Where would you take your kids to cycle in Singapore? Judy takes her kids to East Coast Park. Some of my friends who have a bit more space in (or outside) their house to store bicycles, do it at a local park. However, not all neighbourhood parks are ideal for cycling. Some are too small. Some have too much human traffic. Some simply have bumpy roads.
Regardless, I don't think there will be many parents who will allow 5 year old kids to cycle on the pavements in Singapore. There are simply too many cars to make that a safe option. Even in Perth, I was reluctant but I did that one evening when an idiot was blowing dust at a work site at such an intensity that the cloud engulfed half the park. So I decided to let Albany cycle on pavement.
It was more nerve wrecking that I thought. Unlike in Singapore, Perth's streets have way lesser traffic regulating systems such as traffic lights, zebra crossings and what nots. Nonetheless, you should never trust a driver in the evening to spot a small cyclist crossing his or her path. While Albany was still a wobbly cyclist in general, due to her inexperience, she could go really fast when she was on form. I became the panicky parent who had to run after her and kept her very close to me so I could stop her whenever we approached a crossing.
Boy, there were many of those along the route to Uncle Pat's house. We had to be really alert throughout and it wasn't the kind of leisure walk I originally intended. However, I have to admit, we only encountered a single situation when we had to stop for a car to cross. I thought it wasn't a bad idea to start early, so Albany get the idea of crossing the road safely with regular practice.
We reached our destination, rang the doorbell and said hi. After a chat, we headed home before it turned too chilly. Both Pat and Jo has been really kind to our family and offer a lot of support to us so far. I appreciate that very much. Hopefully I could finish my task list earlier and start inviting them over for meals more regularly, soon.
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