B.O.

Today was OaklaVia, the Oaklandish version of San Francisco's Sunday Streets. We did the B.O. part of the W.O.B.O. Cheryl (my biking inspiration), her husband Rich, and their friends exited SF to come play in the streets of Oakland, where it's flat! We enjoyed downtown Oakland all the way to Jack London Square and the extremities, zipping (when people were sparse), and toodling, when the population got dense, all around.

We explored the Kinetic Arts Center (think Circque du Soleil training center) and Cheryl and Rich ran into about everyone they knew (I call that irony - we're from Oakland). We stopped at a Parklet (faux grass in a parking space with chairs) in front of a small cafe. This is a new trend, call it bleeding edge, getting businesses to create mini parks in parking spots so people can enjoy the outdoors. This was extrememly popular.

We stopped to hula hoop with a group. I also learned an African dance, which was taught by the Oakland YMCA. This was a sort-of Flash Mob for healthy living. The whole experience was fantastic. By 2 p.m. I felt like we were in Amsterdam rush hour traffic with all of the bikes and pedestrians.






I'm loving Oakland as a bike friendly city - but don't tell anyone. We prefer to let people think that the streets are rife with crime. This keeps the rif-raf out.