But there is a silver lining to having a bum ankle! I am currently out of commission for running, which is quite unfortunate because despite being absolutely abysmal it's the only thing that keeps me motivated to do anything. When I stop running I stop doing everything else. There is an exception: I don't hate cycling. I'm also terrible at that, but I can spend an hour or two on a casual bike ride and not want to hang myself after.
However, living in a dollhouse-sized, 5th floor walk-up apartment makes owning a bicycle a challenge. I would have to be able to carry it up five flights of narrow stairs, and then somehow fit inside a tiny apartment. I would also have to be able to do this on a semi-regular basis.
The best option, therefore, was a folding bike. After searching on segundamano (a second-hand website), I bought a bike.
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| Nice and folded |
And, as luck would have it, my new purchase coincided with Madrid's annual bike festival, where they close down a few streets to let families, cycling enthusiasts, and guiris with new bikes ride around.
The event wasn't very well planned, and the mass amounts of people were backlogged right at the starting gate. It is frustrating to have to walk your bike shoulder-to-shoulder in a hoard. Plus, children on bikes can be dangerous and unpredictable, and I had to be very careful to avoid crashing into some kid who decided to suddenly swerve/stop in front of me. That said, it was a gorgeous day and near the end of the ride they offered everyone free sodas and fruit, plus a concert. Also, eventually groups of people stopped, left, or slowed down, allowing me to ride more at my own pace.
All in all, it was a cool way to test out my bike. I would've preferred a more organized event, but I'm still happy to have participated.
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