Biking in Kunming

One of my favorite memories from this summer is biking around Kunming with two CET roommates, Wei Hao and Tai Xiong. We biked to the big bus station to buy Tai Xiong's little sister a ticket home. We set off in the morning and the weather was perfect, as always taken for granted in Kunming. Three of us on cheaply bought bikes peddling away, weaving through traffic, and sprinting across intersection. We would wait for each other and sprint passed each other shouting things in Chinese that weren't always understood. It was a brilliant way to see the city, and a brilliant way to connect with friends.

I love biking in Kunming--it is so dynamic. The traffic reminds me of a reef. There are big fish and little fish. Fat buses and skinny motorcyclists. And all of us swim together on roads around the city. The little ones give way to the big ones, but all are aware--and forgiving. When a little fish, young and unwise, sprints across an intersection a bus will squeel to a halt, waiting for the kid to join the other scooterist in an effective little school, with a nudge and a smile.

We bought duck for lunch and talked about our siblings. High from the thrill of biking, our eyes were sparkly and awake. I felt like a kid again with eager playmates and a whole new world to explore.

I remember this day vividly. To biking with friends, to a new world to explore.