Bike Me

"Four wheels move the body. Two wheels move the soul."

I've always wanted to write an entry about riding a superbike and today I learned (again) a valuable lesson.
I am currently in Dubai on holiday. When I used to live here and owned my own bike, we used to go on regular bikeruns (riding in a group with fellow bikers to a specific destination and have breakfast/lunch together) We reunited today and aimed for Hatta Fort Hotel, a gorgeous oasis surrounded by the Hatta mountains. It was a different ride. Little sandstorms greeted us everywhere and I wondered if going slow or going really fast was better. I was afraid. Fear is no state in which a biker should find him/herself. While going down a highway at 200kph, I think how insane it must be if one of the wheels had to burst, or the chain came off, or someone changes lane without seeing me, or, or, or... And when I get over this feeling, I go a bit faster and rather enjoy the ride. There is a saying that: "only a biker knows why a dog likes to stick his head of out the window' :) There is something absolutely mindblowing about feeling the wind at that kind of speed on your bare body, knowing you are in the open, fragile and then you go a little faster. The road to Hatta is full of twisties (you know, those wide winding roads straddling the mountains) and for a moment I feel like Rossi - I look at the turn ahead of me, I look where it starts, where it ends, I estimate the angle, I change gear, I brake a little so that the weight of the bike sinks into the surface, I shift my bum and body to the side, tilt my head a little and then bam! Lean machine. What a beauty! Those bikes understand twisties. They are true iron horses! Whip it some more and see it goes.

Bikers, I believe, are better motorists. We have to know what other people are up to. We know who is behind us, what 5 cars in front of us are doing, left, right and find ourselves in constant peripheral vision. Especially on a highway like Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai, I find myself calculating space & time & energy particularly when I'm in competition with myself or another biker. In highway cases, you have to go with the flow of the traffic, right - so you analyze the speed of different lanes and then match that with the space between cars in order to overtake them, in a continuous manner. I LOVE doing this! And my favourite was when I came back from a yoga class feeling all zen and calm and sped down this highway as if I was in a video game. Yes, I'm sure you're reading this thinking, perhaps judging, how mad we are, but it's doing what I love and it's overcoming fear.

So, back at the sandstorms of today. On the way back after breakfast, I slowed down because my borrowed jacket was too big for me making me into a human kite. So I fell behind and the boys didn't wait for me (they'll usually wait at exits and round-abouts) And I took a wrong turn. At first, I was upset and blamed them, and then accepted that it would've been really unpleasant waiting for someone through a sandstorm anyway. Even though the turn said "Dubai", it was just one loooong tar road dividing the ocean of sand. It looked like an orange river flowing, and softly sandblasting my face (it managed to get into my helmet). There I was, alone, tired, lost in the desert and not one single soul or sign to get me back on track. Then I realized our options in life. There is ALWAYS an option. In my case today, I could've given up (which would've meant letting go of the bike and falling) My hands were hurting and cramping. Or I could've stopped (which would mean I stand there in the sandstorm holding up a bike without a free hand to make a call) So my choice was to look into those ripples of sand and persevere, go through it and know I will come out fine at the other side. This was not like in the movies. This was not easy. I was on that road for hours, keeping my bike up against the wind, letting sand scratch my eyeballs, letting the heat of the day drip down my back. But I talked to myself, I sang, I focused and stayed confident (even when I wanted to cry), and I remembered that sometimes we feel lost in life and that we want to give up, give in. But honey, you sometimes gotto go through the storm to see the rainbow (in my case a shower and drinking water).

The experience reminded me that I am a tawwe koekie (tough chick) and that I can achieve whatever I put my mind to (if I focus on the sandstorms, life will throw more sandstorms at me) This goes for when you ask god/the universe to teach/give you patience and it throws a big queue at the bank back at you. You might be blinded by frustration to actually see this perfect opportunity to teach you patience. The experience reminded me that we can't always be in control. All these outside factors made me look inside. I was one with my bike and one with the universe. And then I found my way back. I survived and I was thankful.

I am thankful for all the opportunities I have realized in my life. I am grateful for friends to whom I'm so different from and totally accept me the way I am and sometimes allow a friendly debate. I also thank the friends who happily have my name on their bikes and have it available to me when I visit! May these appreciations ripple through my universe and create a reciprocal gratitude effect.

Now, let me go put my high heels and lipstick on :)
Cheers


"I'd rather be riding my motorcycle thinking about God than sitting in church thinking about my motorcycle."

People and friends from all over the world

It's the first week of Spring and I survived the horrific Winter fashion, haha! It is common to see locals wear two-toed socks with their sandals and sarees, older ladies wearing beanies that say “Canada' on it, open tummies with a scarf, men with sleeveless woolen glitter sweaters, and cows, dogs and goats wearing jerseys. What a hilarious spectacle!

Diwali is a festival and celebration comparable to Christmas to Westerners and I experienced this for the first time. Imagine (really imagine) an entire country lighting fireworks all at the same time for 2 days non-stop. It's like something out of a movie, a war-zone - distant, nearby, noisy and everywhere you go. I'm used to seeing fireworks perhaps twice a year – New Year's Eve being one. Here it's at EVERY wedding (I've been to MANY), every celebration, every festival (and there are many) and every time you feel like it. The dogs & cats are freaked out and the earth is disgustingly polluted and littered as people just leave the packets and residue lying around. It killed it for me. Fireworks will not light up my face with a smile anymore.

And then there was Holi – the festival of colours. On this day, people throw and smear coloured powder (more potent mixed with water) on each other. It's a playful, colourful & fun event, although it leaves a dark mark on the environment. There are chemicals and oxidized metals in those powders, it's poor for your health and skin and stains everything it gets in contact with. It probably takes a year to degrade just in time for the next Holi, haha.

I don't mean to sound negative as much as realistic. Tourists who travel to India often say how nice and positive the people here are and that even though traffic is mad, they rarely make accidents. It is, afterall, a funny, unusual experience. But, reality check!! People are miserable and there are nasty accidents, DAILY and a life almost means next to nothing (I often see pictures of dead persons in the newspaper appealing for identification). It's a 'sweep the dirt under the carpet' attitude. Thing is, no one will ever say anything bad about India when asked about their experience. I gave my honest opinion once when asked, and I thought my head would be chopped off. So defensive!
A lot of celebrities come here all the time, which is pretty cool – it's like, ah, Lady Gaga this week (whom I saw live by the way) and Oprah the next.

I have been given the amazing opportunity to model in India. Just when I thought I'm over the hill for that, I found myself catwalking in Fashion Week. It was a dream come true!

I'm a celebrity, get me out of here....