Thursday, September 22, 2005

Critical Mass Budapest ---AutoMentesNap--A Day without Cars

A BetsySelect Editorial

critical mass n.


1. The smallest mass of a fissionable material that will sustain a nuclear chain reaction at a constant level.

2. The amount of matter needed to generate sufficient gravitational force to halt the current expansion of the universe.

3. An amount or level needed for a specific result or new action to occur: “The sudden national uproar over drugs and drug abuse has reached politically critical mass in Washington” (Tom Morganthau).

http://www.answers.com/topic/critical-mass

After typing the names and populations of 1,365 Hungarian cities into my lovely database, I decided to take a stroll down Andrássy Utca to check out the Critical Mass AutoMentesNap (A Day without Cars). While my friends were organizing the Critical Mass day in Durham, North Carolina, expecting probably a couple hundred bikes today, I estimate that 3,759 bikers converged on Hösök Tere to support biking in Budapest. Now, please dont quote me on that estimate, although ive had several careers in the counting field (e.g., US Census bureau, RGIS Inventory Specialist and Mt. Rainier Amphibian Counter Extraordinaire), im a bit out of practice and bikes move, making it all the more difficult. Unlike North Carolina, the Budapest police shut down the main biking route to cars and let the bikers bike.

For those of you who are not familar with Critical Mass, it is an international movement ...."Critical Mass is not an organization, it's an unorganized coincidence. It's a movement ... of bicycles, in the streets." (http://www.critical-mass.org/).



Anyways, one of my hungarian friends, Kinga, a dramaturg at the National Theatre (yeah, i hear that that is an English word, although i sure as hell dont know what it means, something about managing the theatre, reading and accepting scripts etc. if you really want to know about dramaturgy check out http://www.dramaturgy.net/dramaturgy/what/List.html, quite helpful) anyways, Kinga was doing critical mass, and i wanted to check out the happenings on Andrássy utca myself.

For those of you in the states, Andrássy utca is a tree-lined boulevard with many beautiful mansions and embassys, similar in feel to the embassy neighborhood in DC. It is also home to the Opéra House (above).


The bikers convened at Hösök Tere (above). After walking my somewhat lazy (but getting more firm) american butt all of the way from my flat to the square while watching several thousands bikers burn multiple calories, I was feeling a bit ravashed. A big salty, cheesey pretzel seemed to be the answer.

On the other side of town Ambassador Walker (President George Bush's first cousin) was also doing some peddling----of the latest in Cadillacs (Cadillac XLR V8 Northstar priced at $120,000, 18 MPG City / 26 MPG Highway) in hopes of turning Budapest into the next Houston.

"These cars are distinctive, memorable and good, and you should all buy one."
Amb. George H. Walker III
(BudapestSun.com)

2 Provocations:

At 2:29 PM, Blogger Smatt said...

Hi, great blog here. I found you because I am applying for a Fulbright right now. I'd love to chat about that with you. Feel free to visit my blog at www.thepuzzler.blogspot.com or if you feel comfortable emailing about the experience of applying or the experience of actualizing a project, please do so at smattathias@gmail.com. Take care!

 
At 5:13 AM, Blogger Killea said...

Yay for Car Free Day! In my town too!

 

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