thegreglowe.com

Though the city has potential, there are some huge road bumps that ensure it will never be enjoyable or safe for cyclists. Unless you’re a lemming

by Greg Lowe

I was having a conversation with someone in the pub the other night who explained that Thai for cyclist, “khon ki jakayaan,” also loosely translates into “lemming” — a breed of death-lusting gerbils with a reputation for diving off cliffs onto pointy, jagged rocks.

This was an astonishing revelation. I was totally hooked by the discussion, until the said bar fly-cum-linguist pointed out other alleged synonyms for our velo-centric friends such as “Guardian reader” and “toss pots.”

At this stage I realized my leg was being yanked, but why let a bad joke in a fictitious conversation that took place in a pub that doesn’t exist get in the way of things?

The point is there is something eminently suicidal about cycling in Bangkok and that grim reality is a tragedy.

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