Cycling Kurashiki Japan

自転車で倉敷を楽しむ

Kurashiki is a small city in Okayama Prefecture, south of the Kansai region.

One area of the city in particular has been well preserved.

It is centered on a canal that was built in the Edo Period when the city was a distribution area for rice.

In the canal area, many of the former rice storehouses - "kura" - have been renovated and reborn as museums, stores, cafes.

To get to the area, it is a ten-minute walk from JR Kurashiki Station.

Within the preserved area is the Ohara Museum.

The Ohara Museum, pictured above right, was Japan's first museum of Western art.

It consists of a Main Gallery, an Annex Building, and the Kojima Museum.

The Main Gallery houses works by Picasso, El Greco, Gauguin, Modigliani, Rodin, Klee, Pollock, and Kandinsky.

The Annex has works by Japanese artists. The adjacent Craft Art Gallery has many ceramics, woodblock prints, and crafts.

The city is small and easy to cycle.

Also within this area are many shops and restaurants.

Ohara Museum

Hours: 9:00 - 17:00 (entry until 16:30)
Closed: Mondays (unless Monday is a national holiday), December 26 to 31
Admission: 1300 yen (includes entrance to the Kojima Museum)

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Hanoi Vietnam Street Seller Bicycle

ハノイで自転車で物を売るおばさん

On a recent visit to Hanoi, we took in the city's Old Quarter and more.

Aside from horrendous traffic - mainly Honda Cub scooters - the city is a pleasant and reasonably priced capital city.

Visitors who stay in the central part of the city will be able to see most of the sights - a big exception is Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum - on foot.

For those who want to relive colonial times, pedicabs are available for hire.

Bicycles however seem to be on the endangered species list in Hanoi. They are common enough, but have all the telltale signs of an item without any status.

As in Beijing and other cities that have gone from very poor to reasonably comfortable in a short time, those with the means to use other forms of transportation - scooter, motorcycle, or car - do.

Gasoline powered vehicles enjoy prestige, and except for students, most middle class residents of Hanoi would not be caught dead on a bike.

In contrast, many of the mainly female women who sell all sorts of goods patrol the city on old beaters.

Loaded down with piles of goods, they use the good old fashioned mama chari.

To which we offer a deep bow.

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京都細い街路安全に歩ける？自転車乗れる？ Kyoto Bike Lane Test

京都自転車専用レーン実証実験

A recent story in the Asahi Shinbun (in Japanese) caught our eye.

Around the Takakura Elementary Elementary School in downtown Kyoto, the city is doing a test run for new pedestrian lanes and bicycle lanes.

The car lane has been reduced from 4 meters (13.2 feet) down to 3 meters (9.8 feet).

In that extra room, pedestrian lanes have been widened by 50 cm (20 inches), on both sides.

In the remaining space, a bike lane 0.6 meters (1.96 feet) wide has been painted on the asphalt. (The photo above right gives an idea of just how narrow the "lane" is. The photo below is a wider view.)

We are not joking.

This appears to be yet another bad joke, and the test is running until March 22.

Then the city will parse the data, and decide what if any action to take.


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This Week in World Cycling News 11 March 2012

今週のサイクリング２０１２年０３月１１日

For Deliverymen, Speed, Tips and Fear on Wheels The New York Times

How climate science is key to going fast in Olympic Velodrome BBC

Logo row threatens Euskaltel sponsorship deal Cycling News

Vélo : elles roulent en « fixie » dans un monde de hipsters barbus Rue89

Madrid se rinde a la bicicleta El Pais

电动自行车 YouTube

20091024東京湾一周 E-P1 自転車動画 YouTube

Boasson Hagen wins Tirreno stage; Goss keeps lead Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News


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Higashiyama Light Up Kyoto March 10 - 20

京都東山花灯路２０１２自転車で

Kyoto is lighting up once again.

The city sponsors illumination events in key areas at key times of the year.

Arashiyama and Higashiyama are the most popular areas, and fall and spring are the prime times of year.

The area around the Path of Nene will be lit up from March 10 - March 20, every night from 6 pm - 9:30 pm.

500 lanterns are placed in an area of Higashiyma stretching from Shorenji in the north, and taking in Maruyama Park, Yasaka Shrine, all the way up to Kiyomizu Temple.

And, to be very Kyoto about it - a masterful blend of old and new - the traditional lamps made from washi power use LED bulbs made by Rohm, a local company that is a powerhouse on the world stage of electronics.

After or before dinner or drinks, this is a magical stroll. Truly mysterious and beautiful.

For those cycling, definitely park and walk.

Information in Japanese.

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Bye Bye Genpatsu Anti-Nuclear Power Demonstration Maruyama Park Kyoto

「バイバイ原発・京都」２０１２年３月１０日（土）

Bye Bye Genpatsu @ Maruyama Park, Kyoto, Saturday 10 March 2012

This Saturday there will be an anti-nuclear power rally and information session in Maruyama Park, Kyoto.

The schedule is as follows (thanks to Deep Kyoto):

13:00 Rally at Maruyama Park’s outdoor stage (near the famous weeping cherry tree)
13：15 “Attractions”
14：00 Meeting begins
14：45～ Demo begins. March from Maruyama Park to City Hall via Shijo and Kawaramachi Streets.

"This promises to be a fun event, with speeches, music, dancing, a small flea market of home-made, eco-friendly goods and a chance to speak your own mind in the “free speech” event too!

There will also be a show for the kids called the “Bye Bye Genpatsu Rangers.” Sounds like quite the festival doesn’t it?"

For more details of this and other events please check the Bye Bye Genpatsu website (in Japanese only).


「バイバイ原発・京都」

○名称　バイバイ原発３・１０京都
○日時　２０１２年３月１０日（土）
○主催　「バイバイ原発３・１０京都」実行委員会
○趣旨　福島第一原発事故から一年という時点で、「原発のない社会をめざす」という意思をはっきりと示し、大きな声にするため、市民だれもが気軽に参加できる企画とする
○実施内容
・円山音楽堂でのメイン集会、その周辺での関連企画
メイン集会（予定）　
開場　午後１時
アトラクション　午後１時３０分から
開会　午後２時
黙祷後、あいさつ、スピーチ（小出裕章さん＜京都大学原子炉実験所＞など）　
・集会後、京都市役所までの「バイバイ原発ウオーク」
・夜、小出裕章さんの講演会（シルクホール）＜京都府保険医協会との共催＞
○規模　円山音楽堂があふれる５０００人の参加をめざす
○賛同登録金
団体　一口２０００円　　個人　一口１０００円　（それぞれ何口でも可。）
郵便振替口座　００９１０－６－１７０７８６
（加入者名：地球温暖化防止京都ネットワーク）

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Cycling through Myoshinji Temple Kyoto

自転車で妙心寺へ

The stones are bumpy, but it is a quick shortcut.

Myoshinji Temple is a city within walls in western Kyoto.

It is also a large chunk of real estate.

For those who need to go from one side to the other, it is much quicker to walk or cycle through the temple grounds.

Fortunately, Myoshinji is open twenty-four hours a day, three hundred sixty-five days a year.

Students en route to Ritsumeikan University from Hanazono Station do so, salarymen do so, high school students do so - and even the occasional monk can be spotted on a simple "mama chari" bicycle.

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