Happy Bicycle to You!

When we got back from Tokyo, we had a call from Sister Jolley and Sister Bybee asking for a ride to Asahi, a bike shop -- Sister Bybee, who's been here a week, needed to buy a bike. Using Google maps on their iPad, they took us on a crazy route through narrow back roads that have no business being one-way streets, much less two! Like us, they don't have a data plan, but if they pull up Google maps on wifi, they can continue to view and follow it via satellite, I think? I should figure out how it works -- but then again, it didn't work all that well! It's both reassuring and disconcerting that Sister Jolley could get so thoroughly lost, she's been in this area for four months. 

In any case, we finally found Asahi and had a great time exploring bike options. There were, oh, just a few to choose from.....

The missionaries have a couple of requirements that narrow the choice for them. Their bikes must be foldable or have a quick release front wheel, because they have to fit them in a bike bag and carry them on the train when they get transferred. Actually, the sisters are allowed to ship them, the elders have to carry theirs. So they weren't able to get what they call a mama chari (pronounced chaw-di), which is the kind of bike I'd want if I were cycling here!

These are examples of mama chari bikes -- heavy, sturdy, higher handlebars, wider, softer seat. We see them all over town, ridden by men and women. You add a child's seat on the front and back, a basket in front, electrical assist pedaling with a battery, and then it's not uncommon for the rider to have a baby in a front pack -- and  that's what we call a Japanese minivan!  I always want to take pictures when I see them on the street, but don't want to be rude -- and there isn't time to ask their permission when they're riding by. The price is in yen, the current exchange rate is 123 yen equals $1, so that 47,800 yen bike above would be about $389. 

Here's Sister Bybee and Sister Jolley with Sister Bybee's new bike and her long-suffering sales associate. What bike to buy is a tough decision that these sisters have to live with for eighteen months, and it took a long time. Sister Bybee added splash guards, a basket, headlight and taillight, a lock, a gel pad for the seat, and she is so happy. We had quite a time figuring out how we were going to get the bike home. It wouldn't fit in the trunk, we thought we could tie the trunk shut but learned that's illegal here. The bike shop offered us the use of a mini flatbed truck, if you can believe it -- they don't deliver but loan you their truck so you can take it yourself -- but at about that point Bruce realized he'd left his international driver's license in his suit coat pocket back at our apartment. He was illegal, too -- bad enough that he was driving our car, we didn't think it a good idea to use Asahi's truck.  So we put the bike in the back seat and the sisters rode the train home. Sister Bybee loves her bike and is so happy to be riding it! And yes, Scott, it's a Marin!

And here's Sister Sorensen and Sister Powell (not the Sister Powell of the mission office couple, obviously...), who we took back to Asahi the next day to get Sister Powell a bike. After much deliberation, she choose a foldable bike -- the large bar is hinged, so the bike basically folds in half and the handlebars collapse. Sister Powell (doing the peace signs) is not a cycling enthusiast at all and is very apprehensive about falling (Sister Sorensen calmly said, "Oh, you're going to fall") so she chose this bike that's closer to the ground, with a bar that will be easier to clear as she tries to not go down with the bike! This stowable bike fit in the trunk of our car, so we were able to take the sisters home -- after getting lost again, of course, and then stopping for ice cream (which was different and interesting, but that's another story....)