It was the bicycles, really. They were everywhere. I think there were more bikes than people.
Here in the US, the biggest reason someone owns a bike is for fitness. In Amsterdam it was more practical. You would see people with milk crates attached to the front and saddle bags over the back and it would be loaded with groceries. I saw one woman riding by with a 32″ LCD screen that she just purchased from a store! I saw another man use a bike with an attached bobsled-like area that allowed for him to haul away some construction materials. Everywhere you went there was a bike. Oh, by the way, if it is 1AM and you are walking back to your hotel, don’t assume that you can’t possibly be hit by someone riding along on their bike.
I have hundred of photos from my trip and lots of them have to do with bikes and streets. It was just amazing to be immersed there for a week and see such a different lifestyle.
It’s one of the things that I am hoping to incorporate into my everyday life. Most of the shops in my town here are less than two miles (that’s just over 3Km for any non-American reading this) from my house and there is no reason why I can’t just ride my bike instead of driving my car.
Yah, I agree on that one.
I just moved to AMS and now that I own a bike, I can tell you that you don’t need a car at all in the city.
I’m going to work on the bikes and to my Dutch course – it’s pretty cool.
Roni,
Sounds like an amazing opportunity to live and work there!
Japan is the same way. As a kid I went everywhere on a bike because so many folks do so. People watch for bikes, there is room for bikes, etc.
KBK,
I’ve heard that about Japan as well. I hope to visit there someday, too.
It sounds great. I’m an avid cyclist when I get the time, but it is very hard to make a bicycle a practical choice in North America. The requirement of everyone to have ‘space’ has led to things being further apart than they have to. If I could I would bike to work , but my commute is about 40 miles one way on major roads, no real back roads. Granted I would be in amazing shape if I I was riding that every day, especially with the hills on it, but it just isn’t feasible. I will admit that it does make it tempting to move to Europe sometimes. I loved Paris and how each couple of blocks was its own neighborhood and had everything you really needed within that neighborhood.
Chris,
Agreed, there are a lot of reasons why it doesn’t work here. However, in Boulder, there are bike paths everywhere, and it does seem to work there. So, it can be done, but not overnight for most of the USA.
Well, it’s part of the dutch culture, but also easy in Amsterdam(to crowded to drive in Amsterdam:)).
Kind regards,
Brendo,
Netherlands
Yes, those were some narrow streets, and often time full of cars and trains.