Now, this is a funny concept. Commuter jeans? How come so many Dutch and millions upon millions of people of other nationalities have been getting about on their bikes without them up until now?

I guess as a symptom this is a good thing, bicycles are going mainstream and everybody wants a piece of the cake, not in the least Levi’s

Just to be sure, remember, your closet is already full of perfectly fine ‘bicycle specific clothes’. Put on your favourite jeans (or [insert here]), jump on your bike, and enjoy your day.

With love, from the Bicycle City, Álvaro.

Mikael recently published a set of 49 pictures called ‘Bicycles: Cyclists Signalling* a Turn or a Stop‘, 48 of which he took in Copenhagen, 1 in Amsterdam. Two examples, one of a stop & one of a turn:

Given the similarities of our two bicycle cultures (which also includes drinking habits), I figured I could match that, so I roamed my archives and found out I had the opportunity to top that figure by 1..call it symbolism :) (and I’ll get to cycling & drinking some other time).

As you obviously figured out on your own, Amsterdammers & Copenhagenianerannersuskjuians (freely translated from a Dane’s mouth chewing on raw herring with pickles) have the signaling in common, but the Dutch don’t do and have never done the stop sign. We don’t miss that, what we have works for us. Stopping just needs a little anticipation, a quick scan of your environment and it’s fine to do so. No fuss.

Or…you could just argue that the Danes are more polite, in conversation (less blunt) and in this case, regarding gesturing to their fellow human beings – leaving out the middle finger phenomenon. But…then you could counter that the Dutch are more laissez-faire, no-nonsense. Which in turn are generalizations that probably have some truth to them, but don’t do little nuances any justice. Nuances like that people on bikes in Amsterdam are so intuitive in traffic, they don’t need to read a whole lot of body language to see what’s going on or going to happen. [...] Oh right, ‘body language’. No no no, I’m not even touching that sexist filth called ‘Cycle Chic’. Ugh, what is he on, right?!? People in normal clothes on normal bikes (or vacuum cleaners, as he calls them) going from A to B, chatting about livable urban utopias and what not. Pff, you’re not fooling me.

Anyway. For those who can’t be bothered to take a look at the rest of my specially arranged photo set, here are a few more:

Oh wait, about that ‘cycling & beer’ thing;

It’s not my kind of beer, but it is my town & exactly my spirit. Now, can somebody direct me to København’s equivalent? :p

* ‘Signalling’ is British spelling. Mikael is half British, half Dane. ‘Signaling’ is North American spelling. My girlfriend is from the US…yup, that’s my excuse.

I enjoy the little details and extraordinary ordinary elements of life. Such as watching Lauren leave the house to go out on the town. By bike, of course.

Bag in basket, undo the chain lock, take out the bag & put the lock in the basket.

Put the bag right back in the basket.

Conveniently just walk the 50 meters to the bridge.

And off she goes.

She will also tell you it’s much easier to cycle than to walk in those heels. ;)

It seems like only yesterday that I enjoyed the sensation of this summer’s arrival. But alas, it’s gone, over, finito, basta. So far, that Indian Summer only reared its head once. Alas, dedicating this post to another month’s closure. Let’s see how October goes.

Nearly nothing beats going around town running errands & meeting up with people at a relaxed pace, with all the time on your hand to stop, observe and click away. Click, click, click, click. And repeat.

Overtaking can be torturous.

Couples stick together.

Families on the move.

A little help.

Maarten took some action shots of me taking bike action shots, for a feature (interview) in the Cyclists Union magazine ‘Vogelvrije Vrije Fietser‘ with little ol’ me, which will appear in the Oct/Nov issue.

Take your time.

Residential cycling & parking.

Beach cruiser a la Hollandaise.

Some think it’s quite warm…

While others basically think winter has arrived.

SIM.

Grimace.

Gotta have a hobby.

Chit/chat.

It’s green.

The abundance of the sun.

‘This tram is powered by green electricity’.

The Palace.

Cross talk.

Alert: man with hat & wind beneath your hair.

Rembrandt Corner.

Green Miles.

Mr Cool & Mrs Doubt.

I think he’s happy with his new bike.

Occupied.

Mr. Hipster.

She’s my personal favorite Flower Lady & even locals appreciate her bike when she parks it.

Ride along with dad.

Eye contact & a ‘hi’ soon after.

Second opinion & chit/chat.

Nice light.

The Headshop & Reach Out.

A Dutch circus act & sunny sms.

Nice fella, that was meant for me.

Amsterdammers DO hand signals & autumn chic colors.

And back in the Red Light District, this fella’s bike nicely matches the backdrop.

Which is silly to say, as they all do in Amsterdam.

I kind of chuckle every time I slap Mikael’s label ‘Cycle Chic‘ on something. So ironic: the simple act of cycling, simply in your everyday clothes, on a ‘normal’ bike…’chic’. ‘Cycle Chic’.

I know, I know, so I live in a country, on a continent that has mostly stuck with the ‘normalcy’ of cycling. Nothing really new has come about the last 125 years, so why change a winning (read: the most accessible/comfortable/affordable/easy) concept?

Of course the irony doesn’t stop there: I blog about it ;). Me, the Dutchie! And some say we don’t HAVE a bike ‘culture’. I say: what’s in a name?

Sometimes I get to talk about my photos & videos. I often tell people (who never heard of my work, or the thread) that it’s about ‘humanity in motion’, about “taking something simple & ordinary and show how beautiful it really is”. Or I just go the easy route & utter: “Oh, it’s street photography.”

And on Saturdays like yesterday, you just count yourself lucky, having all the right ingredients for a thrilling, mesmerizing, intoxicating mix of images of… dare I say it: people on bicycles.

I got all excited about the autumn sun draping the city…and Lauren was my victim. Just to be clear and inspirational: Lauren didn’t dress up à la Cycle Chic, she just did for the day & then hopped on her bike….just like all the others :).

But I’m spoiled. I shouldn’t care about labels as necessary evils, when I ever so often have a smile & a wave like this coming my way…

Certainly for a bike blogger. You gotta mix it up as much as possible and have fun while doing it. Or is it the other way round? ;)

When you’re moving house by bakfiets… (video post follows soon)

When SAIL comes to town…

When you’re up earlier than the birds on a rainy day, but you’re not alone…

When you have an off day, and need an escape/some soothing…

When you can’t get enough of Dam Square…

When there’s a big theme party across the bay and every Amsterdammer seems to be going there…

Blog hiatus, forced or not, life meanwhile goes on and you wouldn’t want to miss a beat.

Lauren and I moved house recently. From the Vondelpark area to.. well, the epicenter, the seediest part of town, Sodom & Gomorra, really.

I know, right?!? Hor-ri-fic! I can only show a few. You understand. Cover your children’s eyes. This is what we see when we step out and go around the corner.

You see? I trust them as far as I can throw ‘m…*

*Tongue firmly planted in cheek

“Here, to the left!” “No, to the right, mom!” Guess which way they went :).

The following pictures of people on bikes are a wee bit different, as these were shot on a Fietsmaandag*.

More wind than speed, really

“Hmmm, m’kay…”