Biking in Amsterdam is popular. So popular that the Netherlands actually has more bikes inside the country than people. If this sounds strange to you, just think about the moment that you have a flat tire on your bike and can't get to work. What do you do? You hop on your spare bike of course! Not everyone has a spare bike, but to give you an idea, I live in a household of two, and we have three bikes---one for each of us and one spare one. It's kind of like the car situation in a lot of American households I know!

This overabundance of bikes presents a few problems of course. These range from the benign to the downright aggravating. A less serious problem is finding your bike among the other hundreds of bikes parked around it; a more serious problem is, especially in Amsterdam, bike theft. Knowing how, and with what, to lock your bike is just as essential as knowing where the bike paths are (and AREN'T--whatever you do, don't try to take your bike through the IJ-Tunnel to Amsterdam North: no bikes are allowed because, well, it's just darn dangerous in there...take the free ferry instead).

Locking your bike properly means using an o-ring in the back wheel and using a heavy-duty lock to secure the front wheel and the frame to a post or a bike rack. Don't content yourself with just immobilizing the wheels, especially if you're parking a bike in the center for a night out on the town. Always lock your bike to something strong. Just immobilizing the wheels could mean that your bike will get thrown in a canal by some teenagers out to have some fun, or it could be picked up in a van by the professionals who make their living stealing and re-selling bikes. If you can manage to keep your hands on it, your bike is one of your best friends in Amsterdam, it'll get you safely home in the middle of the night and it'll get you to class on those mornings when you've overslept. Yes, the bike is ideal, but do be careful with it!