CITY OF BICYCLE WHEELS!
Poured by
Marija Miteva
I’m leaving the hotel staring at the map, trying to grab the strings where I want to go and where to go. At that moment, while searching for the streets on Google Maps, I stepped on a bicycle path. Playing and crying for reckless movement – a great welcome in Amsterdam!
Narrow streets, lots of channels, Red district, ideas for cool photos and of course the experience of the bike! There is no need to have a long stay in Amsterdam to understand that cycling is a lifestyle. Parents who go shopping with their children on a bike, businessmen going to meetings, evening outings of young people. This is for them the simplest, fastest and healthiest way to move around the city. Some time ago, a bill was passed on monetary compensation for citizens who go to work by bike. Great stimulus to preserve the clean air and health of the citizens.
A number of firms rent bicycles in Amsterdam for 8 euros per day or for longer use. So, if you are a tourist, there is nothing to stop you from feeling the magic of cycling Amsterdam.
Tips how to ride a bike in Amsterdam:
- Through a crowd of people or in pedestrian zones, push the bicycle.
- Hold your tape: use the bicycle tape on the right side of the road marked with white lines and bicycle symbols.
- Respect all traffic signals and rules. The police will not look through your fingers if you go to red.
- Observe the trams and tram rails, because you can easily lock the tires in the rails. Always switch them to a sharp angle.
- Always keep in mind the cyclists around you. If your phone rings, call the side, do not drive in the same line more than two.
- There is a peak in bicycle traffic in Amsterdam. Between 08:00 and 09:00 or 17:00 and 18:00, thousands of cyclists are on the road, often resulting in large queues at junctions. If you are not in a hurry, wait until the crowd is quiet.
- Lock your bicycle with two chains, and to something safe and motionless, it is not known when someone will need just your carriage.
Gerrit Faber of the bicycle community Fietsersbond, noted: Cycling is not something we have in the genes. We build it, and if we can and other cities! And from now on I think of our Skopje.
These days, when Skopje is tilting 32 degrees Celsius, and not the phones showing 39 degrees, you cannot get into the bus, you will surely get stuck with a car, you have a lot for walking, the only option is BIKE. When you think better, much cooler idea. Lately, more often in Skopje streets, we see business people in colorful footsteps, young people who give a second life to their old bicycles, putting them in a pair of fluorescent colors and going to Coca-Cola and coffee parks, elderly people of Pony wheelers, a Turkish bazaar that flies tea on a bike, some on electric scooter, other having trouble with streets in Skopje while driving a hoverboard, a cheerful sight of diversity … It does not matter if it is a fashion or practical means of transport, Skopje has been trying for a long time to actively encourage all citizens to use their bicycle through various actions. The big bike-lovers have the privilege of eating ice cream in Radost for low price because they are riding a bike, they drink cheaper cafe in cafeterias, and some buy a bike for more money. It’s priceless when you can lock the bike safely at Coca-Cola parking zone, because sometimes only they save you to lock the wheelchair in front of the eco-cafe where you sit and you can watch it constantly. Driving bike do not stumble you in crowds, save on parking lots and socialize each last Wednesday at a critical mass, driving new routes across Skopje. But, more importantly, the tower as a means of transportation helps to combat air pollution. In people who drive a bike, it improves the strength and flexibility of the muscles, releases stress, melt fat, improves the cardiovascular system. But he still needs Skopje to be a brave city. The fight for multiple cycling paths and raising the bike – the culture in general every day is part of our lives. Because we love Skopje on bike!
