Saturday 30 June 2007

26th June

Rotterdam- Day 2

I cycled into the centre and locked the bike to a railing. When I returned, the bike had vanished and all that was left was the broken lock lying on the ground. The thieves had tried to cut through the cable, but when that didn't work for them, they managed to break the lock section apart. I was really annoyed. out of all the hundreds of bikes lying around, it was mine, and it wasn't even it was a particularly expensive bike; it was pretty much a bottom of the range 10 year old MTB with no suspension or anything.





So..... off I trudged to the Police station to report it gone, but it seems that bike theft is rife, and the chances of getting it back are very slim. The irony of it is, only yesterday I had hummed and hawed about buying a traditional Dutch style bike, as I've wanted to own one for years, since I first visited Holland in fact, but I scolded myself that the bike I owned was perfectly good and that it would only be an extravagance! So, as fate would have, I ended up buying a Dutch bike, with it's comfortable 'sit up and beg' riding style and turned back handlebars, no brake levers on them; pedal backwards to slow down! Once I'd cycled back to the campsite on it, my spirits had lifted a bit and I'd perked up. C'est la vie, and all that.



I got packed up and made plans to head for Antwerp in Belgium.....

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