Around Brugge.....
The pictures above are from the Markt (center market) in Brugge. During the summer-time, all of the restaurants have seating outside underneath the awnings. It's sad to see it all come to an end for the fall and winter. September has been a beautiful month. Hardly one day of rain and the temperature between 68 and 76 degrees during the day.
Scott's mom will be coming this weekend so let's all hope the weather stays great for at least a couple more weeks. We will be picking her up at the Amsterdam, Holland airport. Hopefully, we'll have time to do a little site-seeing. I'm dying to see the Anne Frank House!
We went biking on Sunday around the ring that surrounds the center of Brugge. It's about 4km long (2 miles). We're not ready for the Tour de France or anything but it gives the city a different perspective on a bicycle.
So, am I the only one who hasn't actually biked on busy streets before? My extent to biking was around the block of my neighborhoods and in my back yard as a child. I actually considered (please note the past tense) myself a great biker. I have plenty of scars on my knees to show the many falls I had as a child when taking the curve too fast or driving with no hands on the bars. I quit biking once I had a car but could still ride, with confidence. Until now.....
I've never biked in traffic or had to maneuver around crowds people so, before we left Atlanta Scott and I went biking to practice for Brugge. Gwinnett county isn't exactly a place I'd call bike friendly. Scott gets me out on Satellite Blvd. (For those of you who aren't from ATL let's just say a very busy street where people are not looking for bikers) I panicked so badly, I ran into the curve and almost fell off my bike b/c I was for sure the car behind me was going to hit me. There wasn't a bike lane and this car was in a hurry. Needless to say, I put the bike back in the garage and said I would just learn to handle my surroundings once we got to Belgium.
Scott is super-biker. Apparently he had to bike to his caddy job at the golf course at 10 years old. The golf course was a couple miles from his house. Then, even though he had a vehicle in college he still biked to class even in the snow, sleet, hail, or rain. His bike is all equipped with rain guards and things to handle the conditions of the road. I never had a bike that had speeds on it until Scott bought me one 2 years ago!
Your probably wondering since we've been here 3 months why are we just now biking....Well, we actually tried it a few times but I felt like I was going to have a panic attack...Scott calls it adrenaline! Who knows? Here's a recap of our short lived experience a few months back:
I was all ready to bike in Brugge doing great and then a very large city bus comes up behind me. The street is just big enough for him to pass but not without a little scare. When he started to pass, the adrenaline started and anyone's reaction is to move the opposite way of the bus, so I went into the gutter of the road and couldn't get out so my peddle hit the curve and I almost fell. I've asked around and people say that it is possible to ride in the gutter (it's not really a gutter but just where the road dips in and starts to from the curb) it justs takes practice. Where's Scott you ask...riding in the gutter like a pro...the bus didn't even startle him. URGH!
What's the phrase...if at once you don't succeed..try and try again...well I did on Sunday and I did quite well actually. Not quite as good as you know who. At one point in the ride Scott was like Fred Flintstone and peddling with one foot on the peddle and one foot on the ground and going through all 30 of his gears. I was quite content in the same gear and maybe one day I'll learn the foot on the ground technique.
Until next Monday!
The pictures above are from the Markt (center market) in Brugge. During the summer-time, all of the restaurants have seating outside underneath the awnings. It's sad to see it all come to an end for the fall and winter. September has been a beautiful month. Hardly one day of rain and the temperature between 68 and 76 degrees during the day.Scott's mom will be coming this weekend so let's all hope the weather stays great for at least a couple more weeks. We will be picking her up at the Amsterdam, Holland airport. Hopefully, we'll have time to do a little site-seeing. I'm dying to see the Anne Frank House!
We went biking on Sunday around the ring that surrounds the center of Brugge. It's about 4km long (2 miles). We're not ready for the Tour de France or anything but it gives the city a different perspective on a bicycle.
So, am I the only one who hasn't actually biked on busy streets before? My extent to biking was around the block of my neighborhoods and in my back yard as a child. I actually considered (please note the past tense) myself a great biker. I have plenty of scars on my knees to show the many falls I had as a child when taking the curve too fast or driving with no hands on the bars. I quit biking once I had a car but could still ride, with confidence. Until now.....
I've never biked in traffic or had to maneuver around crowds people so, before we left Atlanta Scott and I went biking to practice for Brugge. Gwinnett county isn't exactly a place I'd call bike friendly. Scott gets me out on Satellite Blvd. (For those of you who aren't from ATL let's just say a very busy street where people are not looking for bikers) I panicked so badly, I ran into the curve and almost fell off my bike b/c I was for sure the car behind me was going to hit me. There wasn't a bike lane and this car was in a hurry. Needless to say, I put the bike back in the garage and said I would just learn to handle my surroundings once we got to Belgium.
Scott is super-biker. Apparently he had to bike to his caddy job at the golf course at 10 years old. The golf course was a couple miles from his house. Then, even though he had a vehicle in college he still biked to class even in the snow, sleet, hail, or rain. His bike is all equipped with rain guards and things to handle the conditions of the road. I never had a bike that had speeds on it until Scott bought me one 2 years ago!
Your probably wondering since we've been here 3 months why are we just now biking....Well, we actually tried it a few times but I felt like I was going to have a panic attack...Scott calls it adrenaline! Who knows? Here's a recap of our short lived experience a few months back:
I was all ready to bike in Brugge doing great and then a very large city bus comes up behind me. The street is just big enough for him to pass but not without a little scare. When he started to pass, the adrenaline started and anyone's reaction is to move the opposite way of the bus, so I went into the gutter of the road and couldn't get out so my peddle hit the curve and I almost fell. I've asked around and people say that it is possible to ride in the gutter (it's not really a gutter but just where the road dips in and starts to from the curb) it justs takes practice. Where's Scott you ask...riding in the gutter like a pro...the bus didn't even startle him. URGH!
What's the phrase...if at once you don't succeed..try and try again...well I did on Sunday and I did quite well actually. Not quite as good as you know who. At one point in the ride Scott was like Fred Flintstone and peddling with one foot on the peddle and one foot on the ground and going through all 30 of his gears. I was quite content in the same gear and maybe one day I'll learn the foot on the ground technique.
Until next Monday!
posted by Lacy Eichenberger at 4:53 AM
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