Yuan's Bike
My friend Yuan and I go out on her bike around Qingdao. She bought it for 700 RMB – 60$; it dates back to the late 70s. I love the freedom, the old leather seat and Yuan’s road cunning. She told me how you see things so differently on a bike, how intimate life becomes. On the road Life is different, perhaps more compelling. We push along the pavement, weaving in and out of the Harvest Moon celebrating crowds. Little kids press sticky, fishy-licked fingers into our sides, a baby pulls at Yuan’s hat, the seafront pavement lost and bewildered amongst the loud and happy throng. A bucket of food Meat line Chair time I might leave China next year. I think about this as we fly along the backstreets which look more Central Asian than the main Qingdao drag. I begin to ache as if already saying goodbye to my dear loved ones. I feel a real pain in my heart. So why now, so soon…the journey seems to have only just begun? Is it the upheaval in Europe that is