Bike Ride- Fengxian

A month or two ago, I joined an expatriate group called Brits Abroad in order to meet some new people, and take advantage of organized tours and activities. The organization is largely made up of women from the United Kingdom, but there are also a number of women who are from Australia, and some from the United States since the only qualification for belonging to this group is that you carry a foreign passport. I may be the lone Canadian. The average age is probably around 45 to 50 and most of these women have resided in countries other than their own for a number of years. We meet for coffee once per month, and then there are weekly card games, weekly mah jong sessions, monthly events, and then some special events.

While registering, I noticed that they had a sign up sheet for a one day bike ride to a nearby area called Fengxian (I googled this before we went and was very puzzled by the search results- it did not sound like a place to go riding). On an impulse, I signed up, and then found to my surprise, that I was really looking forward to it.


Bicycles and I are not great friends. Like any other typical North American child, I grew up on a bike. My first one was purple with a black vinyl banana seat and truly large handle bars (remember: early seventies). Since leaving childhood, and the east coast where the landscape was flatter than Summerland, I have rarely been on a bike. I bought one as a college student and even went on a weekend bike ride on various Gulf Islands with some friends. The truth is I find it hard work with not much enjoyment in the activity- now if someone proposed a ride in a flat part of France where there might also be some wineries, and I might be able to ride and sample wine with the baguette I carried in my pannier, I might fall over in my rush to agree to this ride. The photo above was my ride for the day. I had the smallest frame available (no surprise there)- I called him Simon for no real reason, except the name stuck in my head.

I was attracted to this activity for a number of reasons: it was only one day, the bikes and helmets were provided, the area was alleged to be flat, lunch was provided, but it was predominantly an opportunity to see somewhere new, the price was right, and to meet new people too. We met at the Portman Hotel on Nanjing Road at a civilized time, and were carted by microbus to the east side of the river. This area is the new part of Shanghai, and is being developed really quickly. Part of our ride was on a walkway that does not quite extend around the man made lake. We began the ride on the paved boardwalk, and then did some off roading through the bird sanctuary. Our lunch time destination was a small plaza with a great big metallic sculpture that someone said was a whale. There were also sculptures of workers and stone markers pointing in the direction of large cities in the world: I took a photo of the one with Montreal on it. The whole area was a trifle bizarre; there are many newly paved roads with sidewalks, but no actual people living there. The guide said that they are developing the entire area as a weekend getaway place; they are making beaches, and will be building cottages for sale. He expected that they would be prohibitively pricey and would be intended for foreigners or very rich Chinese. We took a break at the plaza and ate our sandwiches there. The ride back to our starting point was against the wind and through the reeds of the sanctuary.

It was a great way to spend the day. I had an opportunity to breathe in some fresh non city air, got some exercise (and a bit saddle sore despite the advanced preparation on the stationary bikes in the gym here at the apartment), saw someplace new, and met a couple of very interesting people. I'm also encouraged, despite my confession above, to consider getting back on the bike and trying some of the company's other organized tours.

I apologize for the photos that are on their side- I still have to make room on the hard drive of this computer. For now, new photographs are stored on a disc, and I cannot manipulate them- so it might require that you tilt your head a bit to see them better. Let's call it good exercise for your neck!