Wein/Vienna/Wein

Returning to my story in reverse, before Brno, I spent three nights in Vienna, known in all else of Europe as Wein. Which suddenly makes linguistic sense of Weiner dogs and Weiner Schnitzel. It was bigger than I thought and I walked and walked around the old town my first night until I found a tiny vegetarian restaurant. The waiter was sweet and reassured me "there is time" when I seemed flustered. Along with Czech, I speak no German. And confusingly, I sometimes revert to Italian when I get flustered. It was warmer in Wein so after dinner I walked around the Rathaus, the city hall.

There was so much to see and it was too nice out to spend all day inside museums, so I chose a few. Mostly, I went to see Egon Schiele and other Viennese artists of the early 20th century. When I tired of these artists issues with women,(fear, madonna/whore, faceless or my "favorite" redemption of bad mothers), I went for a walk in a park. I was staying near the Schonbrunn Palace so I took the tram there one evening, after the palace was closed.

I didn't want a tour of the fancy insides but the palace grounds have been open to the public, even when the Hapsburgs were ruling. The palace is on a hill, above Vienna (it was their summer palace, and the hill continues up to a giant monument and a wonderful view of Vienna and the sunset.

Back in town, the city has a bike loan program that is easier than any other I've seen. I borrowed a bike my first morning and rode entirely around the old town, plus a few detours where the wonderful bike path seemed to end. I seem to have a magic touch for turning a bike path to a cobblestone dead end. I borrowed a bike a few times to get between sights and to explore. I stopped at a few cafes for expensive coffee and cake, though it was usually worth it just to sit and draw for an hour or two. Yes, on vacation I mostly ride my bike, drink coffee and draw. The closer I can get my regular life to that, the better it will be. Maybe in the summer, you can add swimming.

Alternating Waves of Panic and Exhilaration

Oh spring! Now that I have walked a million miles in Milan, I comfortable getting lost on a bike. I have yet to not get a little lost and it is even more exciting in the evening as I hurry home for dinner. In case I have not explained, Milan has a bike rental system called BikeMi where you pay a little for a membership, then you can borrow a bike from a hundred stands downtown and pay a little when you use it. You get a lock, a light, a basket, an adjustable seat and three gears. No helmet, but you can get a free map too. There are even bike paths here, like in Montreal, on the street but separate. However, they seem to end suddenly but so do the streets here. More than once I found myself at an intersection of multiple cobblestone streets with trams and no idea how to get to where I wanted. Oh, and one bike path seemed to send at a busy tram stop. However, nobody got hurt. You can't keep the bike for more than 2 hours and I still have to take the metro to get to the closest bike stand but it is worth it. Bikes and outdoor cafes...I may never go to class again.

Without Even Looking

The screen on my digital camera crapped out the other day. We've had some adventures; this is our second trip to Italy together. It is really A's camera but I have borrowed it to keep in my bag at all times for travelling. Now I have these photos without looking. Like this sunset while walking home from the train station this afternoon.




And this shot at Centrale Station in Milan. I figured out how to borrow a bike in this city and I am unstoppable. I can get lost so much faster on a bike! And since there are no traffic laws, it is very exciting! I had enough trouble going anywhere near where I was aiming (roughly, the center of town) so I didn't snap any guess-and-shoot photos while riding. There will be more. And if you have a digital point-and-shoot camera that you don't need anymore because you take all your photos with your phone, well let me know. I have a great camera at home but it isn't ready for long trips.



Milan celebrates International Women's Day by 1)giving women yellow flowers called mimosas, because they got the crap end of things in the workforce for a long time and 2)giving free admission to all women to many art museums in town for the day to give appreciation for the fact that those museums are filled with naked women. Thanks, Milan!

What's Your Story, Baton Rouge?

When I moved to Baton Rouge, I was warned about the lack of routes for cyclists, about its bicycle unfriendliness. I went to Critical Mass because it is, at its best, a positive demonstration against car culture encouraging cyclists and making a route safe for one night. It worked. I rode in a few lovely large rides, with 200 or more riders. Together we rode to parts of town that seemed unreachable by bike. I met my future roommate and best Baton Rouge friend and later my sweetie, both at Critical Mass. And then I stopped going. I was busy with school, I started working Fridays and the ride did not seem important to me. The city is still sprawl but I found my favorite routes, including a quiet 3 and a half mile one to school.

About a week ago, an acquaintance of mine was riding on a busy street with a friend. A drunk driver hit them, killing Nathan Crowson and injuring Danny Morris. Baton Rouge is small, so people knew the cyclists and the drunk driver. It was sad, really really sad but people got together, planned memorials, a bike ride, a fund for Nathan's five year-old daughter. Online, I foolishly read a string of comments about the situation, the questions and comments blaming cyclists. But few addressed the probelms with car-centric urban planning. Baton Rouge is sprawl. Many people drive everywhere, and plenty of them drive drunk. Bike paths are limited, and though there has been great improvement since I moved to Baton Rouge, many thanks to B.R.A.S.S., the overwhelming attitude is that bikes don't belong on the road. So instead of thinking about what can be done to solve transportation issues-- integrating bike lanes, pedestrian paths, making all parts of town accessible to non-drivers through public transportation and bicycle routes--drivers get defensive and angry and nothing gets solved. Instead of thinking of practical ways to prevent drunk driving, people shrug and says that "it happens". Mostly, it makes me too angry to express, because that young man did not have to die. He was biking on a busy, unfriendly road and was killed by someone who shouldn't have been driving.

Two nights before I left Baton Rouge, I met with about 400 other cyclists to ride from LSU campus to the site where Nathan and Danny were hit, and the ghost bike memorializing the event. We were told to be extra extra friendly to drivers, to avoid confrontation, to honor our friend. We blocked traffic but only took up one lane, allowing others to pass, and blocked intersections so we could remain a group, like many cars do in funerals. Except that we had no police escort and the cops ticketed one person for obstructing traffic. No matter, I was glad to be a part of the sea of blinking lights riding between the lakes from Dalrymple to Lakeshore. It didn't solve the problems, but at least offered a positive supportive place for the cyclists of Baton Rouge.

photo by Erin Arledge

Mark Martin wrote a much better letter to the city calling for transportation improvements.


This is a video of the Critical Mass ride.

Bike Art Show

There is some serious one handed typing happening here as my angry fighting cat bit me this morning turning my hand into a grotesque Macy's Thanksgiving Parade Balloon. Maybe I'll post an image of that later. For now, know that this weekend is the Velo Louisiane festival, including an art show at Chelsea's Saturday night. I will have prints for sale after some one armed silk-screening tomorrow. Also, Baby Boy and the Melters are playing. The pool table isn't level, but half the proceeds support bicycle advocacy groups in Baton Rouge.