Bicycling in Bucharest: Herăstrău Park

I am happy to report that since my previous post about Bucharest, I have actually cycled here - twice. The catalyst was a visit to the Herăstrău Park - a sprawling green space with lakes and alleys and rose gardens and too many other nice things to list.

Herăstrău Park and its surrounding neighborhoods seem to be the place to be for those who want to ride a bike in Bucharest. To a large extent, the culprit of the cycling frenzy is the Green Revolution bike-share, which is free and easy to use.

"I ♥ Velo"

In a prominent spot in the park, there is a bicycle lot and a staffed booth. You come up to the booth, fill out a very short form, leave an ID (my US driver's license was fine), and get a free bike for 2 hours. If you are gone for more than two hours, you get charged a small fee. That is all. The people in the booth are very friendly and speak English. I was on a bike within 3 minutes of stumbling upon the booth.

What I now understand about bike share in Bucharest, is that it is "de-centralised". That is, there are different companies that offer bike share in various parts of town, under different conditions. What I like about the Green Revolution programme, is that it (1) is approachable and easy to use, and (2) is run by people who clearly care about bicycles. And it seems that I am not the only one who feels this way; they are enormously popular with locals.

It was interesting to observe the attitudes towards cycling among those who use the bikes. On the one hand, it is definitely perceived as a leisure activity: the bikes are taken out for fun, not for transportation.

But on the other hand, they are not perceived as a form of sport: 90%+ of the people cycling are wearing their everyday clothing. It is a form of outdoor entertainment, like strolling and eating ice-cream, but not an athletic activity.

There are bike paths throughout the park grounds, and they continue outside the park, connecting to the paths in the city center. However, locals tend to interpret the paths creatively. Directional arrows are ignored, cyclists make sudden stops and u-turns, and non-cyclists can often be found on the paths. As long as you go slowly, that's all fine, but speeding up is pretty much out of the question.

As for the Green Revolution bike itself: It is a modern, welded U-frame is a dark silver colour. Single speed, cruiser handlebars, easily adjustable saddle, coaster brake, front brake, fenders, cardboard dressguards, wire front basket.

The basket is narrow, but deep - just big enough to fit my laptop bag if I squish it in sideways.

The ride quality is sufficient for slow rides in a mostly hill-free and car-free environment, but I don't think these bikes were meant to withstand much beyond that. Of course I was so happy to be riding a bike again, that it hardly mattered.

Taking a much-needed break from work, I cycled aimlessly around the park grounds, delighting in things like these ridiculously beautiful benches and trash receptacles.

Another gorgeous bench design.

There are boat rides and outdoor cafes, sculpture parks and fountains, playgrounds and pony rides, and even peacocks. This park is truly amazing.

There were many others on bikes around, but one particularly lovely cyclist stood out and I could not help but approach her for a picture.

Her name is Ana, and it turns out she was test-riding a special edition Electra Amsterdam from the Ciclissimo bicycle shop nearby. That is the owner of the shop with her, George Pop, who is riding a Strida.

We had a brief conversation about the bike situation in Bucharest. Ana and George think that it is improving - with more interest in cycling and a growing popularity of classic bicycles. The Ciclissimo shop carries Pashley and Brompton, among others. I wonder whether these will start appearing on the streets soon.

In the meantime, it is nice to see that at least in some contexts people in Bucharest are clearly enjoying cycling as a simple and casual activity.

It is time for me to leave now and I want to sincerely thank all the locals who contacted me after my previous post. It was so wonderful to hear from you, and I regret that the nature of my trip did not allow me to organise any meet-ups. Please keep in touch; one never knows when fate might bring me to Bucharest again. And if you are a lone cyclist here who is looking for advice and resources, please visit: bikeblogbucuresti.blogspot.com, velobello.wordpress.com, www.portocalamecanica.ro, and simplybike.wordpress.com - I am sure they'd love to hear from you!

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Bucharest and Bicycling: First Impressions

I am spending a few days in Bucharest for work and I am amazed by it. Even to someone familiar with many Eastern European cities, the capital of Romania stands out. It's not just the culture and the language (Romanian is a Romance language in a predominantly Slavonic region, and it sounds approximately like Italian with a Russian accent), but the very look of the city.

Never before have I seen such a head-spinning mix of old and new, big and small, restored and dilapidating - and yes, I've been to East Berlin and many formerly Soviet areas. Here is a gorgeous pre-War villa with wrap-around wrought iron balconies (notice the bicycle path, too).

And here is the view directly across the street.

Construction and renovation projects are everywhere, and it is clear that the city cares about preserving its unique historical buildings.

More variety.

Unusually shaped gables and towers; intricate art nouveau details.

Imposing facades stand "shoulder to shoulder" with tiny houses more characteristic of the countryside.

Wrought iron latticework is everywhere.

And grapevines.

But what about bicycles? Well, a few of the streets in the center do have bike paths. And I was pleased to see that the bicycle symbol in Bucharest comes with a full chaincase. But I do not see many actual bicycles on the streets, let alone any with a chaincase or other classic features.

The lack of cyclists is rather a mystery, because there are clearly some attempts at infrastructure and bike-friendliness going on - like these adorable bicycle racks at a local park.

And this bikeshare station, which appears to be sponsored by a mobile phone provider.

And this advert for a concert. Yet, hardly any any actual cyclists.

One reason for the lack of cycling could be the traffic patterns and the layout. Many streets in the center are wide, multiple-lane boulevards that go on forever and are gridlocked with cars. They do not look very inviting for cyclists. But I have no idea to what extent this is really the cause.

Another thing I am wondering about here, is the abundance of the telephone(?) wires. There are literally wads of wiring hanging off the poles. My colleagues who are traveling with me are all wondering about that.

Here is another view of the wires. Any ideas?

It is too bad that the cycling situation in Bucharest is so dire, because otherwise I like it here very much. It seems that a great deal of resources are being allocated towards keeping the city clean, improving urban infrastructure and transportation, renovating historical buildings, and supporting the arts. There are several sprawling parks here - all beautiful and meticulously well-kept. I have not used the subway yet, but the buses are shiny and new. Little convinience stores and kiosks sell water and ice cream on every corner. People are friendly and polite - no pushing on the streets, pleasant facial expressions, holding doors for each other. If you don't speak Romanian it should not be a problem, as a surprising number of people speaks very fluent English.

Being in Bucharest makes me wish I knew some locals and could get to know the place better; maybe even figure out the cycling mystery. I hope to have another occasion to come here in future.

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