Weekly Photo Challenge: Chaos

Tags

Berlin, bikes, chaos, cycling, photography, photos, travel, Weekly Photo Challenge, Weekly Photo Challenge: Chaos

At the moment Dublin city center is filled with the chaos of Luas construction work. And as most chaos does this has created circle upon circle of chaos in Dublin’s daily life. Cars are rerouted, streets narrowed down creating tricky traffic situations all over town. As a cyclist I often feel more than a little risk as cars come to close and double-Decker buses even closer.

So when I read the title of this weeks photo challenge I was reminded of a sculpture I saw in Berlin a few years ago. It was at the center of a community garden near Kreuzberg, colourful bikes were wrapped around an old tree in a somewhat haphazard fashion creating a vibrant bit of chaos at the center of the clam of nature.

bike sculpture – beautiful chaos

 

 

against the wind

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against the wind, bikes, cycling, cycling against the wind, Dublin, Ireland, photo, photography, sunshine, wind, windy days

Most days you’ll find me cycling in and out to work, battling the traffic and hoping it will do me more physical good than harm. It’s a good 20-25 minutes cycle each way and a small stretch is up a steeper, longer hill than I would like.

This morning, when I buckled on my helmet and zipped up my all weather jacket (which actually is a complete misleading term, it is fine against the wind but not really against the rain), I was thrilled to see the sun shining brightly and only a few white fluffy clouds in the sky.

Oh, but how deceived I was.

I quickly discovered that the ‘blustery winds’ the weather man had forecast were much stronger than he had promised and soon I was huffing and puffing against the wind. My heavy bike and large (full) saddlebags  catching the wind and soon I am sure my face was as red as my rage against the misleading weather.

The whole 25 minutes peddling in to work I was giving out to the wind and when I hit the hill, I am unashamed to admit, that I got off my bike and pushed. I arrived in work in time – maybe a little more out of breath than usual and happy that I for a  few minutes I had the office to myself- giving my mood (and face) a bit of time to settle down.

Now all I hope is that the wind doesn’t change direction – that way I’ll have it in my back the whole way home, a extra bit of push after a long days work.

Dublin bikes for all to use – I prefer my own

a long cycle in

Tags

bikes, cycling, Dublin, home, photo, photography, work

After a lovely weekend and some time spent doing as I pleased the cycle in to work yesterday just felt endlessly long. It may have been the fact that every single light turned red, it could have been my extremely heavy saddle bags weighing me down, or the wind blowing against me all the way in. But whatever the reason it was a long cycle in to town.

Maybe that is why I am so delighted to be able to spend the day working from home today – the luxury of sitting at my own desk (no matter how uncomfortable my chair is- I really need a new one) and drinking tea from my own mug is just pure bliss. And while I still need to go in to lecture this evening it still feels a little bit like a holiday.

Of course that doesn’t mean I have nothing to do – my to-do list is a s long as ever – but being able to stay in bed a little longer than normal, being able to stay put for a while and not have one eye focused on the clock all morning makes for the perfect start to my day.

Tomorrow everything is back to normal and my legs will be peddling as fast as they can, but with the Easter break just a few days away I think I’ll manage – no matter how long the cycle in to work may be.

bike sculpture in Berlin – but oddly enough not dissimilar as how bikes are locked to the few stands around Dublin.

 

helmet hero

Tags

accidents, bike helmet, bikes, cycle lanes, cycling, cycling paths, double decker bus, double deckers, double-decker busses, Dublin City Council, health, helmet., living in dublin, pot holes

Today I decided to change a habit of a lifetime and bought a helmet. I have been cycling since I was about five or six years old and but I have never worn a helmet. I use to cycle everywhere, first to school, later to both university and work. Mainly because that is the ‘done thing’ in Germany, most people opt to cycle if they can, but also because I didn’t have a car, or a drivers license till I was in my late twenties.

But since I have been living in Dublin taking the bus, driving or even walking has mostly replaced my pedaling. Of course there is that odd trip down to the beach or park, and I have on occasion even ventured into town but the reason why I don’t cycle as much here isn’t pure laziness but the fear of Dublin traffic.

Over the past few years I have been knocked off my bike twice. Once by a car turning left, and not only did the driver not see me he didn’t even stop to help me pick up all my pieces and inspect the bruises on my elbow and arms. The second time it was a big double-decker bus that pushed me over scrapping the palms of my hands and turning my knee a mixture of bright purple and green.

These two knocks bruised more than just my appendages and my cycling confidence has been at an all time low. And it doesn’t help that the Dublin City Council only paints white lines on the road and declares them cycling paths, deep pot-holes, drains and other debris included. And of course the fact that cyclists have to share their lane with the Dublin double-deckers is just an added hazard.

However lately I have been cycling more again, but every-time a car comes that bit too close or I hear a bus I can’t shake images of me flying ungracefully through the air and landing undignified on the road. But since I do really want to cycle in and out to college come next week, my teachers bag and flask tucked away in my saddle bags, I decided it was time to join the ranks of all those helmet heroes and buy myself one of those unsightly contraptions.

So today was my first trip around my neighbourhood wearing my brand new and very unattractive helmet and even though it really doesn’t suit my curls I hope I’ll feel a little safer when sharing the road with everyone else. And of course being a helmet hero may ruin my hair-do but hopefully will save my head.