Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
statue, and I knew right then, as I knew my own name, that I would do everything in my
power to go to Calcutta. I wanted to see what this woman had accomplished by making the
whole world her family.
* * *
I left Kosovo and rode into the country of my parents' birth: Greece. I used to spend my
summers in Greece and was looking forward to spending some summer nights in the Greek
heartland. After crossing the border I was thankful not to have to feign love for Manchester
United with any drunken border guards. Instead, I sailed through and right into the northern
town of Thessaloniki.
And then the wind went out of my sails, or rather, the wind went out of Kindness One.
I was planning to head east to Turkey and cross the Bosporus Strait to Asia, but my little
yellow friend had other plans. I was driving through Thessaloniki, looking out at the sea,
feeling the quiet air around me. The pains of the war ravaged countries I had only just vis-
ited felt so distant here, lost against the lapping clear blue water.
After being treated to some food and gas, I hopped back onto Kindness One, only to
have the bike stop in the middle of the street, in the middle of traffic, in the middle of a
herd of honking, angry Greeks. Did I ever tell you that I don't really know how to fix a
bike? I think I did. But I will tell you again. For dramatic purposes really.
I don't really know how to fix a bike.
I pushed my bike off the main road and began asking people where the nearest mechanic
was. No one seemed to know. Finally, a local shopkeeper suggested that I go down a little
alley, where I would find a mechanic. A good one in fact. Before I left, the shopkeeper ad-
ded, “He likes money.”
He likes money? Well, let's see how much he likes someone without any.
I met Gianni. And Gianni met me. I told Gianni about my problem. Gianni didn't seem
to like where my story was going.
He looked at me and then he looked at Kindness One, disapproving of both. “Why you
go with yellow bike?”
I smiled. Trying to be as upbeat as possible as I explained, “Because it makes people
happy.”
He grunted at my response, so I thought I would hit him with my proverbial left hook:
“And when people are happy, they do nice things.”
