Honestly, I am not a big fan of biking. I learned how to ride a bike when I was younger, so I knew what I was doing, but I had only ever ridden a bike around my neighborhood with my dad. I had never ridden a bike on a main road, and definitely not while dressed nice or carrying things in my hands! But, that's what people do here. I got a bike right when I moved, and I actually bought a "youth" bike because I am so much shorter than most people in the Netherlands. I usually only bike to school, which takes me about eight to ten minutes, but otherwise, I walk everywhere. A lot of my friends laugh at me because I tell them all the time how much I don't like biking, but I think I just am still not used to it. I was lucky enough to have a car when I was at home, or when I was in college, I took buses and trains, so I've never really ridden bikes long distances. But I adapted and biked to class and the gym every single day. Now that I am done with classes and get to pick my schedule, I will usually walk to campus or to the gym because I have the time and like getting the extra exercise. My mom jokes with me and says that I'm going to ride a bike all the time when I move back home, but honestly, I'm not so sure!
Biking is everything in the Netherlands. It is completely a part of the culture and the environment. One of the great things about Dutch culture is that they put such a huge focus on being healthy. They promote eating good foods and staying active. That's really what allows them to eat friets (fries) as much as they do-they live a very active lifestyle.
