Rush hour ... with bikes

This morning was the first day I rode my bike in the AM rush-hour. There were bikes backed up for metres (they use metres in the Netherlands). Back to back bike jam. It is pretty intimidating at first, because bikes are within inches of you front and back, making it difficult for me to start up on my bike because I have to push off on my tip-toe, balance the bike, and start peddaling. I almost caused an accident this morning when I left my building. I am still learning to maneover my bike, and I needed to cross one bike path and a road to get to my bike path. In doing so, I almost collided with another bike. The guy looked pissed, and then I think swore in Dutch about foreigners. I suppose it is similar when on the sea-wall in Vancouver, and Asian tourists don't know how to ride bikes, and ride into cliffs and cause huge back-ups because someone has crashed with someone else, or they are going the wrong way on the wall. So, I am getting much better at all the things involved in riding a bike in Holland (and there are alot) moreso, for dignity's sake.

Anyways, I thought you would all get a kick out of a bike traffic jam, coming from a country that grew up on cars. Just imagine next time you are in a traffic jam, how many bikes you could fit in the space that one car occupies on the road. This is my world. If anyone is familiar with Critical Mass, an organized bike ride around Vancouver the last Friday of the month, right around rush hour at about 5pm. This is a good indicator of a Dutch bike jam.... Bikes rule.