Getting around on 2 wheels

Our bikes came with our household goods that arrived in December, and we were so excited to get them! Berlin is known for being bike-friendly, and for many people a bike is the main mode of transportation. Living a little far from the nearest train stops like we do, bikes allow us to manage our time a little better. Since the buses only come every 20 minutes, we can often get to the S-bahn station faster on our bikes. And having a bike parked at the S-bahn station also means no waiting for the bus on our return trip home. The S-bahn station is an easy bike ride for the kids; the U-bahn is a little further but still doable. Sometimes traffic in Zehlendorf is really bad and of course the buses are caught in the middle of it. Biking is the only way to bypass the gridlock.

Dan rides his bike to the S-bahn station every morning and parks it there during the day while he's at work. He rides in any weather, but he always checks the weather forecast each morning, because he brings his Goretex jacket and pants if there's a chance of rain, which is very often. Many nights he has come home with the rain dripping off his helmet and Goretex but he's dry underneath! He was warned that his nice US mountain bike would likely be stolen here very quickly, despite being locked, so he bought himself a "beater bike" after we moved to our house. It has wide handlebars and he sits completely upright on it and I think he looks like Mary Poppins! I'll post a picture one day.

I don't ride my bike nearly as much, but I think I will be riding it more as I wrap up buying large carfuls of stuff for the house and shift more towards small weekly purchases. Last week I took my bike to the shop and had them outfit it with front and rear fenders so the muddy sidewalks won't splash me, a bell that I can ring to warn people to get out of my way, and a rack with a basket on the back of the bike so I can carry things. The rack makes the bike much heavier, and it's harder to swing my leg over to mount the bike! But it holds one good-sized bag and I can also wear a backpack, so that allows me to carry a decent amount of stuff.

My newly outfitted bike. Those are groceries in the bag!

I have found that commuting with a bike is a lot different from riding for pleasure. While in Missoula I would wait for perfect weather before thinking about taking my bike for a spin, here I can venture out in most weather (although I wouldn't deliberately set out in the rain if I could help it). We wear skull caps under our helmets for head and ear warmth, big heavy gloves on our hands, and windproof jackets and then it's not too bad, although my feet often get pretty chilly.

Biking in light snow? With thick gloves, why not?

Bike lanes are one of the first things we learned about when we came to visit Berlin in June. They are usually built into the sidewalks here, not the roads. It makes me feel so much safer to ride separated from the traffic. I am really impressed by the foresight the city planners showed in building such wide sidewalks that are paved differently for riders and pedestrians.

If there are two paths on the sidewalk, the bike path is the path closest to the road. Some sidewalks have only one path, and then the bike has to share the road with the cars. Towards the middle of the city there seem to be fewer dedicated bike paths, but out here in the burbs there is a bike path that runs the entire length of the main roads.

Mosaic sidewalk, white brick divider, red brick bike path,
mosaic divider, curb, street

The bike path is slightly elevated, beside the road. A row of
trees separates the bike path from the pedestrian path.

Another thing I like about biking here (and walking) is that the Germans have taken the guesswork out of street crossings. At every intersection there is an odd little illuminated man who tells you if you should stop or go. If he's red with his arms out to the side, don't even think about it! If he's green and striding purposefully, go for it!

The same goes for bikes at many of the intersections. Bikes have their own mini-traffic light and their own white line painted on the bike path to show you where you should stop. Those helpful Germans have even painted dotted lines across the street to show you exactly where to ride inside the lines as you cross the street! The bike light turns green a fraction ahead of the car light, to allow the bikes a head start. Since German cars can't turn right on red, letting the bikes go first often gets the bike out of the way so the cars can turn freely.

Stop, bikers! And stay between those dotted lines when you cross the street.

It's a little hard to see but the top circle has an illuminated bicycle in it. 

Today I biked to the doctor, picked up a few groceries, and then biked over to the pharmacy. These things are all easy walking distance from our house but the bike made it super speedy.