Saturday, December 30, 2006

Bike hibernation


Because of the anti car policy in Paris more and more people drive 2 wheel vehicules such as bikes or motrocycles. When it gets cold, like it is in Paris at the moment, people tend to let them hibernate and prefer to take the public transportation.

19 comments:

  1. Very understandable - there is nothing worse than a frozen face. That is probably why the graffiti guy yesterday was dribbling - he had just riden across Paris in the cold!!!!

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  2. Makes a lot of sense (to use a bike in Paris these days, AND to leave it alone in the winter). I'm not sure I agree 100% with Delanoe's open war on cars in Paris, though, but that's a different story. :) Thanks for keeping up with the posts for us, and Jappy New Year to all! :)

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  3. My own bike is in hibernation right now, but i hope to re-awaken it in the New Year. London will be anti car in time i feel. Perhaps all major cities.

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  4. wait..what anti-car policy? i wasn't aware of this!

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  5. I guess that riding a bike can be dangerous too in winter. Do the streets frost?

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  6. i like the bare trees in te background, very winter feel.

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  7. Beautiful, peaceful scene. I love the subtle color hints.
    Hope you are enjoying Boston!
    -Kim
    PS. My bike is in the garage this whole vacation time. . .I will start back to work this week

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  8. What I like about the picture is the fact that today bikes are part of the picture in Paris, whereas there were so few of them 5 or 10 years ago... !
    By the way it seems that some cars also hibernate in the back ground of the photo !!

    Thanks Eric! Hi to your friends in Boston

    Welcome to 2007 !

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  9. I wasn't aware of the anti-car policy either. But then....I always walk or use the Metro when in Paris.
    Love this shot, Eric.

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  10. my bicycle is hibernated also:) Today is like 0 Celsius so better not to ride my bike.. the photo has a very nice mood

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  11. I think I need to get a bike. We could all go for rides around the neighborhood. That'd be nice, and I'd get more exercise. Perhaps when the weather starts getting warm!

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  12. Where's M. Benaut & Michael? It's not the same without them.

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  13. A lovely picture of the bikes all lined up neat, waiting for better weather. I like to think of the stories they would tell.

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  14. Sure you can come, lynn!

    I imagine Michael is still in Florida for the holidays. Maybe he snuck off to someplace exotic for New Years and just hasn';t had time to tell us! Bombay? Buenos Aries? Beijing? Burundi?

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  15. That weather looks perfectly cyclable to me - I was on my bicycle in Montréal until Christmas, as we had practically no snow. A bit after, and it is melting now. Guess we have a different concept of "cold". Wear a scarf across the lower part of your face.

    People ride bicycles all year round in Amsterdam, where it is colder and even rainier than Paris. I can't think of any Paris day I've ever experienced when the cold would have kept me from cycling, but sometimes the rain is too strong.

    I strongly approve of Delanoé's policies in favour of public transport and bicycles.: they have already reduced pollution significantly. When I lived in Paris for a while (séjourner is the proper verb in French, not habiter) I was afraid to cycle in the city centre - I did cycle in some of the arrondissements farther out. It would be wonderful if Paris could become as cyclable as Amsterdam, though of course there are more hills.

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  16. Well, Boston is not terribly far from here, and a couple of years ago, like us, they had a very, very bitter winter indeed. It is a pity, because I had friends attending a conference and doing research at Harvard, and I just couldn't see going there on the bus when it was -30c!

    Public transport once again ... there used to be a TRAIN between Montréal and Boston ... hope it will be re-established.

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  17. I really enjoy Paris. I always go there with a folding bike. Enclosed is a photo of it packed in a bag at the train station and another shot of it unfolded with all my baggage.

    http://hometown.aol.com/vilardsw/Paris2005.html

    If you travel with a bike be sure to have a lock, flashlight, several tools, a tire patch kit, small pump and sufficiant front and rear lighting.

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