This bike shop (chari blend actually) is across from my gym in Mizue, one station away from where I live. It's not really a "serious" bike shop for true bikers, but more of one of the kind of shops that decided to get in a plethora of colourful low end bikes for the commuters who now like to ride these things, rather than the typical "mama chari" that is so common..
I love to see the colourful bikes shining out the window at night as I head home...
I wanted to show these to Max but he has no internet, no keitai email (kmail), and no way to get it to him other than post it! (no thanks). Sorry Max. Maybe next time. But I love you!
Cam
Mou...
ReplyDeleteDon't know if you explained in some other post that i might have missed (Hah! as if i ever would), but when you write your little Japanisms you might want to 'splain what da heck ya mean, yanno?
Chari?
Mamma chari vs chari blend?
omg.. I thought that said "Charli blend.." and my stomach lurched.
ReplyDeleteSTILL no internet?!!?
ReplyDeleteSpank him for me, wouldja?
Hi Jen!
ReplyDeleteP.S. LOVE... lovelovelovelove that red one.
It's typically a silver or white bike with a basket.... tres handy for carrying groceries and stuff. They're all over the place! I'll grab a pic, hang on.
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WANT!!!
ReplyDeleteship me one.
ReplyDeleteRed please.
ReplyDelete*laughs Awesome <3
ReplyDeleteThat looks just like my roomie Nikki's bike.
ReplyDeleteShe takes her dog, Gizmo in the basket.
Cute!
Here it's usually referred to as a beach cruiser as it's usually best only for flat rides.
ReplyDeleteNo gears for the hills...UGH!
So you see a lot of them cruising along the boardwalks or beach boulevards.
Nikki brought hers back from Santa Monica... big beach community in Cali.
Jen - These aren't beach cruisers. That's a completely different machine all together. These are utility machines that get you from the yochien to the kombini and the depachika all in one fell swoop.
ReplyDeleteCharli Blend... HA! I love you! Thanks for the memories!!
Jaime - You have proffered the PERFECT picture of a mama - chari. Chari is short for Charinko and a Charinko is slang for jitensha which means bicycle. They are called charin-ko because the charin charin charin is the sound that the ubiquitous bell on the handlebars makes as you get run over by a student late for class. Remember the sound, Stefnee?
Very funny, Mr. yochien-kombini-depachika.
ReplyDeleteAnd i think beach cruisers just got the name from the location of their popularity.
They are simple, heavy, pedal brake...utility bikes. No gears or anything but the bell... same cute sound... except in Engrish ;-)
I want an Orchid color one with a basket..... please.... although I loved riding your little "fold up" one... do you think they have that one in Orchid, or pink???
ReplyDeleteOrchid, Paula?
ReplyDeleteYou're such a girrll... LOL!!!
jen... flat ride.... may i remind you i live in the land of flat? when i was biking with cam, ha had to give me a lesson on shifting... i had never done it. ever.
ReplyDeleteCriminee! You never rode a ten speed???
ReplyDeleteEven flat rides can tire you out without gears. Even WITH em i avoid hills like the plague!
nope. no gears. i like simple.
ReplyDeleteBut wif gears you can zzzoom!
ReplyDeleteI got a basket and paniers for my bike after my Europe trip a few years ago. Was gonna tool around and do my fresh grocery shopping... I did... for a while...
...sigh...
Best laid plans....
mine is blue... i ride it everywhere... except to work. they won't let me.
ReplyDeleteMine is a deep red... mountain bike... twelve speed. Not really necessary fro just toolin around town but that's what i got.
ReplyDeleteInherited it from Colin when he transformed from sweet little boy to the jolly green giant ;-
I don't Really like wearing a helmet ( messes my do, yo!) but i always do, i feel weird if i don't. so making multiple stops is a pain cuz i have to go into stores with my hair a wreck or take a brush and fix it... i hate "primping" in public though.... sigh ... part vanity, part shyness.
Mostly WEIRDNESS...oy!
P.S.
ReplyDeleteYour employers are jerks!
they just don't want me to be kidnapped... since i work at a bank and live in such a huge town... everyone knows where i live... like it matters.
ReplyDeleteWeird...
ReplyDeleteAnd... like someone couldn't snatch you as you walked to your car!?!?
Its a stupid rule, but I remember being a teller and having similar odd protocols, I guess they figure you could be nabbed and the bank extorted for money. We also had a policy if someone kidnapped our children, and called the bank to tell us that we had to hold up this orange card that is placed under all the phones..... so we could alert them to call police without letting on to the person on the phone. Lame..... like you hear on the news nightly about bank employees being extorted or their families held for ransom.
ReplyDeletelike i have access to anything... everything is dual control, so kidnappers better just kidnap all of the bank employee's kids. all of em.
ReplyDeleteI know that is whats funny, we have a maximum allowed in our till and that is nothing, any real money... and its a two key venture. It was lame, because the real issue was a walk up hold up, and they didn't even have working cameras at the time. We would have had to pencil sketch our robbers!
ReplyDeleteI never could ride one of those damn things. OL
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