Inter/Intra-city travel

Today was a little different: I got up, skipped the gym, and biked to the Bloor train station, got on the train with my bike, arrived in Kitchener and then biked across town for an appointment.

I think that's intra- and inter- city travel? Regardless, I got to do both with my bike.

The views out the window of the Go train aren't exactly pretty yet, but every now and then you do get a nice glance.

One of the reasons I got my brompton was for days like this. I don't often have appointments in other cities, but when I do, being able to take my folding bike is always a pleasure. These days, every other train car on the Go trains can take bikes, but often, these slots are full of other bikes.

With my folding bike, I can actually take a normal seat with my bike next to me (to be fair, we take up two seats, together).

I grew up in Kitchener, but I don't visit it often. It's been a while since KW was my home. So, every time I go back I get hit by a wave of memories. I'm surprised I don't end up sobbing every time! Today, friends names from high school came rushing past, as I biked past their old homes, and schools.

It was a beautiful day to ride. I was delighted to be able to spend 90% of the ride in a bike lane or on a car-free trail. And people here just said Hi to me as I biked by. Not very normal in Toronto.

After work ended I pulled together a last minute sushi dinner with some friends in town. I found a city trail that ran parallel to a supposedly-still-in-use train track. I stopped for a photo.

I could smell someone was having a fire at one of the houses backing onto the train tracks. All the houses around me were well over a hundred years old, each with their own unique fence containing everything form manicured backyard to piles of debris. I felt the first hope for summer in that smell and those sights.

We ate too much sushi and other foods and enjoyed each other's company: friends who don't get to see each other enough. Treasure your friends, wherever they live.

I got on the bike and took the same trail back home watching the clouds turn a deep purple, the sun lighting up apartment buildings like mirrors, sat and read until my train was ready to take me back home.