So now I know how it feels to get wet and dirty between the legs. It did not look like it would rain today. I was wearing a short skirt and high boots and riding around the city on my Corima track bike. In the evening when I was hurrying from one appointment to the next it was raining – well actually just drizzling. I have often been cycling in the rain, even in Beijing. But this was the first time I rode my Corima bike in the rain – it does not have any fenders. So yes, I knew I would get wet from the front and back wheel. I wore my messenger bag a bit more loose so that it could touch the saddle. I was hoping that the bag would protect me from all the water coming up from the back wheel. But that was not the case. Not only was my skirt soaked around the bum, but also the front of my skirt got wet. The water running down my legs ran inside my boots (not a nice feeling).
But the most shocking experience was the amount of black dirt. Sure my boots and the messenger bag were dirty. The white top that was under my jacket and tucked into the skirt was black at the back. At home I realized that also my black skirt would have been black color just from the black dirty water. I rinsed the skirt and top for quite a while till the black dirt was all gone. That must be all of Beijing’s pollution that contaminated the rain. I have never seen such black water before.
I had to shower to get the black stains even off my bum and legs. But at least we have hot water again!
