I'm surrounded by bikes and big names from the bicycle world; Cannondale, Trek, Specialised, Scott, Giant, Shimano.... The names are familiar but the context is new. The models in front of me here are fresh off the production line; shiny creations of carbon fibre and titanium with suspension forks that would look more at home on a motorbike. The four-figure price-tags would equally be more familiar to someone buying a new motorbike, in some cases a car. Touring bikes aren't popular in Portugal, at least if this trade fair is anything to go by. Mountain biking on the other hand is.
My host brought me here, the second host that is during my lengthened stay in Sintra. He and his girlfriend manage a bicycle rental and touring company here. Both largely cater to Americans with far more money than me. I'm fortunate to have met them - hospitality and humour abounds in the Quinta I've been staying in this past week. Neither are Portuguese – Martin is half-Danish, half-English, whilst Catherine is half-Belgian, half-American – I think. Both grew up in Sintra, went to University in England and speak English and Portuguese with equal fluency. It's an interesting mix.
I'm not sure either expected me to stay so long. I had visions , clearly quite vague, of departing last weekend following the final presentation I made to students in the American International School. Friday night however became Saturday morning in a nightclub where a drink cost 10 €. (I made the G+T last a while) and Sunday afternoon I found myself discovering the adrenaline rush joys of mountain biking through woodland trails around Sintra. Sunny skies turned to rain for the following few days and I realised I might as well hang around, enjoy the company and see what this bicycle fair was all about. The answer to be honest is not much, although I did enjoy a little ego-boost when someone who'd been following my journey recognised me (see picture below). Too bad he didn't work for Garmin. As much as I love maps I'm still considering the use of a GPS to chart my route through Africa, an unnecessary luxury in all reality that it is. For the next week however Martin will play map reader as he joins me on the road to Seville.
