Booklet byrne final proof

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B I C YC L E DI A R I E S an extract by DAVID BYRNE


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London is a city not on a grid plan,

being an amalgamation of former

which can be both good and bad

villages, has many centers, and

for getting around by bike. If one

activities can take place miles

kwnos the streets, well, one can,

apart from one another. As a

by taking a zigzag path, avoid the

result there can be some long and

large, busy thoroughfares that

strenuous pedals. These don’t

snake through the maze of smaller streets and, by following these smaller arteries, travel more or less as the crow flies.

However, not being a

native, I have ton consult a map

LONDON IS A CITY NOT ON A GRID PLAN, WHICH CAN BE BOTH GOOD AND BAD FOR GETTING AROUND BY BIKE

fairly often, as the winding streets

necessarily result in making a

here can lead one astray- without

trip longer than it would be on

realizing it, for example, I could

the tube, but I sometimes arrive a

be headed northwest rather than

little shiny.

west, and gradually go miles out of

my way.

years not to fill my travel days

exclusively with work, but to give

London sprawls for and

I’ve learned after many

old city. Most European capitals

myself some free time, some

are pretty compact, but London,

breathing space, so I can manage


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to retain my sanity despite the

Spitafields Market. Not the most

feeling of dislocation that comes

direct route to Whitechapel, but

with the traveling. Random

hopscotching from one marker to

wandering clears the head of the

another feels like participating in

worries and the concerns that

a giant board game- it is inmensly

might be lurking, and sometimes

satisfying. Each marker is almost

it’s even inspiring. I lean toward

within sight of the next one, so

contemporary art shows, as

progress toward my objective

that’s an area I’m involved in,

proceeds via a series of giant steps.

but medical museums, industrial museums, and the National Museum of Roller Skating in Lincoln, Nebraska, were all equally exciting and served as destinations- though often what I passed along the way was even more interesting.

[...] My route takes me

by Hyde Park, Marble Arch, Buckingham Palace, Piccadilly Circus, the theatre district, and

...


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David Byrne is is a Scottish musician and was a founding member and principal songwriter of the American New Wave band Talking Heads, which was active between 1975 and 1991. Since then, Byrne has released his own solo recordings and worked with various media including film, photography, opera, and non-fiction. He has received Grammy, Oscar, and Golden Globe awards and been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.


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