Part 1
By Alejandro Kindsvater
Sunday, 6 may 2012.
I remember my first bicycle ride around the block, the challenge of venturing beyond my childhood home on a vehicle that I could barely control. I remember that first blow (how can I put this elegantly?); well, that blow to my sensitive parts when I tried to avoid a sudden and surprise obstacle. With My fearlessness and my lack of expertise, I paid the price with physical pain.
As I ventured beyond the pain, I remember the enthusiasm that triggered in me this little great achievement and how this excitement invited me to reach greater achievements and longer trips throughout my life. I accomplished many outings during the past years, of which helped me to arrive at the one entitling this article.
This is a Guinness record that I have not yet reached (though it has been reached by others before); however, I had my own peculiar way to complete ‘a round’ Around the World on a bicycle.If you have read my previous article, "Il Navigatore" published in Off Radar Cruise News/Crew Bar, you might remember that I work with Costa Cruises and have been sailing for many years. What I did not mention at the time, which is a big issue for me, was a factor that brought a lot of joy and oxygen to the narrow confines of the ship - the possibility to get a bicycle in every port - or almost. These vehicles are administrated by "il Prete" (the Priest) on board; which was an addition to the Priest conducting Mass in the Chapel of the ship. In this manner, he ensures the welfare and quality of life of the crew.
It was required to reserve a bike two days before a port. That was all the time needed for me to book this precious object; and with it, mobility, freedom and ability to visit more. My name was then registered on that list every time the fortune came about of an interesting area I wanted to venture with my free time. It was in this way, throughout a period of eight years, I succeeded to experience “a round” around the world on a bicycle.
More important than just a sequential chronological round, I am able through my experiential method, to visualize my pedaling within an imaginary circle connecting the dots to such diverse places as: Miami, La Gomera, Casablanca, Barcelona, Napoli , Amsterdam, Helsinki, Alexandria, Istanbul, the island of Borneo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo and last but not least Buenos Aires.
Interesting enough, I would like to give details and tidbits for each place that I bicycled; however, I personally think there is an extraordinary amount of information already out there. What I would like and prefer to do is to take this opportunity to share a small-anecdotal experience of which is one of my own personal treasures.
Starting from Miami…
Every week, strict policies and exhaustive controls were waiting for us at The Port of Fort Lauderdale which made debarkation of guests a unique experience. If we added to this the task of organizing excursions, more strict procedures were required. We expected very little available time to ride nearly 40 kilometers to reach The Star of Florida - Miami. After completing our morning task, we were exhausted from these procedures and still had to go through rigorous checks ourselves that were necessary to leave the ship, not to mention, more procedures upon our return. In conclusion, the most important asset - “time” - was scarce, highly appreciated and valued.
When one asks whether you want to reach Rome or any other destination in the world by sea or by air, I can say I wanted to reach Miami by bike. I was convinced that with the right information and a well thought out strategy, I could achieve that goal.Calculating the time available,I traveled the distance between the two cities with my bicycle successfully and securely fastened to a specifically designed attachment on the frontof a bus! After a bus change at the giant Aventura Mall and nearly two hours later, I was in the “Downtown” area of Miami enjoying the gratuitous of Skytrain (Miami’s above ground Metro). This train gave me the feeling of a “urban rollercoaster" showing me impressively angled views ofdifferent skyscrapers and the city. After an exciting half hour and recovering my bicycle that was chained back at the Bus station, I arrived in Miami Beach with my dream now a reality. So with an additional 30 minutes of fugacious pedaling down Ocean drive, I realized that this one fact alone was worth all the effort and prepared logistics to get here. A splendid juxtaposition of a moist marine breeze and the Montage of Art-Deco Architecture confirmed to me why this place is so renowned worldwide.
Time was undoubtedly running out, but to me it had stopped at this place where every detail flows at its own pace.
I found my way back to the ship by way of bus support and then passed through port procedures and controls, just in time for our magnificent sail away. That wonderful moist sea breeze would now guide us to our next destination, La Gomera, one of the most fascinating of the many beautiful islands making up the Canary Islands.
Alejandro Kindsvater
Training & Psychology specialist
