea!

The King and I, Copenhagen

In Copenhagen I stayed at a budget hotel called Wakeup Copenhagen. It was somewhat spartan, but clean and comfortable, and they had bikes to rent. What more could I ask?

For 115 Danish krone ($22) I could -- and did -- rent a bike for the entire day. I did this two days in a row and spent most of the time from 9:00 to 5:00 riding around and exploring the city.

The bike lanes of Copenhagen are amazing, not least because of their simplicity. Most of them are nothing more than a raised section of pavement running between the traffic lanes and the pedestrian sidewalks. Every major road I encountered had this type of bike lane. The smaller roads had either painted lanes or simply "share the road" type markings. 

just me and the Little Mermaid (and a few tourists!)

I was surprised to see how many cyclists wear helmets, as I had been led to believe that virtually no one did. I was also surprised to see how little concession was made to the cold wind and the rain. I wore jeans and a sweater, a warm jacket and scarf, and wool gloves, but other people were riding with bare hands, or with only thin nylons covering their legs.

 

St. Paul's Church

The Marble Church

Seen from Stockholm

on the way to Gamla Stan, Stockholm

I spent my one-week break between sessions far from home -- in Stockholm and Copenhagen, to be precise. I started out in Stockholm and stayed there for three days, then took the train to Copenhagen, where I spent the last three days. 

[The above photo was sort of forced on me. A young Polish girl stopped me and asked me to take her photo with this weird dog-like creature, and then insisted on returning the favour.]

A friend of mine, on hearing my plans, objected, saying, "But isn't it winter over there, too?" And yes, technically it was. But as the flowers and green grass will attest, in practical terms it was already spring. Temperatures were consistently above zero, although there were times when the wind and rain meant it felt pretty cold. But overall, it was a wonderful break, especially when I saw that it was -25 back home!

Linnaeus Statue in Humlegården Park, Stockholm

I rented a bike in both cities. In Stockholm I had some trouble finding a place to rent one. There were a couple of bike shops not far from my hotel, but both of them said they didn't rent bikes. The one guy told me that in summer I would be able to rent a bike "on the street" but that didn't help me much in March. 

Walking to Gamla Stan

After some searching on Google, however, I found Gamla Stans Cykel, in Gamla Stan, the Old Town. I highly recommend this place! 

Gamla Stans Cykel

The staff were friendly and the price was right: in a city where prices are generally quite high, for a measly 100 kroner (~$15) I rented a 3-speed bike complete with lock, basket --and coaster brakes. I hadn't ridden this sort of bike since I was about 10 or 11, but after some tentative experimentation, it all came back, and soon I was sailing around the island of Södermalm. 

Cycling in Södermalm

This area of Stockholm is supposed to be the coolest neighbourhood in Europe, but I didn't really see much of it, just circled the perimeter, as it were. There is a multi-use path that follows the shore, so I rode on that. Along the way I took a couple of wrong turns so I did unnecessarily ride up a few hills, see a few of the interior streets and stand on a lift bridge; and I even met a few of the locals, who gave me helpful directions, but further exploration will have to wait till next time I am over there.

Gamla Stan square

One of the big attractions in the Gamla Stan (Old Town) area of Stockholm is the Nobel Museum. I liked the exhibit about this man, Amartya Sen, who conducted his prize-deserving research by cycling from village to village in West Bengal.  

bike lane along a canal, Stockholm

Bicycle parking at the Stockholm Court House

This is my kind of church-goer!

san francisco - wednesday evening

 

  Another solo bike ride.

Hubby said he'd had enough of riding for the day, but I wanted to do some more exploring. Specifically, I wanted to check out 

"The Wiggle." 

It's marked on the bike map handed out by Bike and Roll, and when I googled it, I was intrigued. 

I was also curious to see downtown San Francisco.

So, I looked at the map and decided that I'd pretend to be a bicycle commuter working downtown in San Francisco. 

I'd ride on Polk Street to Market and from there use The Wiggle to turn around and head back.

It was a decently steep climb on Polk for the first couple of kilometers, but after that it was quite flat. And there's a bike lane all the way. So I rode and rode until I hit Market Street.

It was about 6:00. There were lots of cyclists. Lots -- maybe 20-25. The intersection of bike lanes at Polk and Market, while beautifully marked and glowingly green, was a bit confusing. Riders going in every possible direction. A mysterious flashing yellow bike light. 

 

I stopped and asked one of the waiting riders -- a young woman on a comfort bike -- how to get to The Wiggle. She was very kind, giving me excellent directions and explaining what the flashing light was about. So on I went, up a fairly steep hill to the easily-spotted Safeway, where I was to turn right.

Here again, I felt a bit baffled. There were markings on the pavement -- big green squares with arrows -- but I wasn't sure exactly what they represented. Another youngish woman happened to be riding next to me, so I asked her whether I was on the Wiggle. She assured me that I was and told me to follow her. We rode together for several blocks, turning right and left, ignoring stop signs, and talking about our lives cycling in two very different cities.

When we'd finished with the Wiggle, she asked me where I wanted to go next. When I told her I was headed back down to the Bay, she recommended that I first stop to look at The Painted Ladies houses in Alamo Square, and she pointed out the way.

Another steep uphill climb and there they were --

the painted ladies

other beautiful homes in Alamo Square

I loved the look of this old school building:

an old school in Alamo Square

   

Looking down from Alamo Square Park

I wasn't quite finished with the steep uphills yet -- I had to ride up for another three or four blocks, but after that it was downhill all the way to Fort Mason.

I had to turn around and take some photos of the hill I'd ridden down. Riding down was worse than riding up!

 

I wasn't far from the hotel now, but somehow I got lost. Yesterday afternoon I'd ended up at the same place and found my way back to the hotel with no trouble via city streets, but this time I followed another cyclist across to the bike path. He was going west, and I had to go east, but how hard can it be to follow a bike path? Harder than it sounds, apparently. I managed to ride into a residential section of Fort Mason and was so completely bewildered than when I saw yet another young woman ride her bike up to a house and dismount, I raced over to ask her for directions. She turned out to be from Norway, working in San Francisco, so we had a nice little chat before I went on my way and finally arrived back at the hotel.

san francisco - wednesday p.m.

Angel Island. 

I was skeptical. 

It was about 12:30 and the last ferry departs the island at 3:45. 

Would we get stranded somewhere on the island and miss the ferry? 

Even if that didn't happened, would it be worth it to go over there just for a couple of hours? 

Oh well, I decided to live dangerously and agreed to go.

We got off the ferry and found the steep uphill bike path that leads to the Perimeter Road, an excellent paved road that circles the island, passing the old fort, the old immigration centre and other historical buildings.

From pretty much any spot, the views are amazing.

 There were some decent hills -- both up and down.

And it was nice and shady, so even on a warm sunny day, we kept cool.

Once again, we made it back to the ferry landing with time to spare.

 

   Ours were the first bikes on the ferry -- and the last ones off:

 

 I was glad we went.