Intimacy or Exposure?

I have gotten so that I can do quite a bit of thinking as I sail along on my bicycle making my way from Piusallee to the Gymnasium and back each day. The route has become familiar, the rules of the road for the two-wheelers are becoming more clear with practice, and the weather has improved somewhat. By the time you read this the weather will have changed, but never mind. Sometimes I get carried away with my thoughts. On a good day I am feeling intimate with the environment both natural and urban. On the next day I may sense an exposure which exhausts me. Or it can be all jumbled up in a sort of a pleasurable thrill at having escaped a scrape, sandwiched between an interminably long bus and a long row of parked cars. Bicyclists have quite a bit of clout here in Münster. There is a lovely long Promenade which forms a large ring paralleling the automobile Ring which circles the old city center. This Promenade is set aside for folks on bicycles. There are relatively few stop lights, there are trees to protect you from the worst of the elements and avid cyclists will go out of their way to ride here just because it is more relaxing. But actually there are bicycle paths and roads everywhere, criss-crossing the city. Sometimes you must share the space with others. My route to school takes me along "Goldstrasse" where bicycles share the space with cars which have business or reside on that street but through traffic is not allowed. I never feel nervous on this street. If a car comes up behind me, it simply slows down and waits for its turn. Many streets are lined with sidewalk space, subdivided into the red zone set aside for bicycles and the other-than-red for the pedestrians. Believe me, I have learned the hard way that red means dead or "rot ist tot". Even in the busiest shopping areas you can get through on your bike. What is perhaps most dicey however is manuvering through the old city cobble-stoned streets sharing the space equally with pedestrians, buses, taxis and delivery trucks. I saw a regular passenger car getting ticketed for driving through there during the morning commute. Granted, it is bumpy, but rather fun. Early in the morning the way is clear, the road is mine. After school however, I must pick my way through unaware tourists, busy shoppers and faster, goal-oriented cyclists.
No place to park your bicycle?! In fact, parking is somewhat regulated. Some sidewalks are so filled with bicycles that there are chains up and signs making it clear where no parking is allowed. At school there is a huge underground parking area for the students' bikes, with an additional locked cellar room for the teachers' wheels. I prefer the bike racks near the school entrance, basically set aside for teachers. Most folks lock their wheel to the frame and some of us put a plastic bag over the seat anticipating the frequent rain. There are paid city employees who patrol the sidewalks for ill-parked bicycles. They maintain a sort of order, adjusting the placement of bikes and basically improving the quality of bicycle life in Münster.
Not only do you see the occasional recumbent man on a sort of recliner bicycle, I have also seen the businessman in a three-piece suit with a back-support, cushy seat and polished frame. These are so rare even "Münsteraners" don't know what they are called. You've perhaps heard of drug pushers placing contraband in baby strollers, well, here they use the attachable baby carrier. These babies are well-designed for all cargo: swap meet booty, organically-grown veggies and strapped-in howling offspring. Don't want to hear them cry, just zip up the rain shield!