Getting to work sans automobile

Yesterday morning I finally got around to exploring a means of getting to the lab via bike and light-rail, for which Sun has provided me with a monthly pass. It turns out that, despite living in a sleepy residential neighbourhood, there is a major transit station (where 3 systems converge) just up the street from my apartment complex. It took me 5 minutes to bike to it. The train stops there every half-hour on weekends, although it will run twice as frequently on weekdays. I boarded the train with my bike & discovered they had a special car for bikes, which was quite heartening.

The train took about 25 minutes to arrive at downtown Mountain View, averaging about 90 seconds between stops. Apparently it works like the GTA's GO in that passengers do not need to use tickets/tokens to board but random spot checks with the threat of heavy fines are conducted to ensure that the honour system is adhered to. I tried to memorize the station names but after a while they all got muddled in my head. I'm sure they'll work their way into my mindwith time.

Once in downtown MV, there's a 5 minute trip to the start of the trail, which would have been faster if not for traffic lights. Unfortunately, I had only been on the trail for a couple of minutes when there was a construction zone that slowed me down a bit since they ask that bikes be walked through it. That took another couple of minutes to get through. However, the next section of the trail is just a long straight path flanked by dense foliage on the right and industrial wasteland on the left. This took me about 5 minutes to whiz through, as I passed many others enjoying the fresh air on foot, bike or rollerblade. Eventually I hit a fork in the path & had to ask for directions, after which I set off down the left prong.

This final section of the trail winds through some of the most picturesque scenery I've ever seen, ekeing out a path between bodies of shimmering blue water and lush natural vegetation;God's country, as it were. Unfortunately, this mesh of paths resulted in me getting lost multiple times before I found the lab. However, the return trip was less confusing by far & allowed me to determine that this leg of the journey constitutes about 10 minutes of biking.

While waiting for the train in downtown MV I wandered around in the annual wine & food festival that was underway. Lots of music, cheery people, attractive trinkets & tantalizing food; your garden-variety festival. I did come across a booth where CDs containing music of the Andes were being sold and, as usual, I had no money with which to purchase one.